"some have a very socialist vibe, but food doesn’t get wasted and more people eat."
What do you mean ”but”? Don’t you mean ”so”? ;-)
My brother and sister-in-law just bought a house not far from us in France (I've been here for 45+ years). I sent them the link to this article. My sister-in-law admired our habit of using up leftovers. I thought (after decades here) ”doesn’t everyone do that?” The apps will help us up our game!
The food way of life here in France -- shopping habits AND the size of my refrigerator/freezer -- have guided me to become more anti-gaspi than I've ever been. I rarely throw away any food, partly because I can see everything in my fridge and remember buying it, because it was just days ago. The ends and bits from veggies take up precious freezer space for vegetable broth. We routinely have lunches we call Week in Review.
I throw very little away. We always have leftovers. My husband and I are kinda known for it, lol.
I remember the first time I was at my best friend's house in college. We had dinner with her parents and when we were cleaning up after she threw like (in my opinion) 3 good meals away. My jaw dropped and I literally gasped, "what are doing?". She never ate leftovers - yet anyway :)
I don't eat meat anymore, but always have a ton of veggies. My mainstay is a stir fry.
A tad of sesame oil in the wok. Add things like onions, celery and peppers -whatever needs saving - to create the base, then anything else, from spinach to carrots or whatever (I will sometimes lightly steam carrots or other hard vegetables like parsnips ahead, so they cook aligned with the rest timing wise). Note to always add leafy things last - it's be fresher looking and tasting. I tend to include a protein like edamame or beans to bulk it up. Main spices I use - salt, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, a mixed spice like Braggs 24 (US) or Herbes de Provence - then and either Chinese 5 spice or turmeric. I also highly recommend having Braggs coconut aminos always on hand, fish sauce can be a good one as well depending on the flavor profile you want.
If someone wants meat it can always be added after, or the stir fry can just be a side. Nothing goes to waste - or extremely little at least.
I like how you guys cook. It bums me out when veggies go to waste, the straw mushroom lost in the crisper, the cucumber we forgot about , onions sprouting away.
No sense wasting it, but I’ve known a lot of people who just throw out food once it’s gone cold, basically.
There’s a whole thing I’ve been meaning to write about pre-refrigeration preservation in France. So many restaurants here have very little storage space, so smaller bistros shop daily. One by my old apartment said they went out twice a day
I do like a ribollita, which is the Italian version of pot au feu. You pop the crusty bread in the bottom and pour over the soup. We had an amazing one, one wintry night in Florence, and I do not know whether it was the beautiful, empty city and the coziness of it all, but it was just delicious. As we grow a fair amount of Cavalo Nero it is just the ticket here. https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables/rae-s-ribollita/
So much of a good meal is about the situation, the timing of the meal, all of that. One reason why it’s hard to replicate at home. For me, it’s the pantry that makes it. I know it’s a French classic, but the only thing that makes it specifically French is where the ingredients are coming from. How many culture boil veg and meat in a pot for hours?
We just went to an Asian market here that covered everything from Korean, to Thai, Cambodian, a bit of African and Guadalupe, a good part of India and Sri Lankan stuff. These flavors are hard to come by here.
Love the theme here! I’m a fellow expat living in France, and a big anti-gaspi market produce buyer. But I didn’t know of some of the programs you discussed in this post! Thank you for sharing, especially enjoyed the philosophical side :)
I have to say, it’s not like we ever get to most of our groceries that quickly either. The pot au feu I’m making tomorrow, let that slow cooker work all day with some cheap cuts and veggies and it’s magic in a few hours.
Anti gaspi stuff also helps us prioritize a bit or buy things we might normally get.
And thanks about the philosophy! A lot of us think about food, I imagine.
Definitely thinking about food in ways I never had before, love the creative aspect of prioritizing things which might be closer to their limit and coming up with new dishes as a result! Hope you enjoyed the pot au feu, still have yet to attempt that one myself!
Not a hard dish, but a slow dish. A few simple variations did a lot. I seared the meat off out of habit, but it’s not needed for this. Our final version had a serious 1960s feel but really nice.
"some have a very socialist vibe, but food doesn’t get wasted and more people eat."
What do you mean ”but”? Don’t you mean ”so”? ;-)
My brother and sister-in-law just bought a house not far from us in France (I've been here for 45+ years). I sent them the link to this article. My sister-in-law admired our habit of using up leftovers. I thought (after decades here) ”doesn’t everyone do that?” The apps will help us up our game!
