trying to cut out plastic baggies, but

[ericaness]

i am trying really hard to cut out my use of plastic baggies, but there are 2 applications i cant figure out an alternative to:
1: i freeze a lot of beans, and other stuff too. what else would i freeze things in?

2: how do i store leafy greens in the fridge? if i dont put them in a plastic baggie, the get all wilty. other produce i usually store as is.

[swd12422]

I freeze beans too, and usually put them in jars. Unfortunately, the big freezer bags are easier....

As far as greens, I use plastic bags there, too. This is one of the very few uses I have for them. I haven't found a better way yet...

[HappilyEvrAfter]

I cut out alot of fridge baggy use by shopping thrift stores for Pyrex-type glass dishes that had lids. Took a little while to get a good stock of them up since people don't seem to get rid of them often, but it was worth taking the time to do.
Or, sometimes the web site will have a clearance blowout. I got some square 8x8 purple ones for about $2 each on week.

Produce doesn't seem to last long in our fridge cause we eat it quickly, but most of the time I put it a glass bowl and throw a dish towel over it....if the lid won't fid. Seems to work for a weekly basis.

I don't do a ton of long term freezer storage so I still use the glass bowl with lids....I just throw a quick layer of syran wrap or foil between the bowl and the lid. It's still plastic/foil, but not as much.

[AAK]

For the greens, I wash them and layer them in a glass dish with a moist paper town over them. This works well, but you need to rewet the paper towel daily. But, now you need to pick--would you rather use a paper towel or a plastic bag (since both usually head to the trash afterwards). But, with the plastic bag--designate it as a "greens" bag and rinse it out after use. You can keep using it with your greens for a long time.

Amy

[Ellp]

You don't have to use a paper towel, you could just use a damp hand towel. We have a bunch of flour sack handtowels that work really well for this purpose. The bonus is that the cloth towel doesn't dry out as fast as paper ones.

We don't use any paper towels in our day-to-day basis. Paper towels only get used if there is an extra gunky, funky, will definately ruin cloth, situations. We're still on our original 3 pack of paper towels from 6 years ago!

Originally Posted by AAK

For the greens, I wash them and layer them in a glass dish with a moist paper town over them. This works well, but you need to rewet the paper towel daily. But, now you need to pick--would you rather use a paper towel or a plastic bag (since both usually head to the trash afterwards). But, with the plastic bag--designate it as a "greens" bag and rinse it out after use. You can keep using it with your greens for a long time.

Amy

[proudmomof4]

There are some T"pperw"re containers designed to store veggies, salad, and the likes. Sure, that's still plastic but it lasts for a long time.
I've used the "wet / humid dishcloth method", too, and I've found that it works well - especially when you put your greens in a colander.

[plantnerd]

Freezing I do in tupperwares.  For fridge stuff I reuse bread bags and plastic grocery produce bags.

[jimblejamble]

I have a bunch of big Glad containers that I store produce in, in the fridge, and smaller ones for beans in the freezer.

[debbhudson]

Tupperware has a great product that is called fridgesmart.  I LOVE it and have been using it for about 9 years now.  I sold Tupperware 9 years ago.  Certain produce need to have some air, some don't need any extra.  So these containers have air buttons that you either open or close.  It comes with a guide to tell you which fruit or veggies need what.  My salads last a week, that is about all that it would stay in our house anyway, as we eat it daily.  Strawberries will stay for about 4 weeks.....not that they stay around my house either.  lol  I found this out one time because they had gotten pushed to the back of the refrigerator and weeks later we could still eat them.  I really do love Tupperware and use it for most everything.

[gardenmama76]

Lock n Lock containers!  They are making them in glass now too!  I have a giant one (unfortunately it's plastic) that I use for my greens.  I have a million sizes of both glass and plastic.  Cut peppers last in those things for weeks!  So do salad greens of all varieties!  They're amazing!  Been using them for years!  When I get home from the store, I tear my greens into bite sized pieces, wash and run through the salad spinner, and put straight into the lock and lock container.  After about a week if the greens start to get wimpy in there, I just soak them for 5-10 minutes in cold water, run through the spinner again and they are good as new!   I also wash other veggies and put them straight in too, since I use fabric bags for produce I can't just throw them in the fridge.  They're great for storing peppers, green beans, mushrooms, cut tomatoes and onions, scallions (and obviously leftovers etc)....you name it!  My husband even slices all his bagels when I bring them home and we put them straight in one and they are good for the week (though we have a designated bagel container since he uses it every week and it's hard to get the smell of garlic and onion out of it).  The ONLY veggie I had issues with in them is broccoli.  I think the seal is too good and even though the broccoli looks super fresh and perfect, it must offgas something and when you open it it stinks like poop!  Not very appetizing!  But that's the only thing I've had issues with. 

They are selling the glass ones now at Home Goods, Marshalls, TJMaxx and places like that.  They are a bit pricy, which is why I've collected them over the years but they are SOOOO worth every penny because they last forever and think of all the plastic bags you WON'T be using and all the produce you'll save by it lasting longer until you can use it!  I swear by these babies and have turned so many people onto them!  They have silicone running around the rims of the lids and four clamps that lock down on each side which makes them awesome!  I like that they are square and easily stackable in the fridge too.  They work WAAAAAYYYY  better than plastic baggies ever did for me for anything!  We've cut out our use all together!  I'm happy they are now making glass ones too, but now I have a small addiction and have to start getting rid of some of my plastic ones to make way for the glass ones.  Next yard sale I suppose! 

I also freeze lots of stuff in canning jars. 

[laohaire]

Love all the non-bag ideas in the thread, but also wanted to mention that you might find you have more plastic bags than you think, even if you manage to totally eschew plastic shopping bags. I save my bread bags and tortilla bags (those have a nice zip closure) for vegetables like spinach or brocolli that do better in plastic.

Even better, if I'm good I'll put them in a cloth bag first, and then the plastic bag over the cloth bag. Then I get the benefits of the plastic bag, but it stays clean and I can reuse it indefinitely.

Unfortunately, this practice has led to... far too many plastic bags in my bag holder. Sigh. Must make more of my own bread.

[wemoon]

There are some really good Tupperware containers that keep lettuce really good! http://order.tupperware.com/coe/app/tup_show_item.show_item_detail?fv_item_category_code=18002&fv_item_number=P10056908000 I have had my set for over 7 years... definitely worth the investment!

I also use Tupperware in the freezer: http://order.tupperware.com/coe/app/!tw$shop.p_category?pv_ic_code=20001 These stack really nicely. One of the sizes is a one-cup size which is perfect for chicken or veg stock.

[elanorh]

We store our leafy greens in thin muslin produce bags (reuseit.com sells some, you can probably find them on etsy or make them yourself, too).  They have a drawstring, we dampen them, wring the excess moisture out, and in my experience they keep the lettuce/spinach etc. 'fresh' longer than keeping them in a plastic bag.  Our CSA provides our leafy greens in muslin bags during CSA season, too, for the same reason.  

[Think of Winter]

My dc eat a lot of boxed cereal, and those bags are great.  We use them for everything.  A clothespin or alligator clip works well to seal them.  

[nanette0269]

we use lock n lock for everything in the pantry...nothing better, from what i've experienced.

for long term freezer stuff, we use a lot of the ball plastic freezer jars, which are 8 ounces.  for larger items, we typically use the lock n lock as well.