1. Organize meat in freezer by dividing each product into type: ground beef, chicken, seafood, deli-meat, pork & ham, beef, etc. Put each meat into its own plastic basket labelled with a laminated card. This will make locating supper a snap. Replenish newly bought meat, by placing it onto the bottom of the container so that everything is used in the order it was bought.
2. Store cheap measuring cup sets inside bins. One entire measuring cup set in the flour bin, another set inside the sugar, whole wheat flour, icing sugar etc. Bring your mixing bowl to the correct bin and always have the right cup for measuring ingredients. No need to wash measuring cups after each use, simply toss them back into the correct bin.
3. Before plunging into a new recipe, line up all of the ingredients on the counter and remove each lid. Close each lid after it is used, this way you do not need to wonder whether you already added that ingredient to the recipe.
4. Proper disposal of used cooking oil is an important waste-management concern. Oil is lighter than water and tends to spread into thin and broad membranes that hinder the oxygenation of water. Because of this, a single litre of oil can contaminate as much as 1 million litres of water. Also, oil can congeal on pipes causing blockages. Because of this, cooking oil should never be dumped on the kitchen sink or in the toilet bowl. The proper way to dispose of oil is to put it in a sealed non-recyclable container and discard it with regular garbage.
5. Enjoy bread longer when you buy the freshest loaves. Did you know that bread is delivered fresh to the stores five days a week? Commercial bakeries colour-code each day's production with a different colour plastic clip. Always buy the loaf with the twist tie or plastic clip indicating the most recent delivery date. Monday-Blue, Tuesday-Green, Thursday-Red, Friday-White, Saturday-Yellow.
6. When making sandwiches for lunches, wrap lettuce and tomatoes in waxed paper or plastic wrap, instead of adding them directly to the bread. This way when lunch comes around there are no soggy veggies taking up space between the slices.
7. When preparing stuffed ground beef peppers, cut the peppers crosswise instead of lengthwise, leave the seeds in each pepper to add flavour to the beef. This allows each pepper to fit nicely inside a muffin tin before baking. Fill peppers with cooked hamburger meat, before baking.
8. If you purchase ice cream but don't often use it, wrap the container in aluminum foil to prevent ice buildup on ice cream. (Ugh, I just caught a chill).
9. Messy, messy ice cream. Slip a chocolate chip into the bottom point of the cone to prevent ice cream from dripping out. My motto: You can never go wrong with chocolate.
10. Lumpy gravy got you down? Blend 1 tsp. salt into the flour or cornstarch (depending on what you use) before adding water. Tip: Darken and liven up gravy by adding 1 tsp. instant coffee to the roasting pan.
11. Put your grater to good use. Grate hard-boiled eggs for egg salad sandwiches instead of slicing or mashing. What a grate tip!
12. Need soft butter but forgot to take it out of the fridge? Been there. Measure the correct amount of butter and grate it with your cheese grater. Small pieces of butter are easy to work with. Or shave butter with a carrot peeler and shape into roses (that's getting very Martha Stewart).
13. Speaking of eggs, want to make a speedy breakfast for the entire family? Break up eggs into a non-stick baking pan, add a little water or milk and whisk. Bake in the oven (350 degrees) until eggs are the desired firmness. Season and serve. Sooo, simple!
14. Cheese will not harden as quickly if you butter or oil the exposed cut edges before storing in the refrigerator.
15. Before barbecuing shrimp, thread them onto two skewers instead of one; this keeps the shrimp from spinning around when you turn them on the 'que.
Solutions, is compiled from various sources: en.wikipedia.org, daringyoungmom.com, rogerandbrenda.com. Thanks to all who sent in tips and tricks! Similar information may be found elsewhere.
Solutions Sleuth, Reena Nerbas is a home economist and speaks professionally on the topic of household challenges; she is also the author of two national bestsellers, Household Solutions 1 with Substitutions and Household Solutions 2 with Kitchen Secrets. She can be heard on radio programs across Canada and seen on the CBC TV show Living Winnipeg.
www.householdsolutions.org