They can be hit and miss, I use maybe 1 in 10 listed. Fruit and veg spots are often good as are bakeries.
And for me , the socialism is a bit of a perk. Maybe I should edit that.
As I am in Italy right now, they’re very good about it overall.
The food way of life here in France -- shopping habits AND the size of my refrigerator/freezer -- have guided me to become more anti-gaspi than I've ever been. I rarely throw away any food, partly because I can see everything in my fridge and remember buying it, because it was just days ago. The ends and bits from veggies take up precious freezer space for vegetable broth. We routinely have lunches we call Week in Review.
I really like the Week in Review. We just call is a Fridge Cleanout. Not quite as nice, it seems to me.
And it is a perk to seeing everything in your fridge. Our old US fridge could have been another living space
I throw very little away. We always have leftovers. My husband and I are kinda known for it, lol.
I remember the first time I was at my best friend's house in college. We had dinner with her parents and when we were cleaning up after she threw like (in my opinion) 3 good meals away. My jaw dropped and I literally gasped, "what are doing?". She never ate leftovers - yet anyway :)
I don't eat meat anymore, but always have a ton of veggies. My mainstay is a stir fry.
A tad of sesame oil in the wok. Add things like onions, celery and peppers -whatever needs saving - to create the base, then anything else, from spinach to carrots or whatever (I will sometimes lightly steam carrots or other hard vegetables like parsnips ahead, so they cook aligned with the rest timing wise). Note to always add leafy things last - it's be fresher looking and tasting. I tend to include a protein like edamame or beans to bulk it up. Main spices I use - salt, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, a mixed spice like Braggs 24 (US) or Herbes de Provence - then and either Chinese 5 spice or turmeric. I also highly recommend having Braggs coconut aminos always on hand, fish sauce can be a good one as well depending on the flavor profile you want.
If someone wants meat it can always be added after, or the stir fry can just be a side. Nothing goes to waste - or extremely little at least.
I like how you guys cook. It bums me out when veggies go to waste, the straw mushroom lost in the crisper, the cucumber we forgot about , onions sprouting away.
No sense wasting it, but I’ve known a lot of people who just throw out food once it’s gone cold, basically.
There’s a whole thing I’ve been meaning to write about pre-refrigeration preservation in France. So many restaurants here have very little storage space, so smaller bistros shop daily. One by my old apartment said they went out twice a day
It’s amazing how much food people still waste. A smaller fridge definitely has changed our thinking.
If you can make time, you can save money.
I do like a ribollita, which is the Italian version of pot au feu. You pop the crusty bread in the bottom and pour over the soup. We had an amazing one, one wintry night in Florence, and I do not know whether it was the beautiful, empty city and the coziness of it all, but it was just delicious. As we grow a fair amount of Cavalo Nero it is just the ticket here. https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables/rae-s-ribollita/
That sounds fantastic.
So much of a good meal is about the situation, the timing of the meal, all of that. One reason why it’s hard to replicate at home. For me, it’s the pantry that makes it. I know it’s a French classic, but the only thing that makes it specifically French is where the ingredients are coming from. How many culture boil veg and meat in a pot for hours?
We just went to an Asian market here that covered everything from Korean, to Thai, Cambodian, a bit of African and Guadalupe, a good part of India and Sri Lankan stuff. These flavors are hard to come by here.
Love the theme here! I’m a fellow expat living in France, and a big anti-gaspi market produce buyer. But I didn’t know of some of the programs you discussed in this post! Thank you for sharing, especially enjoyed the philosophical side :)
I have to say, it’s not like we ever get to most of our groceries that quickly either. The pot au feu I’m making tomorrow, let that slow cooker work all day with some cheap cuts and veggies and it’s magic in a few hours.
Anti gaspi stuff also helps us prioritize a bit or buy things we might normally get.
And thanks about the philosophy! A lot of us think about food, I imagine.
Definitely thinking about food in ways I never had before, love the creative aspect of prioritizing things which might be closer to their limit and coming up with new dishes as a result! Hope you enjoyed the pot au feu, still have yet to attempt that one myself!
Not a hard dish, but a slow dish. A few simple variations did a lot. I seared the meat off out of habit, but it’s not needed for this. Our final version had a serious 1960s feel but really nice.
Thanks for the input! Glad it turned out well, sounds like a perfect dish for this burgeoning autumn 🍂