Cut energy costs with a slow cooker
With gas and electricity bills shooting up, here are my quick tips to cut energy costs when cooking.
Wholesale gas prices have rocketed during the last year, making a slew of energy firms go bust. The energy price cap from October 1st went up a chunky 13%, and is likely to surge again next April. There aren’t even cheaper deals to switch to, which means many people coming off cheap fixes will end up paying way more.
I was particularly aware of energy costs when doing the State Pension challenge, trying to live on £179.60 for the week. I piled on the jumpers and resisted turning on the central heating. With a tight budget for food, I couldn’t eat out or rely on takeaways. I had to cook from scratch, while still trying to keep my energy bills down.
Our kitchens contain some of the most energy-guzzling appliances. Around a third of the average household’s electricity use goes on fridges and freezers plus cooking appliances such as your hob, oven, microwave, kettle and toaster, according to the Energy Saving Trust. That adds up to around 13% of the average household’s energy bill.
By reducing the amount of energy I use in the kitchen, I can therefore save money on my bills. Plus, it can help reduce damage to the environment.
Read on for my top tips to cut energy costs when cooking!
Previous post: Cheap ways to cut the cost of keeping warm
Warming food for winter weather
Switch to a slow cooker
Foods such as soups, stews, casseroles, chillies and curries can all help you keep warm in cold weather.
However, rather than firing up your hob or oven for hours, use a slow cooker instead. As I said in my November column for Woman&Home, using a fan assisted oven costs 46p an hour on average, compared with a tiny 3p an hour for a slow cooker, according to energy company Utilita.
Slow cookers also help make the most of cut price ingredients such as beans, pulses and cheap cuts of meat. Just remember to add less water than normal, as less evaporates in a slow cooker.
Put a lid on it
When you do use your hob, use saucepan lids. Heating something up? Put a lid on it. Cooking rice or pasta? Put a lid on it. That way, you’re not trying to heat up your whole kitchen. Choosing saucepans with glass lids helps keep an eye on the contents!
Hoarded portions from batch cooking
Benefit from batch cooking
If you are going to cook something, think about whether you can make a large amount, to avoid cooking multiple times.
Even if you are cooking for one, you can divvy up portions to eat another time, creating your own home-made ready meals. Don’t fancy eating the same thing several days running? Bung some in the freezer.
Make the most of your microwave
Microwaves save energy because they only heat up the food itself, rather than the air around it. I use my microwave to zap portions from batch cooking, so I don’t have to use the hob. Just make sure your food is piping hot afterwards.
Needs must: bars made of oats, raisins, peanuts, butter & marmalade
Max out your oven
If I do use my oven, I try to cook several things at the same time, rather than using it for a single baked potato.
So during the State Pension Challenge, when I heated the oven up for a chicken thigh traybake, I also shoved in a tray of roasted veg for another couple of meals. If the kids have chicken nuggets or fishfingers, I pop in wedges or roast potatoes, to avoid using the hob for boiled potatoes, rice or mash. I also managed to squeeze in some slightly suspect oaty raisin bars (technical term).
Keep an eye on your kettle
Don’t get splash happy when filling your kettle. If you only want a cup of tea, just boil a cupful of water, rather than filling it to the brim. If you do end up with extra hot water, top up a thermos kept next to the kettle, to use for your next brew.
Making one cup of tea? Only boil a cupful of water
Defrost for free
Yes, I can defrost stuff speedily in a microwave. But that costs money.
Instead, I try to think about the next day’s meals just before going to bed, so I can get food out of the freezer the night before. I can then put it in the fridge to defrost safely overnight, without affecting my energy bills.
Clean the back of your fridge and freezer (carefully!)
Ever pulled your fridge or freezer away from the wall?
The coils at the back are part of the condenser that keeps them cold. If the coils get dirty, they become less efficient, so it’s worth cleaning off the dust and dirt every once in a while.
If you have a freezer that needs defrosting, make sure you defrost it regularly rather than letting it get shaggy with ice. This will also help cut its energy consumption.
Check the energy efficiency rating
If you are stuck with replacing stuff like your fridge, dishwasher or cooker, check their energy labels and try to choose appliances with high energy efficiency ratings. They may well cost more to buy, but will then keep your running costs down. Think ‘A’ ratings and lots of ++++.
Now – over to you. What are your top tips to cut energy costs when cooking? Do share in the comments – I reckon we could all do with making some savings.
Hi, A slow cooker don’t really work for us as we eat at lunch time but I use a presure cooker or a Remoska. My tip is always do your veg in a steamer thus you are only heating on saucepan and gravy is made with the cooking water. I don’t use a saucepan lid but put the plates used for serving on the top thus warming the plates. Next keep all cooking appliances clean as it saves energy and makes them more efficient. Also at this time of year clean all your windows and lighting to maximise the light .
Author
Oooh yes good tip about steamer baskets. I have a trusty bamboo steamer basket I pop on top of the pan when cooking rice, pasta or potatoes.Makes the timing much easier to control too, as the water underneath is already boiling.
I do actually often use my slow cooker for lunch time soup, if I shove stuff in before 8am can eat for lunch at 1pm.
THE ONLY LEGITIMATE CRYPTO RECOVERY EXPERT….!!!
Good day Audience, I want to use this great medium to announce this information to the public about Mr MORRIS GRAY. few months back, I was seeking an online BTC investment plan when I got scammed for about $172,000. I was so down and didn’t know what to do until I came across a timeline about Mr MORRIS GRAY. so I reached out to him and to my greatest surprise, they were able to recover all the funds which I had previously lost to the Devils. I am so glad to share this wonderful news with you all because it cost me nothing to announce a good and reliable Hacker as Mr MORRIS GRAY, His direct email is Morris Gray 830 at gmail dot com, WhatsApp: +1 (607) 698-0239…..!!
Investing on the cryptocurrency market has been a main source of income, that’s why knowledge plays a very important role in humanity, you don’t need to over work yourself for money.All you need is the right information, and you could build your own wealth from the comfort of your home!Binary trading is dependent on timely signals, assets or controlled strategies which when mastered increases chance of winning up to 90%-100% with trading. It’s possible to earn $10,000 to $20,000 trading weekly-monthly in cryptocurrency(bitcoin) investment, just get in contact with Mr Bernie Doran my broker. I had almost given up on everything about binary trading and never getting my lost funds back, till i met with him, with his help and guidance now i have my lost funds back to my bank account, gained more profit and I can now trade successfully with his profitable strategies and software!!
Reach out to him on Gmail (BERNIEDORANSIGNALS@GMAIL.COM) , or his WhatsApp : +1(424)285-0682 for inquiries
I thought it was just me using a flask for hot water! Lockdown/wfh had me horrified at the number of times I put the kettle on for a brew!
I was depressed some Months ago due to how frustrating it is dealing with bad credits, but reaching out to HACK VANISH via Phone: +1 (747) 293-8514 and Email: HACK VANISH (@) GMAIL. COM gave my life a new meaning, after I found him credible through positive reviews I read on a credit blog, in a twinkle of an eye, this great hacker got my credit score restored from 509 to 784 across the 3 major credit bureaus, all evictions and repossession has been wiped off, my LexisNexis and Chex system fixed respectively, to my greatest surprise, some days later, I received an E-mail confirming the approval of my pending loan application. I can confidently say 2021 was an exceptional year for my husband and I as we are proud owners of a new home and a brand-new SUV courtesy HACK VANISH, I would definitely recommend him to anyone in need of a genuine Hacker.
I always take special care about the selection nutrition and the quality of products, but lately, I decided to take care of my nutrition especially. Due to the lack of quality and timely eating, my health has deteriorated significantly. Therefore, I decided to pay special attention to this and the personal chef turned out to be just a godsend in this https://www.poptop.uk.com/london/suppliers/catering/privatechef/ Finally, I can eat quality food and this is a great happiness for me. I decided not to save on this, because my health depends on it.
I lost my Job few months ago,my wife left me ,could not get income for my family, things was so tough and I couldn’t get anything for my children, not until a met a recommendation on a page writing how Mr Bernie Wilfred helped a lady in getting a huge amount of profit every 6 working days on trading with his management on the cryptocurrency Market, to be honest I never believe it but I took the risk to take a loan of $2000. and I contacted him unbelievable and I was so happy I earn $22,500 in 6 working days, the most joy is that I can now take care of my family I don’t know how to appreciate your good work Mr. Bernie Doran God will continue to bless you for being a life saver I have no way to appreciate you than to tell people about your good trade management system. For a perfect investment and good strategies contact Mr Bernie Doran via WhatsApp :+1(424)285-0682 or Telegram : @Bernie_fx or Gmail : Bernie.doranfx01@gmail.com
THE ONLY LEGITIMATE CRYPTO RECOVERY EXPERT….!!!
