4 plastics you can’t recycle and how to avoid them
More and more councils around New Zealand are not able to recycle plastics 3,4,6 and 7 as there is no market for these plastics either in New Zealand or overseas. So if like us you hate waste and love cooking there are simple recipes you can make to reduce your use of these plastics.
Plastic #3
Biscuits and cracker trays are often made from plastic #3. There are loads of great biscuit recipes out there, but we tested almost every cracker recipe and our favourites are listed below. Watch the video to find out how to make your own crackers.
Plastic #4
Tomato sauce, mild american mustard, lemon and lime juice. All of these often come in plastic #4. When lemons and limes are in season, juice them then freeze the juice in icecube trays. Once frozen pop into a resealable bag or container and then defrost as needed. You can also grate the rind and freeze that as well for baking. Making your own mustard is surprisingly quick and easy watch the video below to learn the technique.
DIY mild American mustard recipe
When you have a glut of tomatoes why not make your own tomato sauce? This recipe uses fresh tomatoes and enables you to bottle the sauce for months at a time. If its the middle of winter and you have run out then this recipe uses canned tomatoes.
Plastic #6
Six pack yoghurt containers are made from plastic #6 whereas larger containers of yoghurt are made from plastic #5 which can be recycled here in New Zealand. It’s easy enough to make your own yoghurt from leftover yoghurt provided that the label on your bought yoghurt says live or active culture. Watch the video below to learn the technique.
If you have even more yoghurt leftover, you can use it to make a sweet or savory pizza base or to make pancakes.
Plastic #7
Packets of fresh pasta are usually made from plastic #7. Yet if you have been watching Jamie Oliver’s latest tv program Keep cooking & carry on it’s really easy to make your own fresh pasta, saves you money and is a great way to get kids cooking in the kitchen. Watch the video below to see how easy it is to make your own pasta.
If you have leftover pumpkin, you can also make pumpkin pasta
