Recycling Project

Ever think what we can do with containers like these? Many of us throw them once they have been used. My late mother always reminded me not to waste things, food or even money. I remembered she would wash jam jars just to use it for other purposes. And she was really good at it. My mother-in-laws also had the same practice of washing jam jars and other containers and later they'll be used to keep other things.

 

Here are  typical containers use to store fermented fish, prawn for stock (don't know when I can prepare it) and ice in my late mother-in-laws kitchen. They may be used once or twice but later they need to be thrown away though. It may be easy for us to just throw them away but have a thought or two before deciding to "get rid" of them.

Label them up

Wonder what with all these images? These are containers that are labeled to ease in finding necessary things for my guess or in-laws when I'm not in the house. Often my in-laws pay their visit to the house (of their mother's) I'm staying. They sometimes cook breakfast/ lunch/dinner while I'm away. Or perhaps they want to cook something. They can make themselves at home and find necessary things that they need in the kitchen cabinet (-  no wonder it looks old. It's custom made and was built in the 70's). It's very useful when I label the containers like the ones shown above. So there's no excuse not finding the things that they want for cooking. Or perhaps they may not be anymore question like, "Mana  la si *** letak garam/ gula ni?". "Teh letak kat mana?".  I remembered my belated mother said, "Kalau anak dara [sejati] bila kat dapur, dia pandai cari sebarang benda nak masak". Well, partly I agree with my mom's idea. I suppose by labeling these containers not only that it is easy to find things you want, it also save time when you're in the kitchen.

The fridge n you

That's how the fridge looks like every time I buy groceries. Use tupperware for better storing because they are air-tight. However, the fridge is small, so, some foods (in the package) are just stored as they are. Some useful tips for storing in the fridge:-

1. reduce the temperature of the leftover cooked food 

2. store leftover cooked food in shallow, airtight containers

3. wrapped tightly food cook in cling film/ aluminuim foil

4. store dairy products on the middle shelves

5. avoid putting too much food in the fridge to ensure air circulation 

I wish I could be better at storing food  by following these procedures. All these tips are obtained from http://www.eufic.org/page/en/page/FAQ/faqid/store-food-properly-in-the-fridge/and http://www.helpwithcooking.com/food-storage/refrigeration-tips.html

Cubes for quick cooking stocks

Wonder how we can prepare ingredients and cook faster? For me, I use these cubes- chicken, tomyam, beef and others. There are useful when you don't have chicken stocks in the fridge. And of course when you prepare the stocks, you need more time. To slice meat, chicken and all. So, I would suggest buying the cubes to be efficient when working in the kitchen. If you want the stock to be thick, the ratio would be 1 cup of water : 1 cube. Also, we don't have to add salt. The cubes are already salty. After all, as for me, I don't like to spend long time in the kitchen. Got to do other things as well once I'm at home.