You know the drill: eat by the season, freeze overripe bananas for banana bread and shop the sales.
But rising grocery prices have made everyone's budget a little tighter. If you feel like your old tricks just aren't stretching far enough, it might be time to try something new.
The free educational program Half Your Plate is showing you how. They've got loads of resources dedicated to making the most out of all the fresh produce you’ve got and saving money while you’re at it.
Their #fresh20 campaign, for example, shows you how to get the most fruit and veg possible from $20 — saving you a bunch of time and effort. Just head to their website and discover what you can bring home from your next weekly shop for $20 or less.
Narcity also spoke with registered dietitian Jen Ong Tone RD, who shared some expert tips on how to load up on the good stuff while sticking to a budget.
In solidarity with wallets across Canada, here are seven surprising ways to make your produce go further.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
Eat your berries & leafy greens first
Berries and leafy greens have some of the shortest shelf lives of any produce. Consider putting these goodies at the front of your fridge so you remember to use them up as soon as possible, and tuck heartier produce — like carrots and cauliflower — in the back.
Add fruit to typically savoury dishes
Add some extra colour to dinnertime by taking fruit beyond breakfast. Consider adding some chunks of seasonal fruit such as pomegranates or apples to rice or couscous dishes. You’d be surprised how well the acidic zing makes savoury flavours sparkle.
Half Your Plate has a delicious recipe for strawberry meatballs if you're looking to impress some dinner party guests with your newfound creativity.Get savvy with storage
Did you know that some fruits produce the natural gas ethylene, which can mess with the shelf life of veggies?
Apples, bananas, tomatoes and melons are ethylene producers, so it's best to store them away from ethylene-sensitive veggies like carrots, lettuce and broccoli. Otherwise, you might get some veggies that ripen too fast for you to eat them.
Ong Tone suggests taking a peek at Half Your Plate's produce storage guide and shelf life guide.
"As fruits and veggies are perishable, it’s important to store them correctly to help them stay fresh longer. Preventing your fruits and veggies from going bad will help you reduce food waste, and in turn, waste less money."
Go beyond buying in season
Shopping seasonal is one of the top tips for saving money on fruits and veggies, and it’s a good one. Half Your Plate has a helpful seasonal produce guide you can consult for more seasonal tips and recipes.
Ong Tone says, "Produce is often cheaper when in season, so look for apples and carrots in the winter, strawberries and asparagus in the spring, peaches and tomatoes in the summer, and pears and squashes in the fall."
But there are some fruits and veggies that are fairly affordable all year round because they're grown in greenhouses. For example, you can get a good price on local cucumbers, lettuce, peppers and tomatoes throughout the year.
Store tomatoes at room temperature
Making your fruits and veg last longer can mean going against what feels like common sense. For example, did you know that tomatoes do best when stored at room temperature?
Storing them in the fridge destroys their delicate flavour, so if you want to get the most out of your tomatoes, keep them in the fruit bowl (away from the ethylene-rich bananas though).
Meanwhile, say adios to your decorative apples in the fruit bowl — apples love it cold and you can keep them crisp in the fridge for over a month.
Embrace root-to-stem cooking
Pay some respect to that $20 bill you brought to the grocery store by creating as few kitchen scraps as possible. How? Stop throwing away completely usable parts of fruits and veggies!
For example, broccoli and cauliflower stalks are great to eat. Simply trim off the exterior and add the chopped stalks to soups and stews, roast them with salt and pepper as a side dish or shred them to bulk up salads.
You can use the tops of beets, carrots and radishes in a stir-fry, and save and freeze the ends of onions, celery and carrots and herb stems for the next time you want to make a homemade broth.
Craft a meal with herbs whose stalks taste exactly like the leaves (looking at you, cilantro and basil), so you don't have to toss anything out.
Use banana or apple peels to ripen fruit faster
Craving some fruit you bought that's just not ripe yet? You can speed up the ripening process by storing it in a paper bag at room temperature with an apple or banana (just the peel works too).
Kiwi, avocados, pears, peaches and tomatoes can all be ready to eat sooner if you follow this trick.
Living a more plant-forward diet can inspire you to get crafty in the kitchen, add tons of fresh flavour to mealtime and comes with a ton of nutritional benefits. So don't let inflation stop you from piling your plate with all the nourishing fresh produce you crave.
Get inspired on the Half Your Plate website with recipes, blog posts, free resources and more advice on incorporating fruit and veg into your diet without breaking the bank.
To learn more about Half Your Plate, check out their website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube.