These minor tweaks can help you save energy without sacrificing food quality
We've been talking a lot about methods to save energy as the winter sets in. We've also discussed ways to get ready for the busy Christmas season. What if we told you you could have it both ways? Even if you're hosting a large Thanksgiving or Christmas gathering, the energy bill generated by your kitchen doesn't have to break the bank.
Here's how to conserve energy while you're cooking (besides getting energy-efficient appliances, that is).
Cookware should be matched to the food
I'm guilty of using the toaster oven for absolutely everything I bake, which takes a long time and is entirely due to laziness. What I didn't realize until lately is that it's also a good method to squander energy because I'm only doing one course and side at a time. To maximum efficiency, Spark Energy recommends matching the size of your cooking items to the size of your meal. You waste energy when you fried an egg in a large pan or make all of your dishes individually in the toaster oven. If you only need to prepare one meal, try using the toaster oven instead than turning on the large oven, which can waste electricity as well.
According to Compact Appliance, putting a six-inch pan on an eight-inch electric burner might squander up to 40% of the heat produced. You're wasting money this way, and you're wasting it much more if the bottoms of your pans are twisted. Replace your cookware on a regular basis to keep the bottoms of your pans flat—this will help heat distribute more effectively. Copper-bottomed pans also heat up faster than others, so pick some up the next time you replace your cookware.
Finally, use glass or ceramic pans wherever possible, since Edison International claims that you may reduce the temperature of your oven by 25 degrees without sacrificing the pace at which your food cooks.
Cover it with a lid
Keep the lids on your pots and pans when cooking, too, according to Compact Appliance. This keeps the heat within your cookware, allowing you to cook your meals faster and save money; minor modifications add up to large results.
Similarly, don't open the oven door while food is cooking to glance inside. The temperature dips by 25 degrees each time, so the oven needs to work a little more to get it back up, according to Edison.
Make a plan to cook as much as possible at once
Edison recommends cooking many foods in your oven at the same time if feasible. This is an excellent opportunity to brush up on one-pan recipes, oven techniques for cooking several things at once, and ideas for doubling up in your Instant Pot and Dutch oven.
Prepare everything before you start cooking
Edison also advises performing all non-electrical tasks first. Make sure all of your items are cleaned, cut, divided, and spread out before you turn on your blender or air fryer. Unplug your gadgets until you need them, or use a smart power strip to turn them off.
Defrost your food in the refrigerator rather than the microwave, and only preheat your oven when you're almost ready to cook so it doesn't sit hot with nothing in it. If you're a skilled chef, Edison recommends shutting off the oven or stove heat a few minutes earlier than usual. With a closed door or lid, the temperature should remain high enough for your meal to finish cooking (although if you're not comfortable with this, skip it).
Maintain cleanliness
Edison suggests cleaning the grease plates on your burners or covering them with aluminum foil to reflect heat upward, enhancing energy efficiency. Clean your whole oven and cooktop before making any large meals to prevent buildup and filth from affecting its performance. When it's time to clean it, use its self-cleaning function immediately after cooking or baking so you don't have to heat it up again later just to clean it.
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