Little Miss green asked me which was the most important thing we had in the house that used electricity.

I felt it would be the cooker.

The ability to cook food provides us with daily food as well as a lot of enjoyment.

Many of us are looking at ways to reduce our carbon footprint, reduce our use of fuel such as electricity, and be more efficient in the kitchen. This in turn frees up our time and is a more frugal way to live.

Here are five tips to help you cook in a more environmentally friendly way and save you money!

Put a lid on it

The simple act of putting a lid on the pans you use can cut cooking time (and therefore your energy bill) by 75 per cent.

Batch cook

Don’t just put the oven on for one dish. If you’re putting the oven on anyway, then prepare several foods in one go.

For example, on a Sunday I cook enough meat for a week’s worth of meals for the cat, a batch or two of biscuits and cakes for the week, plus our Sunday roast. If I make jacket potatoes I make an oven full and we use them throughout the week diced and added to other dishes.

Cook extras

If you’re making pasta sauce,  soups or casseroles or cooking rice or mashed potatoes make some spare portions and freeze them. Reheating food uses less energy than cooking from scratch, saves you time and means you can buy in bulk.

Use eco friendly gadgets

It uses less electricity to use a bread maker than put the oven on for one loaf. A tiered steamer uses a fraction of the electricity of 3 different pans of vegetables. Woks cut your cooking time to a fraction, as do pressure cookers; and one of my favourite gadgets, the slow cooker will cook a delicious warming meal with a minimal amount of fuel.

Turn off the gas!

One of my favourite ways to cook is with residual heat. If you’re cooking white rice, diced potatoes or pasta, this is the method for you. Bring your food to the boil in a saucepan with a well fitting lid. Once it has come to the boil, turn off the heat, don’t lift the lid and allow your food to cook with residual heat.

Read more about this with our “reduce fuel consumption and save money - one simple, frugal step could save you 20%” article.

What are your tips for cooking in an anergy efficient way?

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