# Cooking with garbage **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [May 19, 2023, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281 "2023-05-19T16:01:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![slicedalone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slicedalone/32/12515_2.png) [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/1 "2023-05-19T16:01:54Z")
I used to throw out all the ginger that comes with sushi I buy from the supermarket. (Each package is too small, a few pieces, to require any palate-cleansing between pieces.) then I came up with the idea of cooking it, with a little sugar, to make candied ginger, and then I got the idea to peel the rind off a few citrus fruits I kept in the fridge which I always threw out (the rinds) anyway. Voila: candied orange peels with ginger, almost entirely made of stuff I was habitually throwing out. It tastes good, but I derive extra pleasure from knowing it would have ended up in the garbage if I hadn’t made it. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/2 "2023-05-19T16:31:51Z")
I like to dip apple slices in the dust & debris at the bottom of a jar of dry roasted peanuts. Sweet, tart, salty, crunchy. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/3 "2023-05-19T16:33:10Z")
I thought this thread was going to be about nuking aging fridge leftovers\* in the microwave \*“Is it meat? Or is it cake?” ---
**Author:** ![slicedalone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slicedalone/32/12515_2.png) [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/4 "2023-05-19T16:33:40Z")
I wonder what can be done with the chunk of wasabi that I usually throw out 95% of. Some sort of ingredient in a stew that needs spice, maybe? Coating on a slab of barbequed meat? ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/5 "2023-05-19T17:10:06Z")
I eat the ginger _with_ the sushi. I never have any leftover. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/6 "2023-05-19T17:50:21Z")
When we go out for sushi, any ginger that remains after the meal is gone gets eaten while we await the check. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/7 "2023-05-19T17:51:20Z")
> [@slicedalone](#): > > I wonder what can be done with the chunk of wasabi that I usually throw out 95% of. I’ve saved it in a small container and used it in vegetable soup or on a roast beef sandwich. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/8 "2023-05-19T21:08:12Z")
There is a brand of ramen that I like, comes with a little packet of assorted dried vegetables, the flavor pack and a third packet of stuff that looks like soy, but is thick like syrup. Tastes unappetising on the ramen but works a treat in a marinade for a piece of beef. I like coming up with other, sometimes better uses for things like that. I credit it partly to the influence of my Gma and partly to being a “general set” and “yard sale set with pieces missing” ‘Lego Engineer’ as a child. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2023, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/9 "2023-05-19T22:10:11Z")
I’ve considered the possibility of using the fat trimmings from a tri-tip to grill it. Only use the propane long enough to get the fat burning. Might be messy… ---
**Author:** ![Apodder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apodder/32/17727_2.png) [@Apodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apodder)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/10 "2023-05-20T03:48:04Z")
It’s meatcake! I can’t remember what that’s from…something in the '80s… ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/11 "2023-05-20T03:50:50Z")
I make soup out of the chicken carcass and vegetable scrapings. The only “new” stuff i put in the pot is salt, water, and an onion. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/12 "2023-05-20T05:35:48Z")
I once saw a paperback cookbook with the title “Good Food From Waste Products”. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/13 "2023-05-20T06:36:06Z")
> [@DorkVader](#): > > looks like soy, but is thick like syrup. Especially if the brand is Indonesian, maybe it is kecap manis (also spelled ketjap manis), which is a thick, sweet soy sauce. Indonesian recipes written for people without access to authentic Indonesian ingredients sometimes suggest mixing honey and soy sauce to get a fairly similar substitute. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/14 "2023-05-20T11:34:09Z")
I just made an omelette. The eggs were from our hens, who eat all of our kitchen scraps. The omelette filling was all stuff from the refrigerator that needed used or tossed. Leftovers, a piece of a pepper, scraps of several different cheeses, etc. Delicious! ---
**Author:** ![slicedalone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slicedalone/32/12515_2.png) [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/15 "2023-05-20T12:02:46Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > our hens, who eat all of our kitchen scraps You feed your chickens garbage? WTG!! ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/16 "2023-05-20T12:58:29Z")
It’s from a George Carlin routine. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@salinqmind1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind1)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/17 "2023-05-20T13:27:51Z")
Save the wasabi in a little jar, and mix with mayonnaise for wasabi sauce to put on burgers, sandwiches, whatever. ---
**Author:** ![Apodder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apodder/32/17727_2.png) [@Apodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apodder)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/18 "2023-05-20T14:50:55Z")
Whew, thanks! My brain was hurting… ---
**Author:** ![Blindmellowjelly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blindmellowjelly/32/13920_2.png) [@Blindmellowjelly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blindmellowjelly)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2023, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/19 "2023-05-21T01:57:05Z")
I like Carrol Shelby’s Chili Kit, my Favorite Chilli Powder blend, and for years and years it has come with seperate sealed packets of the chilli powder, cayennne, corn masa flour, and a packette of kosher salt. A couple/few years ago, they discontinued the salt packet. I don’t know why, but it kind of bothered me, made it less komplett. I have still, a bunch, a collection, of the old packs of salt and corn masa hiding in my shelves (never liked to thicken my chili or add salt(- except at the table.)). Probably, enough to make some tortillas at this point… ---
**Author:** ![anny\_m](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@anny\_m](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anny_m)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2023, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281/20 "2023-05-21T03:22:22Z")
I make soup from the Thanksgiving turkey carcass, and split pea soup from the bone from the Easter ham. The turkey soup I eat for lunches until it’s gone, but I can the split pea soup. I have some friends who love to get a few jars. A lot of canners make apple scrap jelly from the peels and cores of apples. I’ve never made it, but the next time I make and can some applesauce I think I’ll try the jelly. Canners tend to be a thrifty lot, and many save veggie scraps (carrot peels, celery leaves, and the like) in a bag in the freezer. When the bag gets full, they make and can vegetable stock. They also are big on bone broth. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cooking-with-garbage/984281.md?page=2)