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How to batch cook safely
Rising food prices and being strapped for time have meant many of us are no longer prioritising our nutrition. In fact, yfood found that the nation is too busy to eat with 16% of Brits saying they don't have enough time during the week to do a full food shop. A good way to tackle the problem is resorting to methods such as batch-cooking which allows us to make larger amounts of food for cheaper, to store and use later. However, this process involves freezing and re-heating food, meaning there are rules to be aware of to ensure it's safe to consume. So, with the help of yfood, here’s how to avoid common meal-prepping mistakes…
1. Pack it small
When you're freezing cooked ingredients in freezer bags, flatten the bags out as much as possible before freezing to reduce the space they take up in the freezer – and reduce the thawing time.
2. Get rid of air
You don't want all of your hard batch-cooking work to be put to waste by freezer “burn” – the term used for when air damages frozen food. Take time to get as much air as possible out of packaging before you freeze food.
3. Cool before you freeze
Once your recipes are ready, it’s important to cool them completely before freezing portions. Experts recommend to leave the food at room temperature for no more than two hours before storing it in the freezer. Leaving the food out for longer could be dangerous.
4. Change containers
You should also transfer the food to a new dish once it has been cooked, as leaving it in a hot dish means it takes longer to cool down, allowing time for any bacteria present to grow.
5. Keep your freezer organised and label
Another key mistake that people make is to store things in the freezer for too long, with experts recommending to not leave meals for longer than a month. The labels will help you keep track of what needs using up next. To avoid food getting forgotten at the back of the freezer, it can be useful to put your newest portions at the back and in turn bring your older items to the front.
WEDDINGS: BRIGHT IDEAS FOR SAVING MONEY How much does it cost…to run an electric
blanket?
Couple’s Cashback: Put your wedding costs on a card that earns you rewards and cashback for spending. This way you will be able to save up for a special treat when you celebrate your first year of wedded bliss.
Bring your own band: Although music is
essential to any wedding reception, create your own playlist instead of hiring an expensive band. You can even ask your guests for their music contributions to keep the party going all evening long.
Keep guest numbers low: Guest numbers
soon add up and it can be hard to keep everyone happy. Keeping numbers low may involve some awkward conversations with distant relatives; however most will understand the costs involved in weddings. According to the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), in October last year, the cost per pence/kWh of electricity was approximately 52p after the energy price increase. Each electric blanket will have a different power rating and the overall cost will depend on the rating on your blanket’s label. For the sake of this example, we’ll use an approximate power of 100W as this is most common for an electric blanket. First, you need to convert to kW. 100W is 0.1kW (or 100 divided by 1000). Then you multiply this by the pence/kWh unit, which is 0.1*0.52 = £0.052. This means that running an electric blanket for one hour would cost just over 5p – or 42p a night based on eight hours of use.
How singing can slow
the signs of ageing
The benefits of singing have long been documented – we know it feels good to sing, but did you know that singing can be used as an effective treatment for achieving younger looking and more glowing skin? Swedish skincare powerhouse FOREO joined forces with The British Academy of Sound Therapy to study the effects of singing out loud to your favourite songs on your skin. The good news is that singing along to your favourite tracks is not only the perfect mood booster but it's also great for your skin, in fact just five minutes of singing a day could combat signs of ageing and here’s why:
