Today, zero waste cooking is one of the biggest food trends, which is also encouraging restaurants to adopt more sustainable business models and menus. We all know that food waste contributes to climate change, but managing a waste-free kitchen not only brings environmental benefits; it also benefits the restaurant in terms of economic sustainability.
There are many ways to move your restaurant kitchen towards zero waste. You can take inspiration from the likes of Røst in Milan, Nine Lives in London or Nolla in Helsinki. Or you can take a less brand-centric, more operational approach. Here are 5 tips from Surgital for a more waste-conscious operation!
Optimise the use of products
Challenge the stereotypes of traditional cuisine and find new uses for the products you have at your disposal. This way you can optimise your purchases and expiry dates to avoid waste.
Pasta is not just a main course! You can serve it as a summer starter or a delicious dessert.
Every part has value
Good quality ingredients can be used in their entirety.In 2019, Surgital produced a recipe book “Il buono che avanza” (The good leftovers) in collaboration with Italian schools, challenging young chefs to create delicious, original dishes from kitchen leftovers. From this project came some recipes such as.
Radicchio with wild asparagus stalk and potato peel velouté, marrow jam, tomato peel
Stuffed paccheri, the leftover delicacy
Deep freezing is an ally in the fight against waste
This is a very important topic that Surgital has always built into its training activities. In keeping with tradition, the company's products are kept fresh only by using cold, so their labels remain clean without preservatives or additives. This means that chefs can now rely on a product that has the quality of its ingredients and consistency over time, and is easy to use even for less experienced chefs.
Thanks to IQF technology, Surgital's noodles are quickly deep-frozen, so each noodle or grain of rice is separated from the next, making them not only easy to handle but also easy to calculate.
Pay attention to the packaging
The zero waste philosophy is based on the 5 R's - Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle.
Product packaging is difficult to completely eliminate from a professional kitchen for obvious reasons, but make sure your suppliers not only use recyclable materials, but that they are also preferably already recycled, such as the Divine Creazioni® tray.
Small changes with big impact
According to researchers at the University of Oxford, following a vegan diet can reduce a person's food carbon footprint by up to 73%. Add a plant-based option or two to your menu to offer your guests a meal with a lower environmental impact. Our suggestion? Surgital Laboratorio Tortellini® is a vegetable, pea and lentil linguine that's low in fat and high in fiber. It can be used as an alternative to egg pasta or for less traditional combinations.
