Rock Bottom Frugal Living Tip #25

Energy Saving Kitchen Tips

These are just common sense tips. We often don't think about these at all.

Be sure to place the faucet lever on the kitchen sink in the cold position when using small amounts of water; placing the lever in the hot position uses energy to heat the water even though it never reaches the faucet.

Keep range-top burners and reflectors clean; they will reflect the heat better and you will save energy. [Bev's note: I have old ones so I make sure from time to time that I cover those flash/drip pans with aluminum foil, making sure the shiny side is up.]

Use a covered kettle or pan to boil water; it's faster and it uses less energy. [Bev's note: Some of my pans don't have lids, so I save some of the aluminum pie plates and use those, or I use aluminum foil.]

Match the size of the pan to the heating element.

If you cook with electricity, turn the stovetop burners off several minutes before the allotted cooking time. The heating element will stay hot long enough to finish the cooking without using more electricity. The same principle applies to oven cooking.

Whenever possible, use electric frying pans, pressure cookers or toaster ovens rather than your large stove or oven to save on energy. For example, a toaster oven uses a third to half as much energy as a full-sized oven when baking biscuits or baked potatoes.

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Miscellaneous Food Tips

*Bacon Curl: Stop bacon from curling by pricking up the center of each slice, so that it's raised slightly in the skillet.

*Catsup Pouring: Catsup will pour easily out of the bottle if you first insert a straw clear to the bottom of the bottle. Then pull it out.

*Dough: Knead the dough for pie crusts, etc., inside a zip lock bag. Less mess on the counter and your hands.

*Hamburger Patties: Stop that patty from shrinking by poking a hole in the center before you slide it into the pan.

*Meatloaf: It won't stick if you place a slice of bacon in the bottom of the pan.

*Rock-hard Brown Sugar: In humid climates, brown sugar often gets hard as a rock. I've found that a few minutes in the microwave soften it nicely.

*Crisp Celery: When you purchase your celery, slip one of those nifty plastic bags over both ends. While it's in your fridge, it will stay fresher and crisper much longer. [Has anyone tried those new green bags?]

Refresh stale potato chips, crackers, cereal or other snacks of this type by putting a plateful in the microwave for approximately 30 seconds. Let stand for 1 minute to "crisp" back up.

Source: Busy Moms Tips (a Yahoo Groups email newsletter)