Tips & Guides

Imperfect’s Food Waste Resource Guide

Zero Waste Tips  Our Grocery Storage Guide tells you how to store all of your favorite foods.  The Save the Food Guestimator can help you plan ...
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Kitchen hacks galore

Tips & Guides

Small wins at home that add up to big impact for the planet.

CompostingIngredient guidesWaste-less tips
Imperfect’s Food Waste R...
Zero Waste Tips  Our Grocery Storage Guide tells you how to store all ...
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Storage tipsWaste-less tips
The Imperfect Foods Grocery St...
Storing your groceries properly is one of the best ways to make them last and st...
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Waste-less tips
But did you smell it first? Ho...
When we look at food waste in our homes, the two main causes of waste are buying...
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Ingredient guidesStorage tips
When are avocados in season?
Learn when avocados are in season so you can know where your current batch is li...
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DIYUse whatchu gotWaste-less tips
DIY Rosemary Orange Cleaning S...
When you make your own all-purpose cleaner, you never again have to wonder, “Wha...
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HolidayLeftover hacksWaste-less tips
How to make Thanksgiving Lefto...
Thanksgiving is all about an abundance of good food – and putting it to good use...
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HolidayUse whatchu got
Quick Fixes for Thanksgiving F...
Inevitably, something is going to go wrong when you’re whipping up new dishes or...
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Holiday
Imperfect’s Thanksgiving Shopp...
You can check “making a list” off your list. Our Thanksgiving Shopping List can ...
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FallIngredient guides
Everything You Ever Wanted to ...
Photo and epic carving skills by Antonio Wothe, Imperfect produce buyer. Welcome...
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FallIngredient guides
How to Cook with Pumpkins
We answer your top questions about cooking with pumpkins!
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HolidaySustainability
What To Do With Your Old Hallo...
Learn what to do with your Halloween pumpkin after the big night so you don’t cr...
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DIY
Easy DIY Coffee Candle with Up...
You can make this DIY Coffee Candle about as upcycled as you want by using spent...
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SoupUse whatchu gotWaste-less tips
How to Make a Simple and Delic...
It’s the secret ingredient that adds depth, intensity, and structure to any dish...
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FallIngredient guides
Our (Almost) Fall Produce Guide
With fall comes cozy feelings of…wait a second, it’s still August. L...
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Product spotlights
The Best Fruits and Veggies to...
It turns out that kids are more likely to eat fruits and veggies if they helped ...
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Sustainability
5 Tips for Plastic Free July
Plastic Free July is here! We’re passionate about reducing waste, so we’re big f...
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Side
Our Favorite Veggies for Grilling
Learn about our 5 favorite things to grill and then get fired up to grill everyt...
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Ingredient guidesSummer
Our Summer Produce Guide
If you ask our produce buyers, now is the time to really get excited about summe...
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SustainabilityWaste-less tips
How to Have a Waste-Free Picnic
Packing for a waste-free summer picnic is easier than you think. The hardest par...
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SustainabilityWaste-less tips
How to Make a Sustainable Tabl...
“Tablescaping” is a real word, it’s a verb, and more important...
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Waste-less tips
How to Make the Most of Your F...
Help your flowers live stronger for longer with the help of bouquet queen, Jacki...
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DIYStorage tipsSustainability
How to Make Your Own Beeswax W...
Small swaps add up to big change, so consider trading your plastic wrap or alumi...
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DIYHoliday
How to Naturally Dye Easter Eggs
Easter baskets, at home egg-hunts, pastel-painted this, egg-shaped that, chocola...
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Leftover hacks
7 Tips for Storing Cheese Prop...
A pound of cheese takes hundreds of gallons of water to produce, making cheese w...
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Use whatchu got
Our 4 Favorite Baking Substitu...
You’re in the mood to bake something (today’s been one of those weeks) but you r...
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DIYHoliday
Instructions for Our DIY Holid...
Behold, here’s how to make our favorite zero-waste DIY holiday decorations. 
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DIYHoliday
Halloween Costume for Gardener...
Raised bed Halloween costume for gardeners
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DIYHoliday
Halloween Costume for Dogs: As...
Halloween Costume for Dogs: Astro Mutt
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DIYHoliday
Halloween Costumes for Dogs: D...
Halloween costume for dogs: dog carrot
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DIYHoliday
Halloween Masks made from Recy...
Halloween masks: pumpkin, lemon, and strawberry
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FallIngredient guides
6 Ways to Pumpkin Spice Up You...
You’ve been underestimating the potential of our Imperfect Pumpkin Spice m...
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Imperfect U
Quick Tips With Joel Gamoran: ...
In cooking as in life, knowledge is power. We want you to feel as empowered as p...
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Imperfect U
Quick Tips With Joel Gamoran: ...
They don’t teach cooking tips in school, but they really should! That’s why we t...
