Lowcountry Cuisine Winter Spring 2018-19

LC 59 www.LCCmag.com | www.LCcuisineMag.com | www.LowcountryCuisineMag.com LOWCOUNTRY CUISINE F irst started in 1999 by a group of home economists at Whirlpool Home Appliances to encourage Americans to take action prior to the upcoming holidays, National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day is observed on Nov. 15. Actually, this deed that most people avoid should be done quarterly, but the day provides an excellent starting point for those of us who don’t bother to go to the trouble of reading our owners’ manuals. To learn how to clean a refrigerator properly, you can refer to WikiHow.life or simply follow these instructions. • First, remove all the food from the refrigerator. If it is a very hot day or you think this job might take longer than an hour, use an ice chest to protect the perishables. Throw away moldy or questionable food, along with the stuff you simply don’t like. Check the expiration dates on the containers, and toss the items that have outlived their usefulness. • Next, remove all shelves and drawers from your fridge and wash them by hand with dish soap and warm water. For tough stains or spills, try a mixture of two tablespoonfuls of baking soda in a quart of warm water. Before returning the shelves to their proper places, wipe out the inside of the refrigerator with a baking soda and water solution or apple cider vinegar and water solution. Don’t forget the doors. • The gasket also should be cleaned and patted dry. To keep the seal supple, apply lemon oil, mineral oil or body lotion. • Remember to dry all the surfaces well. Then return the dry, clean shelves and drawers to the refrigerator and put your food back in its proper place. Don’t forget to vacuum the condenser coils and the area underneath your refrigerator. Now that you have a clean place to store your food, let’s take a look at how to avoid re-creating this monster. Meal planning is the first step. Using a shopping list and a menu of the meals you plan to prepare, you can prevent needless purchases and overcrowding in your fridge. This will save you money as well. You also should learn to to use leftovers to create another meal. Rice, noodles or potatoes that you don’t finish at dinner can be used in soups, skillet meals and casseroles. Excess produce, such as peppers, celery and onions, can be chopped, frozen and easily added to later recipes. Diced leftover meats are great atop salads or added to soups and casseroles. Leftovers are useful, but don’t keep anything longer than a week. If you haven’t eaten it by then, freeze it or throw it away. Do you need help saving money at the grocery store? Before you leave home, take a look at the sales ads and buy what is on special that week. If you take a local newspaper, you can usually find manufacturers’ food coupons, and most chain stores now have downloadable coupons for their frequent shoppers. Take advantage of these gifts. Look for buy-one, get-one deals. If bulk meat is on special, put some in the freezer. Buying a whole chicken is less expensive per pound than white meat and will provide many more servings of protein. I’m having guests to supper Nov. 15. Guess what we are having? BY LORI WIGGINS ARCHER A Fresh Start National CleanOutYour Refrigerator Day