Image from the book “Cooking in 2 hours” by Fabián León, published by Oberon.
The leftovers of a meal, the poached fruit, the rice from the day before, the jar of open vegetables. Spaniards throw away an average of 28 kilos of food a year (according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food). We waste more than we eat, what a contradiction! If we take a look at Tristram Stuart’s book Waste, we will find that our consciences are troubled by so many truths. So he says: “Does the world really have a food problem? Rich countries throw away up to half of their food resources, while in developing countries the losses are due to a lack of basic infrastructure: the problem is not the lack of food, but quite the opposite: its waste.”
This social alarm was the engine for a new lifestyle called friganismo that emerged in the US and central Europe less than a decade ago. What is it made of? In a group of people fighting waste as a weapon to fight for a better, more sustainable and healthier world. The term is an amalgamation of free and vegan, although not all freegans are vegans, but rather advocates for the ethics of nutrition.
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Looking back, we’ll remember that French toast is one of our country’s most traditional desserts (although it’s now been refined with the new cuisine). That is: hard bread soaked in milk. In Italy there is the pasta omelet (pasta frittata), which is made with pasta left over from the day before; In Cuba, ropa vieja is the result of a new preparation with the leftovers of the stew; The croquettes are filled with the leftovers and the delicious fritters, typical of certain areas of the Caribbean, are made from overripe bananas.
In most cases, when we come across, for example, carrot peels, the green parts of leeks, beet peels or pieces of onions, we throw them away without thinking that cooking them can make an excellent vegetable broth. Perhaps it is ignorance, not knowing what to do with “what is left” that leads us to waste. To avoid this, here are some of the most important books you can use to help make the world a better place.
“Cooking in 2 hours for the whole week”, by Fabián León, published by Oberon.
Chips with potato skins, chocolate cake with coffee grounds, banana peels for pulled pork, or sautéed broccoli stems are some of the ideas suggested by former master chef Fabián León in his book Don’t Pull Me Out, edited by Oberon. A well structured publication that starts with the organization of the fridge and the order of the groceries and includes a section devoted to what the author calls “seizing the day”, that is, look what you and we have in the fridge Will mark a sentence!
“Don’t throw me away.” “The book that saves you from wasting food”, by Fabián León. Publisher Oberon.
With this in mind, MasterChef published his book Cocina de aprovechamiento, a simple recipe book where the main ingredient is what we have left over. So he does a tour of very simple meat, fish, bread and legume dishes. The book is perfect for making little cooks at home aware that nothing is thrown away, everything is used up.
“Use the kitchen. “Brilliant recipes with leftovers”, by Editorial Espasa.
“Changing habits is easier when done in a pleasant way. Have fun! Don’t think, “I’m not doing enough,” because every change is positive. Even if you occasionally forget to twist a straw away, you can always try again. That’s what Erin Rhoads says at Zero Waste. 365 tips to reduce, reuse and recycle. Translated by the publisher Cinco Tintas, it is just that: a guide to being number one in household recycling. In this book he not only finds many ideas for recycling in the kitchen, but also suggests tricks that can be applied to our way of life: reduce, reuse and recycle is his motto. “Choosing seasonal produce is better for the environment because more resources are needed to grow and store food out of season,” he explains.
Cocina eco lies between a recipe book and a book on ecological awareness. Eat well, spend less, get more from Assumpta Miralpeix and the Grijalbo publishing house. It’s a guide that both helps us to shop the right way at the supermarket and teaches the basic principles so that we never throw away anything from our pantry or fridge. It’s loaded with food preservation tips and even includes a basic nutrition section. In the same way, Lindsay Miles addresses the issue of not wasting in his book Cooking without Waste. This reading is a ‘good consumer’ handbook designed to teach people how to eat sustainably. If we are aware that taking a tote bag to the supermarket is an act of sustainability, after reading this book we will see some more gestures that will put us at the top of the world’s most respectful shoppers .
Zero Waste Kitchen, by Lindsay Miles, published by Cúpula.
Sara Cucala is a writer, filmmaker and journalist specializing in gastronomy. She is the founder of one of the first food and travel blogs, has written numerous books, coordinated the culinary content of TVE’s afternoon magazine and directed several films and documentaries. She is the founder and co-owner of the gastronomic bookstore and cooking school A Punto.