Food waste?

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4 Comments

My mom primarily cooks in the house and I help her out when it's not my sibling and I taking over. However she always makes way too much, I'm talking enough to serve twice as many people sometimes, even when I measure portions out and warn her she pours more while I'm looking away.

But she hates leftovers. Hates eating them, taking them, serving them, always makes more rice or grains the next day "Just so it's fresh" and leaves us with even more. And I have to put them away before she tosses it for being old. I do this even when it's not way too much and just a 1 man portion so we don't waste it.

My family makes fun of me for this and calls me too food/finance-nervous, or that I'm 'scrounging around like a critter' when I pack them up/say we should just eat what we stored.

I don't get why they're all almost embarassed by eating leftovers. The same dinner two days in a row won't kill you. I hate the idea of tossing out food, practically tossing money, when we're in a recession no less. Maybe it's an older generation thing to make so much and not care but it's irritating. Is it normal to be so antsy about food waste and leftovers? Is it normal to proceed to complain about all the rice containers in our fridge on IIN.

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50% Normal
Based on 2 votes (1 yes)
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Comments ( 4 )
  • normal-rebellious
    1 year ago

    Yes it's normal to store food away when your parent makes too much of it and to worry about it. I worry that any of my leftovers get thrown away, I can't afford to keep buying new food, such a waste, and it's normal for you to worry about wasting food.

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  • InFurryNity
    1 year ago

    Can you turn it around, encourage her to make more, then plate up the leftovers, cover and freeze? Later on, when you've not had that meal in a while, you will have a ready to go set of frozen meals?

    I realise this doesn't work with all foods, but I do this all the time living on my own as it's impossible or impractical to cook some homemade meals in single portion sizes.

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  • litelander8
    1 year ago

    Scrounging around like a critter is definitely a top 10 favorite phrases at this point.

    They are definitely the weird ones. Why wouldn’t you eat leftovers. I hate on people all the time for not taking food Togo. Unless it’s chips or fries Bc that shit ain’t gonna make it.

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  • taebby22
    1 year ago

    My mom is like this too. She always buys and makes way too much food, and then INSISTS on something new every single day. And even if we have overflowing amounts of food, she'll find the ONE thing we don't have, and want that. So we have to go out to the store and buy it for her. Food waste is also monetary waste.

    Do you know if your mom had a tough childhood? Was her family short on food? Maybe she feels the need to over-cook because there wasn't enough food in her childhood.

    You're not wrong by being concerned about food waste. You're also being cautious about money which is a very good thing.

    Oftentimes, leftovers can be transformed into a new meal. Maybe that's something you could research and offer to help your mom cook. For example, leftover rice and chicken could be made into a soup with some store-bought brought and veggies. It can be quite simple.

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