Remember my raging insecurities about Organic Mom?
Well, she may buy all of her produce at Whole Paycheck, but I don’t have that kind of coin. So I pick and choose and do the best I can. By now, we all know that certain fruits and veggies–like apples, celery, and peaches–tend to harbor more pesticide residues than foods like pineapple and asparagus (you can download the Environmental Working Group shopping guide here).
But some of that pesticide residue can also be washed away. Vigorously washing fruits and vegetables can reduce pesticide deposits by 30 percent, according to a recent research review published in Food and Chemical Toxicology. (What’s vigorous? Either rubbing produce or swirling it in a colander under running water for at least 15 seconds.)
My husband has a thing for our Norwex Fruit and Vegetable Scrub Cloth, which he uses each morning to meticulously wash the Granny Smith apple he packs in his lunch. There’s a rough side for removing dirt and pesticides and a smooth side for polishing.
I’m a huge fan of Norwex and have eliminated nearly all of our toxic cleaning products in favor of a slew of their cloths. My friend Carrie, who introduced me to Norwex, is giving away a Fruit and Vegetable Scrub Cloth ($13.99 value) to one of you!
To enter, leave me a comment with your best money-saving tip for buying fruits and vegetables and “Like” Norwex Cleaning Girl on Facebook.
The contest will end next Wednesday, October 26th at noon ET. I’ll use Random.org to select a winner.
While you’re at it, check out Carrie’s often hilarious blog about cleaning with Norwex. I especially enjoyed this post about the cleaning Hell that is her new white bathroom (oh, the humanity!).
Good luck!
{ 25 comments… read them below or add one }
It is an unwritten rule that we must have produce in our kitchen & as budgets tighten, it’s essential to shop wisely. Although the pre-cut veggies, already mixed salads, & baby carrots are easy, the time needed to prep them isn’t worth the high spike in cost. Plus, I have come to enjoy peeling my carrots & creating salads
Thanks Jessica! I started buying bulk carrots instead of baby carrots to save money and found that I actually like them better. They are often sweeter and seem fresher than baby carrots. I still have a hard time letting go of pre-washed salad greens, though. They are such a timesaver–but also so expensive! Thanks for reading.
I try to buy in season as much as possible, since produce tends to be cheaper when abundant and/or not flown in from another hemisphere. “In season” in New England around February gets a little depressing, however, so we’re still forking out for the bananas & so forth.
Agreed. And ditto for Ohio. I get awfully tired of apples and pears (and reluctant to pay $1 per orange or grapefruit on a regular basis). Thanks Kat!
Buy in season and freeze fruit before it goes bad. You can use it for smoothies. I never let a banana go bad in my house!
Yes! Great tip.
I agree with the above comments, and have another tip for bananas that are getting a bit spotty. I freeze them, and they become so sweet my kids think the “banana popsicles” are a special treat, almost akin to ice cream! Slice lengthwise, then in half for 4 pops per banana.
(Whole Foods? Doesn’t she have a coo-op?)
Aside from “growing your own,” the best advice I have for cheap veggie seekers is to look for boxes/bags of “seconds” at the farmers market. This fall I bought 50 pounds of organic, heirloom tomatoes in a big cardboard box labeled “seconds” for $12. With that I made a pot of fresh tomato soup, sliced a few big boys for sandwiches, and put up 8 quarts of puree in jars and 2 quarts of sauce in the freezer. Some of these tomatoes had little black spots and messed up seeds thanks to the stink bug epidemic. But I had only about 10 percent waste. But most were just very ripe. Like “eat me now or lose me forever” ripe.
Another tip…talk to the farmers. Just because the doesn’t say organic doesn’t mean it isn’t. Many small farm growers don’t or can’t go to the expense of organic certification. Just ask if they spray or dust their plants. They’ll tell you.
I buy stuff in bulk at the farmers market. Try to get there late and the farmers will often make deals because they don’t want to bring their produce back to the farm. I went to the Farmers Market a few weeks ago and a farmer gave me a discount because he saw me with all my kiddos!
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I love everyone’s suggestions. Our best bet is to buy bulk amounts from the farmer that we get our CSA from. Buying enough green beans and corn for the whole year and freezing them gives us lots of delicious veggies to eat during the cold season.
Okay, the following tip only saves money in the sense that sometimes it’s easier to budget a completely fixed cost than to worry about searching for deals if you are a time-is-money kind of person and/or a person who has trouble making decisions. (I happen to be both.) Also, it carries huge benefits in forcing your family to try a really wide variety of produce. But on to the tip already: Join a CSA!
Kate–That’s a great tip about looking for “seconds” at the farmer’s market! I never knew they offered such a thing. I also snagged a discounted box of tomatoes this summer (but only 12 pounds, not 50 like you got!). A friend and I spent hours peeling and seeding them, then I made many batches of spaghetti sauce. It was a long process but was also very satisfying. Thanks for reading!
Gretchen–very cool tip about the banana pops! Thanks!
Sarah–Good idea about getting there late. You guys are full of good insider advice about the farmer’s markets!
Wende–I’m so impressed you got enough beans and corn for the cold months! Wow! I really need to hone my freezing and canning skills. How nice to have those veggies in the dead of winter. Thanks for your tip.
Jenny–Thanks! I have not been brave enough to pay for a CSA yet. I’m so worried about having a ton of turnips (or other, similar mysterious-to-me vegetable) and no time to figure out how to prepare it. One of these summers I’m going to bite the bullet. Thanks for reading my blog.
To save money my father still has a big garden every year even though we (my siblings and I) have all grown and moved out. But we still get to have the veggies from the garden
we didnt get to can any of it this year, With 2 year old twins time just got away from me.
We live in a former mango grove, so our neighborhood is laden with mango trees (as is our yard!) In late spring, we gathered every mango we could, peeled, and froze them so we now have lots of mango for smoothies, when the price is double what it was in the spring. Just a local example of what everyone else was saying about buying in season (or just cleaning up your yard in season!)
How jealous am I of your yard full of mangoes??? Thanks Mary!
That’s great, Tracy. And I can’t imagine canning with 2-year-old twins! You’re lucky you get so much fresh produce every season. Thanks for reading!
We buy in bulk, in season, and preserve for the rest of the season.
Rachel, I’ve really got to take one of your preserving classes one of these days…
I buy most of my fruits and vegetables at a local store that gives a 10% discount to women on Wednesdays. Their prices are fairly resonable and the produce is fresh. Try to save every penny I can.
Love that! Wish my store did that…
Congratulations to Missy! Random.org chose you as the winner of the Norwex Fruit and Veggie Scrubbing cloth. I’ll contact you to get your mailing address.
Thanks to everyone who entered!