Explore practical ways to live in harmony with our planet. Discover sustainable habits, eco-conscious choices, and tips to reduce your environmental footprint. From simple swaps to impactful actions, this category guides you towards a more planet-friendly and responsible way of living.
How many rolls of plastic cling film do you usually go through each year? Do you bin those food wraps after every single use? How about if I told you that I use less than a roll a year, would you believe me?
Cling film is primarily made of plastic to preserve food, and it currently can’t be recycled in the UK. Because of that and its material, I think we should ONLY use it when there is no other alternative.
put the food in a bowl and cover the bowl with the right-size plate (It’s never too old school!)
If it can’t be reduced, reused, repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, resold, recycled, or composted, then it should be restricted, redesigned or removed from production.
Pete Seeger
Can cling film have multiple uses?
Absolutely! Just clean them properly and hang them to dry. I use cling film rarely. After each use, I would rinse and hang them to dry on my dish rack overnight. And next day, I’d check whether there is no hole in the wrap and if it’s in a usable condition. And I put them away in a takeaway container, and they’re ready to be used the next time.
Use cling film for non-food stuff
You can also use washed-and-dried cling film for non-food objects. For example:
when painting the wall where some objects you can’t move, then wrap them with those reusable cling films to avoid paint getting on them.
With the rising cost of living recently, such as higher energy bills, we all try to find a way to cut down the payout on those bills. People are advised to switch off their standby appliances, turn off the heater, reduce water consumption and invest in double-glazed windows and better insulation. However, I think one thing that has been overlooked is that cooking vegan meals can also cut down our electricity/gas and water consumption.
How long does it take to cook a meat-based dish?
Take an example of cooking a chilli con carne. Regardless of preparation time, the typical cooking time for the beef chilli con carne takes around an hour, and so does the dish with other kinds of meats.
Why might cooking meat use more water?
Another thing to consider is that some people wash raw meats before cooking them (although it’s not recommended!) or blanch meat. When doing so, water is required. So cooking a meat-based dish could use more water during the preparation.
Cooking plant-based: less time and water
If you substitute meat with other plant-based ingredients, the cooking time will certainly be reduced hence the electricity use. Also, if you use tinned vegetables to replace meats, then no washing is needed. As a result, you save on the water bill, too!
Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.
Vincent Van Gogh
Does no meat mean no protein?
Some people might not like the idea of not having meat because they argue that they need to have meat for their protein intake. I can understand why people think this way because I used to think like that! I was brought up believing that meats and dairy foods are the only two sources I can get my protein. I am so thankful that I no longer have this false belief.
Are plant-based proteins expensive?
Today, there are plenty of plant-based proteins to choose from, such as chickpeas, baked beans, tofu and lentils. They are much cheaper than meats. And you might be surprised that some vegetables also contain protein, like spinach and broccoli.
Additionally, they are healthier than animal proteins because they have less saturated fat and are higher in fibre. However, consuming a variety of plant-based proteins is key to ensuring a complete protein profile if you want to be on a plant-based diet.
Vegan chilli con carne with baked beans: preparation and ingredients
Now, I want to show you how quickly a vegan meal can be done. Even better, it’s packed with protein and nutrition. Of course, it’s tasty, too!
The day before:
Let’s say if I plan to cook this dish for Wed dinner. On Tuesday evening, before I go to bed, I like to put all the ingredients together on the kitchen worktops if they’re NOT required to be chilled. I also get the saucepan ready for the next day.
Preparation like this might not mean anything to you. Still, it’s an effective way to make sure we’ll get the cooking done the next day instead of ordering takeaway or getting microwave meals, which are more expensive and not so healthy as home-cooked meals.
When we have everything all together, we’ll feel more like cooking and not find an excuse not to cook because we’re tired or not in the mood.
You could also prepare the vegetables you want to use the day before. You can put them in containers and then have those containers in the same compartment in the fridge. So next day, when you’re about to cook, you only need to take those containers out and don’t need to figure out what vegetables you will use. Less mental work means you’ll get your cooking going quicker!
