MasterChef’s Top Tips: How to Stop Food Waste and Save Money!

Cooking often leads us to toss away parts of food we don’t think twice about. The peels of sweet potatoes, avocado pits, or wilted lettuce leaves all end up in the trash. In Cincinnati alone, over 25 million pounds of food waste went to landfills in 2021, producing harmful methane emissions and providing no nourishment to anyone. These shocking figures highlight a pressing issue.

This week, local and national leaders gather in Cincinnati for the 2025 Wasted Food Summit to brainstorm solutions. One notable voice at the event is Chef Alejandra Schrader, a former contestant on MasterChef and a passionate advocate against food waste.

Chef Schrader’s personal connection to food waste stems from her childhood in Caracas, Venezuela, where her mother worked hard to provide for their family. “We learned to waste nothing,” she shares, describing her mother’s resourcefulness, from making broth from chicken bones to using every leftover.

In her cookbook, The Low Carbon Cookbook and Action Plan, Chef Schrader offers practical advice on reducing waste. She encourages readers to shop wisely. “Know how much you can eat in a week. Check what you already have at home before heading to the store,” she says. Her motto, “shop at home first,” stresses the importance of using existing food to lessen waste.

When food does sit in the fridge longer than expected, using common sense is key. Chef Schrader suggests trusting your senses—if something smells off, it’s likely bad. “Food lasts longer than we think,” she adds, reassuring cooks to be resourceful with what they have.

One of her favorite ways to combat waste involves using parts of vegetables usually discarded. For instance, radish and beet greens are excellent when sautéed with garlic and olive oil. “It’s about making the most of the ingredients you buy,” she explains.

Recent research shows that reducing food waste can drastically lower carbon footprints. According to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), if we cut global food waste by just 25%, it could feed 870 million hungry people.

As social media highlights these issues, many users share their tips and recipes for using food scraps, sparking a growing trend of sustainability in kitchens everywhere. It’s clear: small actions can lead to significant changes, both for our planet and our wallets.

For more helpful insights, check out resources from the Environmental Protection Agency.

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