Finding new ways to make food go further
Amanda, an in-home educator, lives on the North Shore of Auckland alongside three children, a husband, and a dog.
She first heard about the Every Bite programme from a parent of the children she looks after.
“Erin said, ‘come along, give it a go’. I thought we were doing pretty well with food waste, because we have a worm farm and compost bins, but there’s always more you can do to make food go further.”
The family had already tried Auckland Council’s ‘Different Dinners’ programme, challenging participants to explore plant-based meals, and they were keen to add more ideas to the toolkit.
Amanda’s favourite aspect of Every Bite was connecting with people at the launch and wrap events. “I spend all day with children, so just getting out and speaking to other adults and bouncing some ideas off each other was nice.”
She also enjoyed the food, cooked by guest chef Dinesh from Ohui restaurant.
“The food was amazing, yeah - cooking up the potato skins was really great. And all my kids actually liked it too. So I was really impressed. Previously, we just didn't think of reusing the food that we have in a different way. So that was cool, a bit of an eye opener.”
She also liked chef Dinesh’s idea of reusing coffee grounds to add flavour to roasted carrots.
This newfound resourcefulness was recently put to the test.
“I think the supermarket must not have chilled the milk properly, because I only bought it yesterday, but the morning coffee didn’t taste right.”
Undeterred, Amanda looked up what she could do with off milk, whipping up some paneer for a curry and then using the leftover whey in a soup.
“For the cottage cheese, I put the vinegar in and let it do the work - followed by a lot of squeezing out and pressing. But I was really chuffed with that result, so we'll be having it again soon.”
There has also been a subtle shift at home - checking what’s in the fridge before cooking the next dish. “We’re now thinking about what leftovers we have and what ways that we can either just have it like it is, or add to it, if it's not quite enough for all five of us.”
She has bought her children small flasks so they can take warm leftovers for school lunches.
Completing both ‘Different Dinners’ and the Every Bite programme has left her more confident in trying new things, as well as providing resources to help.
“Not every meal has to be a meat meal, although that is nice, but everything's quite expensive these days. My husband is happy to have vegetarian meals, which I had no idea how to make. Now it’s about being aware, and noticing what we have - and having some recipes from both programmes helps, knowing we can often turn leftovers into a vegetarian dish if we want.”
Every Bite can add new ideas to what you’re already doing, says Amanda.
“It does take a bit of time, but you can get into the swing of things, and then eventually, hopefully it'll become something that you just do every day, like an ice cream container in the fridge with vegetable offcuts that you can make a stock out of.”
Her main tip for preventing food waste? Just start small.
“I sometimes get off on the wrong foot, and try to do it all perfectly the first time, and it gets quite overwhelming. I find if I like the look of something, I try and do it their way, or try and do something big and different, and it doesn't fit in. So yeah, just start small and make little changes.”
Inspired? Try these recipes in your own home
The programme offered a group chat to share tips and recipes.
Coffee-Infused Roast Carrots
Whole, unpeeled carrots
Leftover coffee grounds
Spread the coffee grounds evenly across a baking tray, then lay the carrots on top. Cover with foil and bake at 170°C for around 30 minutes, checking every so often until tender.
For an extra treat, use the leftover coffee grounds to whip up coffee butter (or try a coffee and maple butter) to serve with breakfast.
Inspired by Dinesh, Chef at Ohui Restaurant.
Paneer
If you’ve got leftover milk, you can turn it into fresh paneer instead of pouring it out. Here’s a great guide to follow - just adjust the ratios to suit how much milk you’ve got.
8 cups whole milk
3 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar
Pour the milk into a large pot and warm it gently over medium heat. Stir often until it foams up and almost boils, then take it off the heat straight away.
Add the lemon juice or vinegar and give it a light stir (just enough to mix). Let it sit for about 10 minutes while the curds form.
Line a colander with a clean, tightly woven cloth and place it over a large bowl. Carefully pour in the curds and whey. If the colander fills up, drain some of the whey into another bowl or jar. Leave the curds to strain for 30 minutes.
Gather the cloth into a ball and squeeze out any extra liquid. Then press the paneer between two plates or boards with a weight on top for 1–2 hours. Chill in the fridge to firm up.
Use within a few days. Perfect for curries, salads, or pan-fried until golden.
Different Dinners recipe book
Try the Different Dinners recipe booklet created in collaboration with My Food Bag - download here.