THE WASTE-WISE KITCHEN COMPANION: Hundreds of Practical Tips for Repairing, Reusing, and Repurposing Food: How to Eat Better, Save Money, and Utilize Leftovers Creatively

It is important to note that The Waste-Wise Kitchen Companion is not a recipe book but an alphabetical index of ideas on how to make to most out of the common cooking products found within the home. It includes tips on how to reuse waste products and how to salvage spoiled food. Moreover, it is full of ingenious ideas that encourage us to think outside the box and use alternative ingredients to make use of leftovers and a wide variety of unwanted food in the average person’s kitchen. If you have small amounts of condiments left in the jar, stale cake, or unwanted chicken skin, this companion will provide you with suggestions on how to reuse or repair these otherwise wasted products, along with hundreds of other examples.

MacLeod also suggests ideas that extend outside the kitchen. For example, she takes egg shells, a waste product that is rarely reused, and suggests a variety of ways to improve the garden with them, one of which is particularly innovative and illuminates how creative you can be with waste products in the kitchen. MacLeod also addresses the less enthusiastic chefs, those with poorly stocked cupboards and unchecked fridges. She provides tips on creating meals with unused and unwanted food items and suggests ways to make the most of whatever little ingredients you do have. Essentially, the companion is a starting point for anyone who has cooking ingredients of any kind in their home.

In her introduction, MacLeod asserts that ‘being waste-wise is a mindset, an attitude about respecting the food that passes through our kitchens.’ This philosophy is the essential purpose of this companion, and it is with this in mind that Jean MacLeod delivers a truly relevant lesson—one that we all could make use of—through her impeccable knowledge of the kitchen. Her approach is a fantastic form of upcycling, taking food waste and cooking mishaps, and advising on how to reuse them, either in cooking or around the home. Her approach is eco-friendly and reduces waste in a way that is both useful and accessible.

Ultimately, this companion is an aid to improving economy and efficiency within the kitchen, and unlike most books found in the average household, it is one that can be used every day. Whether you have already planned and shopped for your meal, MacLeod’s book can be used to consider ideas for, including unwanted food in storage, potential cooking mishaps, or discarded items. This book is superbly practical, and in contrast to most instructive texts, has a directly positive influence on our day to day tasks.