Did you know onions stay fresh for longer in nylon stockings?

Laurel and nylon provide great storage solutions

Opened flour provides a feast for pantry moths. Pour the flour into an airtight container and add one or two bay leaves – the odour keeps moths away.

Potatoes should be stored in a cool, dark place. Put a few apples in between. The gas they emit when ripening delays the germination of tubers.

Onions keep for longer in a nylon stocking: put them in one after the other and tie a knot in between. Then hang the onion chain up in a spot protected from direct sunlight. This allows the onions to breathe and prevents bruising. When you need one, simply cut off the bottom onion.

Bananas ripen more slowly if cling film is wrapped around the stem. Hang the bananas up if you can to avoid bruising – preferably in a dark, cool place.

Too good to throw away

When preparing vegetables, lots of tasty ingredients are thrown away: the outer leaves of leeks or carrot greens are great for home-made broths – wash them first and then cook them with your other ingredients. Carrot greens can also be used as a substitute for parsley to add flavour to salads, soups and other dishes. If you don’t need it all, you can freeze the chopped greens with a little water in ice cube moulds – ready for next time. Whip up a flavoursome salad from radish leaves.

A second life for leftovers

Got some potatoes left over from your last meal? Then why not use them to make roast potatoes or as an ingredient in creamed soups? Leftover rice can be turned into fried rice after a day or two in the fridge – it comes out nice and dry. Leftover vegetables taste great in a frittata – simply fry them off in a pan with beaten eggs and other ingredients. Cooked vegetables from the previous day can be added to a pasta bake or vegetable lasagne.

Store in a jar

Strawberries or peaches that need to be used up can be saved for another day by preserving them. Simply pour the hot cooked fruit into clean jars and immediately seal them airtight. The vacuum created in the jar means the preserves keep for longer. You can use this method to turn strawberries into jam, but also tomatoes into a sauce.

Your nose is for smelling

In Grandma’s day, people trusted their own senses more. To find out whether food was still edible, she would open the packaging, take a look inside and then smell it. Don’t be put off by the best-before date. A yoghurt that expired two days ago may still be fine.