Woman shares brilliant method to keep onions fresher for longer: 'Works out great'

An onion-loving TikToker has a tip that makes cooking easier and more sustainable. 

The scoop

In her video, Kat (@kat.bakescakes) chops onions while talking through the benefits of freezing them. 

@kat.bakescakes

Interested in cutting food waste and saving money, hit that follow button for more little food hacks. Freezing onions to reduce waste.

♬ original sound - kat.bakescakes

Kat says she loves buying onions in bulk for the great savings but that they start to grow sprouts before she has a chance to use them. 

Luckily, onions freeze well. Unlike other vegetables, they don't need to be blanched before being frozen. She puts the chopped onions into a freezer-safe bag and says they'll stay good for another six months. You might be surprised by how well they defrost when they're needed, too.

While onions don't need it, blanching is a great practice for other vegetables you may want to freeze. It involves boiling vegetables briefly, then plunging them in ice water. This process deactivates enzymes that are responsible for browning and preserves flavor and nutritional value. 

It's super easy and can preserve your veggies for a full year. If you're interested in more tips like this, check out TCD's guide on making your food last longer for other information and reader comments.

How it's helping

You obviously want to get the most out of the food you pay for, especially since grocery prices are high. That's not the only reason to be smart about your veggies, though. Food waste produces a lot of pollution in two ways. 

For one, when it goes to landfills, rotten food produces methane, which is really bad for our environment. Secondly, growing vegetables takes a lot of energy and resources. That all goes to waste when food isn't used. 

If you're big on minimizing food waste, you can get perfectly good groceries just before they're put in the bin thanks to services such as Too Good To Go, Flashfood, and Misfits Market. 

What's the most common reason you end up throwing away food? Bought more than I could eat 🛒 Went bad sooner than I expected 👎 Forgot it was in the fridge 😞 Didn't want leftovers 🥡 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

What everyone's saying

Commenters were keen to follow Kat's lead and freeze their onions before they went bad. 

"My mom taught me this...works out great," one commenter said.

"Brilliant!! I love these freezer tips!" another wrote. 

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