Grocery price rises: How to make the most out of your produce

Making most of produce - hero By Assortment For Be Well

With food prices climbing and the reality of climate change on our doorstep, there is no better time to ensure you are making the most of your produce. Assortment has some easy tips to help keep your produce fresher for longer so it ends up on your plate, not in the landfill - helping you save money and the planet while doing so!

Storage

● Where you store your produce is as important as how you store it. Fruit and vegetables should be stored separately, as many fruits emit ethylene gas when they ripen, which in turn causes some vegetables like lettuce to ripen at an accelerated rate.

● No one likes soggy, limp lettuce or leafy greens! To avoid this, store them in an airtight container lined with a clean tea towel to absorb water and to keep them crisp.

● Root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potato, onion and pumpkin should all be stored in a cool, dry place. Carrots, turnips and beetroots are best kept in the fridge.

● Herbs are the holy grail of flavour and help transform any dish, so it's important we take good care of them. We suggest either storing them in a glass jar with water in the fridge or wrapping tender herbs like parsley, basil and coriander in a clean tea towel and storing them in an airtight container in the fridge.

Ice baths

● When produce looks a little limp, simply submerge in some iced water for 10-15 minutes before patting dry (this is particularly good for celery) - you'll be surprised at the difference this makes.

Utilise your freezer

● To freeze excess vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, carrots and pumpkin before they spoil, blanch, then place on to a tray and into the freezer (freezing them on a tray first prevents one big ice ball forming). Once frozen, place into a reusable freezer bag - now you have pre-cut, cooked vegetables to add to stir-fries, soups and pan-fried sides.

● Freeze leftover herbs. For tender herbs, roughly chop and place them in ice cube containers, along with a little olive oil, allowing you to add a pop of flavour to a dish as you need. For woody herbs like thyme, rosemary and sage, place in an airtight container and then into the freezer, ready for your next bolognese or slow-cooked dish.

● Food scraps aren't just for your worm farm. When cooking, we keep vegetable scraps, like the ends of carrots, onions and celery bottoms. Once you have enough, you can make a delicious vegetable stock.

Use up all the bits and bobs

● Frittatas, curries, stir-fries, soups, or vege-packed fritters often use a variety of vegetables which is why they make the perfect candidate for a fridge raid meal, using the bits and bobs left lying around. Our spiced vege and chickpea fritters below are the perfect example.

● Pestos and dips are like "CPR" for your wilted tender herbs. Try our herby smashed pea pesto below, which uses any fresh herbs you have on hand, frozen peas and a few other pantry staples. Not only do you end up using your herbs, but you now have a delicious spread to add to toast, veges, meats and cheese platters.

Photo / Supplied

SPICED VEGE AND CHICKPEA FRITTERS WITH GARLIC YOGHURT SAUCE

Under 30 minutes, serves 4

Fritters
400g tin of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 broccoli, cut into florets
¼ cauliflower, cut into florets
3 eggs
1 lemon, zest
1 Tbsp curry powder
50g feta, crumbled
½ cup flour
Salt and pepper
Coconut oil, for cooking
Garlic yoghurt sauce
½ cup greek yoghurt
1 lemon, juice
1 small garlic clove, crushed
To serve
1 red chilli, finely sliced
½ cup fresh coriander, roughly chopped
¼ cup roasted cashews, roughly chopped

1. Get started by steaming the cauliflower and broccoli. Add the cauliflower to a steamer and steam for 3 minutes before adding the broccoli, then steam for another 3-4 minutes, or until they are both cooked to al dente. Once cooked and cool enough to handle, roughly chop to the consistency of rice.
2. While the vegetables are cooking, mash the chickpeas using a potato masher or fork until they form a chunky crumb texture.
3. Add all the fritter ingredients to a large bowl and mix well to combine.
4. Heat a large frypan over medium heat, add a generous amount of coconut oil and cook the fritters (about ¼ of a cup per fritter) for 2-3 minutes on either side or until golden and cooked through.
5. Place the cooked fritters in the oven at 100 degrees fan bake to keep warm, while you cook the remaining fritters and prepare the yoghurt garlic sauce.
6. To make the garlic yoghurt sauce, simply place all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well to combine.
7. Serve the fritters with a dollop of yoghurt, a little chilli, coriander and roasted cashews.

Photo / Supplied

HERBY SMASHED PEA PESTO ON SOURDOUGH

Under 15 minutes, serves 4

8 slices of sourdough
Olive oil
4 Tbsp dukkah or seed topping
Pea pesto
1 cup peas, defrosted
1 cup fresh herbs, we used coriander and mint
½ cup roasted almonds
1 lemon, juice
3 Tbsp tahini
3 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

1. Place all the pea pesto ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until combined but still a little chunky; season to taste. Set aside until you are ready to serve.
2. Lightly toast the sourdough and drizzle with olive oil, top with the herby smashed pea pesto and sprinkle over dukkah or seed topping.

Laura Bedwell and Nikki Crerar run Assortment. Catch them on Instagram @assortment___ or head to assortmentfoods.com for more.