Atoning for Environmental Sins in the Kitchen this Yom Kippur

Avoid environmentally unfriendly cooking habits in the new year

The Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur begins this Friday night, September 12. In Jewish tradition this is the day of repentance, a time to look back on our actions during the past year and resolve to do better. It’s a good time to power down, and during the holiday season, much of our activity focuses on cooking for friends and family. The kitchen is the part of any home that uses up the most resources on a daily basis. It’s time to take stock—have you committed any of these environmental “sins” in your kitchen over the past year?

1. Depending on disposables. Disposables have to be manufactured, transported and well, disposed of. Better to invest in a few practical utensils–second-hand is fine—and wash them with an appropriate amount of water and soap.
2. Wasting food. Rotten food emits methane, which is worse for the environment than carbon dioxide emissions. Buy only what you need, use it up before buying more, and don’t overeat.
3. Wasting energy. A pressure cooker or crockpot is more efficient than the oven. Cooking one-pot meals save the most energy. And open your refrigerator rarely.
4. Wasting water. Don’t let your water run when you’re not using it, and save water from washing vegetables for houseplants. For more ideas, see Twelve Tips for Saving Water in the Kitchen.
5. Eating too much animal protein. This year, replace some of the meat, eggs, and dairy products with legumes, nuts, whole grains and vegetables. You can follow these tips for Switching to a Vegetarian Diet.
6. Relying on processed foods. Processed foods are not only expensive, they usually contain excess amounts of sugar, salt, preservatives and unhealthy fats. And think about all the packaging that ends up in the landfill. Stick to local, raw and organic products whenever you can.

Let us know about your plans to make your kitchen “greener” in the coming year.

:: Photo credit: Let Ideas Compete

Read more green posts on food and health:

A Fading Art: Understanding Breastfeeding in the Middle East

Biased Milk Allergy Study Puts Babies at Risk

Use a Pressure Cooker for Tasty, Healthy and Frugal Meals

Author: Hannah Katsman

Hannah learned environmentalism from her mother, a conservationist before it was in style. Once a burglar tried to enter their home in Cincinnati after noticing the darkened windows (covered with blankets for insulation) and the snow-covered car in the driveway. Mom always set the thermostat for 62 degrees Fahrenheit (17 Celsius) — 3 degrees lower than recommended by President Nixon — because “the thermostat is in the dining room, but the stove’s pilot light keeps the kitchen warmer.” Her mother would still have preferred today’s gas-saving pilotless stoves. Hannah studied English in college and education in graduate school, and arrived in Petach Tikva in 1990 with her husband and oldest child. Her mother died suddenly six weeks after Hannah arrived and six weeks before the first Gulf War, and Hannah stayed anyway. She has taught English but her passion is parental education and support, especially breastfeeding. She recently began a new blog about energy- and time-efficient meal preparation called CookingManager.Com. You can find her thoughts on parenting, breastfeeding, Israeli living and women in Judaism at A Mother in Israel. Hannah can be reached at hannahk (at) greenprophet (dot) com.

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