Tasty, healthy and quick one-pot wonder vegan chilli con carne
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword baked beans, chilli con carne, vegan
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time 20 minutesminutes
Servings 4people
Cost £6
Equipment
1 saucepan
1 tin opener
Ingredients
1tinchopped tomatoes(you can use the fresh ones if you prefer)
1tinkidney beans, drained(or mixed beans)
1tinbaked beans
2tspground cumin
2tspsmoked paprika
3garlic cloves
1red or yellow pepper
2 to 3tbspcooking oil
Optional (or just use whatever vegetables need to be used up in your fridge)
100grammushrooms
50gramgreen beans
1onion(yellow or red onion)
50grampeas(or frozen peas)
1tinsweetcorn, drained
50gramvegan mince (you can use frozen ones)
2tbspmixed dried herbs
Instructions
Open all the tins and drain the water from the kidney beans and sweetcorn
Chop all the vegetables. (See *note 1, *note 2)
Heat the oil in the sauce pan, add chopped onions and garlic, fry for 1 minute.
Add ground cumin, smoked paprika, and red/yellow peppers, and continue cooking for 2 minutes. (See *note 3)
Add those vegetables which might require longer cooking time, such as mushrooms, frozen peas etc.
Add kidney beans (or mixed beans), and cook for another minute.
Add chopped tomatoes. (and frozen vegan mince if you have some)
Add a bit of water if you feel there isn't enough liquid in the pan
Add 1 tbsp mixed dried herbs and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar to boost flavour (optional)
Add salt and pepper
Bring the liquid up to boil, then put the lid on and let it cook for 10 – 15 minutes. Make sure you set the heat at mid-low and stir the dish from time to time
Add a tin of baked beans five minutes before the dish is done
Add some chilli flakes if you like it spicier (optional)
Taste before serving
Video
Notes
*note 1: Chop mushrooms into chunks if you use them. *note 2: If you like your green beans a bit crunchy, boil them in a separate pan. And only add them to the main dish five minutes before it is done. *note 3: Adding spices at this stage will make the dish more flavorful. Also, turn down the heat when adding spices so the spices won’t get burnt.
Here you go! This dish takes around 20 minutes (compared to 1 hour with the meat dish), and it can easily serve for 4 to 5 people. I hope you’ll see how much electricity consumption will be reduced by switching to cooking vegan dishes.
Side dishes: what to serve with chilli con carne?
Bread: Yes, that’s right, especially with the first/end slice of a loaf of bread. The thick slice goes much better with this dish.
Tortilla chips: I usually go for this one when I have a pack of tortilla chips opened.
Pasta: If you have enough leftovers for the next day, then you just need to cook pasta to make it a complete meal.
I really hope you’ll give the dish a try! This will save your cooking time and reduce your energy bills. Moreover, not ordering takeaway/buying ready meals save us money, and we won’t add more non-recyclable food packaging.
I don’t mean those carrier bags you get at checkout counters or food/freezer bags bought from supermarkets. I am talking about plastic bags for food packaging.
Unless you live next to zero-waste or free-from-plastic stores, most food you buy from supermarkets comes in a plastic bag. So, what do you normally do with the plastic bag once the bag is empty? Some of you might recycle it if it is recyclable, but most of them likely end up in the bin.
I encourage you to try to reuse those plastic bags because by extending their lifetime, you can use much fewer shop-bought plastic bags hence save money on buying new ones.
Reuse plastic bags from your grocery shopping
For example, the picture shows plastic packaging from vegetables and cereal bags, which are perfectly reusable. Just make sure:
check if the inside of them is really empty, clean and dry.
If it’s not, wipe a bag with a dry cloth.
Sometimes I even rinse and hang them on my outdoor washing line if it’s sunny. They get dry very quickly. I often take those bags with me when I go grocery shopping. For example, when I buy loose vegetables/fruits, I can put them in my plastic bags instead of using those clear bags on a roll supplied by the supermarket. I firmly believe the fewer bags I use, the less they end up in landfills.
Some of you might argue that we can use paper bags (supplied in the store) instead of plastic bags. However, those paper ones aren’t necessary much greener than plastic!
It takes more than FOUR times as much energy to manufacture a paper bag as it does to manufacture a plastic bag.
Some frozen foods also come in plastic. And those bags can be reused, too, as long as we clean them properly before using them. The plastic used for frozen foods is usually quite thick and flexible, so they’re ideal for storing all kinds of things easily; you can even use them as carrying bags for picnic cutlery or plates.
Reuse plastic bags
Industrial pollution and the discarding of plastic waste must be tackled for the sake of all life in the ocean.
Sir David Attenbourgh
Why shouldn’t we just recycle plastic bags?
You might hear of the waste management of Three R’s: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. So as you can see, recycling is the last stage. But unfortunately, it doesn’t address the core of our waste problems either. I only came to that realisation after watching a few documentaries related to the issue, such as the one below. I encourage you to check the documentary below to cultivate your knowledge if this is unknown to you.
