3 Healthy Recipes To Use Almost-Expired Foods!


Greetings fellow foodies, welcome once again to the Savour! blog. In light of everything that’s going on with Covid-19, we believe our enterprise is more important than ever in helping the more vulnerable communities right here in Singapore. So, today we want to give you all a better idea of who we are, what we do and some fun tips on food and food waste.

Watch this video where Savour!’s team distributed expiring food to the community here 👉 https://youtu.be/ZvitD7FYgE8

Savour! is a social enterprise that was started by a team of NUS, SUTD and SMU students to tackle the issue of food wastage in Singapore. It may surprise you but, Singapore has been generating large amounts of food waste in the last decade. In 2019, Singapore generated approximately 744 million kg of food waste — this is equivalent to 2 bowls of rice per person per day, or around 51,000 double decker buses.

If you’re still wondering why managing food waste is important, here’s why: when food is wasted, more food must be produced to meet demand and hence more resources must be consumed to not only produce food but also to manage delivery and disposal. Singapore is already a resource-challenged country so increased food waste can seriously deplete resources given how import-centred we are.

This is where Savour! comes into play. Our platform digitalises procurement so merchants can donate or sell their surplus products that are either expiring or visually unappealing rather than throwing it away. It’s an ideal situation for everyone involved because the food can reach various beneficiaries like charity organizations who will then distribute the food to low-income households, all while reducing food wastage, our carbon footprint and doing good for society. Our team is dedicated to this cause because we truly care about sustainability and the environment and we want to empower those in need.

Some of you might think, ‘There has to be a catch! How can people give away food at such low prices or even for free? Maybe the food is spoiled!’ Rest assured all the merchants that list their products on our platform will have to specify if their products are expiring and its expiry date. Traditionally, our ‘expiring foods’ usually have several months more before they expire and are all completely edible and safe for consumption. In fact, we pride ourselves in procuring healthier food options like everyday groceries.

We have a fine selection of fruits and vegetables along with other staple foods for a balanced, healthy diet. Some types of food are misunderstood because they don’t look as pretty as they normally do but we want to take this opportunity to show you some unique ways you can utilize such foods in common recipes and help you get started on your own journey to reducing personal food wastage.

3 Healthy Recipes To Use Almost-Expired Foods

The key thing to note about these recipes is that how the food looks or how close it is to expiration does not matter because they are all still edible and once combined with other ingredients, you’ll realise they taste the same anyhow! Give it a go!

1. Tofu Scramble

Ingredients: Hard tofu, any vegetables you have (eg. tomatoes, peppers, cauliflower), salt, pepper and your preferred sauces

This recipe is incredibly quick and easy to make and you can utilise ‘ugly’ vegetables that might be bruised. Simply cut away the ‘ugly’ parts and wash the rest of the veggie and it is good to go!

Steps:

  1. Chop up tofu and vegetables
  2. Stir fry the vegetables in a pan until they become slightly soft
  3. Add in your choice of spices and sauces for more flavour
  4. Lastly, throw in the tofu and mix evenly with the vegetables for 2 minutes and enjoy!

sauce product listing on Savour! on Savour!’s platform:


2. Banana Jam

This recipe is perfect for those pesky bananas that always seem to get ripe too quickly before you get the chance to finish eating them. Never fear, we can use these overripe bananas and make some delicious jam. You can even use bruised lemons and extract its juice in this recipe. This is a healthier alternative to store-bought jams that are usually loaded with sugar.

Ingredients: Mashed overripe bananas, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract, cinnamon

Steps:

  1. Combine mashed bananas, sugar, and lemon juice in a pan over medium/medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and stir occasionally, until it becomes a thickened paste(about 15–20 minutes).
  2. Reduce heat to low. Add vanilla and cinnamon, to taste.
  3. Remove from heat and let it cool before storing in glass jars. Keep in the fridge until consumption.

Sugar product listing on Savour!’s platform:


3. Homemade Cottage Cheese

Don’t be skeptical of what we’re about to say next but we can use expired milk to make cottage cheese! Of course, please don’t use that glass of clumped up milk you’ve left outside for weeks. If the milk is only slightly expired and doesn’t smell pungent you can make cottage cheese with it. It’s the perfect side to go along with some fresh fruit.

Ingredients: 1 litre of Milk, juice of 1 lemon, salt

Steps:

  1. Boil milk in a saucepan, once boiling remove from heat.
  2. Add the lemon juice and salt. Stir well and set aside
  3. After about 5 minutes, the milk will begin to separate into curds and whey (a watery liquid), although it may take longer than 5 minutes.
  4. Once the curds have completely separated from the whey, strain through a sieve, reserving the whey. This whey can be added to lemonade or even made into a tart!
  5. Rinse the curd in the sieve under a cold tap to cool it. Push down to squeeze out as much water as possible. Your cottage cheese is now ready to eat.

Milk product listing on Savour!’s platform:

If you’ve noticed, most of these recipes are quick and easy to make and don’t require many ingredients. It is a small step towards leading a less wasteful lifestyle but we hope you’ll join us on this path towards a better Singapore.