Good day Audience, I want to use this great medium to announce this information to the public about Mr MORRIS GRAY. few months back, I was seeking an online BTC investment plan when I got scammed for about $172,000. I was so down and didn’t know what to do until I came across a timeline about Mr MORRIS GRAY. so I reached out to him and to my greatest surprise, they were able to recover all the funds which I had previously lost to the Devils. I am so glad to share this wonderful news with you all because it cost me nothing to announce a good and reliable Hacker as Mr MORRIS GRAY, His direct email is Morris Gray 830 at gmail dot com, WhatsApp: +1 (607) 698-0239…..!!
I just want to say Thank You to everyone who supported me through the years. My name is Manuel Franco, New Berlin, Wisconsin. My story of how I won the Powerball lottery of $768.4M is a bit of a tale. I have been playing Powerball tickets for 6 years now since I turned 18. I bought my first ticket on my 18 birthday. I was feeling very lucky that day because I had contacted Dr. Odunga Michael to help me with the winning Powerball numbers. I really had that great great feeling that I looked at the camera wanting to wink at it. I only did a tiny part of it and trusted him. He gave me the numbers after I played a couple other tickets along with it for $10. I checked my ticket after the winnings came online and saw the numbers were correct including the Power play. I screamed for about 10 minutes because it felt like a dream. I had won $768.4M. You can check my winning testimony with the lottery officials just with my name search. Thank you Dr Odunga. Well, his email is odungaspelltemple@gmail.com and you can also call or Whats-app him at +2348167159012 so you guys can contact him
I Need A Hacker To Recover My Lost Investment? Go To Lost Recovery Masters
Hello guys, I’m Lyne Azabal from France. In my investment with Acstons-Cc, I also lost 17 lakhs. Trading using the Acstons. cc app generated a profit of 197,153 USD after paying tax and a 25% fee, however they would not release my profit and all of my Bitcoins were frozen. I called my pals, who suggested I try LOST RECOVERY MASTERS, and to my astonishment they were able to assist me get back 89% of my money. Despite the fact that I didn’t get all of it back, I’m still really appreciative of LOST RECOVERY MASTERS
For advice on recovering cryptocurrencies, get in touch with Lost Recovery Masters You can also ask them questions about any firm you wish to deal with.
Contact them: Whatsapp (+44(7537)-105921) Email (Support@lostrecoverymasters.com) Learn More https://lostrecoverymasters.wixsite.com/recoverbitcoin2024
BE SMART AND BECOME RICH IN LESS THAN 3DAYS….It all depends on how fast
you can be to get the new PROGRAMMED blank ATM card that is capable of
hacking into any ATM machine,anywhere in the world. I got to know about
this BLANK ATM CARD when I was searching for job online about a month
ago..It has really changed my life for good and now I can say I’m rich and
I can never be poor again. The least money I get in a day with it is about
$50,000.(fifty thousand USD) Every now and then I keeping pumping money
into my account. Though is illegal,there is no risk of being caught
,because it has been programmed in such a way that it is not traceable,it
also has a technique that makes it impossible for the CCTVs to detect
you..For details on how to get yours today, email the hackers on : (
atmmachinehackers1@gmail.com < Tell your
loved once too, and start to live large. That's the simple testimony of how
my life changed for good…Love you all .
Real spell casters are hard to find but I am happy to thank Lord Krish for helping me win the lottery successfully after trying so many spell casters and I found my happiness in Lord Krish. I was given the lottery numbers by him which made me the third highest lottery winner in history and this is all thanks to you sir. Winning the lottery is something everyone would like to feel especially with a trustworthy spell caster. I, Yanira Alvarez, won the Powerball lottery in Los Angeles and I really thank Lord Krish because after I contacted him, he told me to only provide the spiritual items for him to do it for me and I didn’t hesitate to give him what he required so I could win it. I have tried so many spell casters who seemed real but only Lord Krish numbers gave me the winnings. I won the Powerball Jackpot of $1.08 billion and I am here today to share my experience to those willing to win the lottery as well. Take this opportunity to contact Lord Krish Spiritual with his email: lordkrishshrine@gmail.com and also share your experience with others.