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Imperfect U
Imperfect U: How to Master Mea...
One of the best ways to make your meals easier and less stressful on busy weekda...
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Imperfect U
Quick Tips With Joel Gamoran: ...
How can you get the most out of your groceries? Our next Imperfect U lesson come...
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Imperfect UWaste-less tips
Imperfect U: How to Reduce Foo...
Reducing food waste starts in your kitchen and we’re here to help you do your pa...
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Imperfect U
Quick Tips With Joel Gamoran: ...
To help you make the most of your Imperfect Foods box, we teamed up with scrappy...
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Imperfect U
Imperfect U: Saving Time in th...
Have you ever wondered how you can make cooking faster and easier? We teamed up ...
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Ingredient guides
How to Cook With Nuts
When we ask food writers and chefs what ingredients every home cook should have ...
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Waste-less tips
8 tips for more delicious and ...
Nothing inspires quite as much passion, debate, and anxiety as cooking food over...
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Leftover hacksWaste-less tips
Coffee Grounds: 7 ways to use ...
Learn 7 fun and innovative ways that you can use your coffee grounds.
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Waste-less tips
This Earth Day, Prevent Food W...
Food waste can be overwhelming so we're here to empower you with easy, actionabl...
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Waste-less tips
Dive in to Sustainable Seafood...
"Fish have seasons, just like produce."
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Product spotlights
Pantry essentials with Imperfect
Learn what items you should always have in your fridge and pantry to make cookin...
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Packaging
Reuse your Imperfect Box ̵...
Learn 4 fun and creative ways to reuse your Imperfect box so it doesn’t go to wa...
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Waste-less tips
Reducing Food Waste is the Per...
Learn why reducing food waste is the ultimate New Year’s Resolution that has a b...
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Waste-less tips
Tips for Reducing Waste at Hom...
Get some chef wisdom for how to prevent food waste at home and at restaurants!
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A Less Wasteful Thanksgiving i...
We’re sharing our top tips for making your Thanksgiving meal less wasteful.
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BakingProduct spotlights
The 5 Essential Baking Ingredi...
Baking season is heating up! You may be wondering how to prepare cookies, cakes,...
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Product spotlights
Everything You Should Know abo...
Learn how to make this misunderstood root vegetable delicious with a few tips an...
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BakingDessert
5 Tips for Better Baked Goods
Learn 5 easy tips to make you a better baker today!
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Product spotlights
Waste Less Protein with these ...
Learn four tips for wasting less protein in your kitchen.
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Product spotlights
Fall Spices and how to use the...
Everything you need to know about the most common spices for cooking and baking ...
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Storage tipsWaste-less tips
Shopping Tips to Make Your Gro...
Learn easy tips for shopping and storing food smarter so you’ll end up wasting l...
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Product spotlights
Everything You Need to Know Ab...
"white-space: pre-wrap;">We answer your top questions about cooking with pumpkins!
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Unwasted podcast
Joel Gamoran Eats Scrappy
"How about we don’t make food perfect — because it’s not perfect. Life’s not per...
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Ingredient guides
Your Top 5 Cooking Questions, ...
We answer your 5 most burning cooking questions!
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Ingredient guides
How to Pick The Right Hot Pepp...
We share everything you need to know about 4 of the most common hot peppers out ...
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Leftover hacksStorage tips
What To Do With Leftovers
We share tips and tricks for having a more loving and less wasteful relationship...
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Sustainability
Everything You Ever Wanted to ...
We answer 10 of your most burning questions about recycling.
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Ingredient guides
Everything You Ever Wanted to ...
We answer your most burning questions about how to shop for and cook with spicy ...
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Sustainability
Ciara Bravo’s 6 Sustaina...
Actress Ciara Bravo shares some of her favorite ways to live more sustainably.
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Leftover hacksWaste-less tips
What to do With Leftover Condi...
Whether you’re planning to grill everything in your box this summer or just gear...
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Seasonal previewsSummer
Summer Produce Preview
Learn what surprises summer has in store for Imperfect boxes across the country!
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Waste-less tips
What to Do With Too Many Veget...
Tips, tricks, and recipes for using up 5 of the most common vegetables that that...
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Composting
3 Composting Tips From a Compo...
Learn 3 tips for composting from zero waste expert Kathryn Kellogg of
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Combatting climate change
10 Ways You Can Support Bees t...
Learn about 10 ways that you can help support the bees that are the unsung heroe...
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Storage tips
How to Clean Out Your Fridge: ...
10 steps for a perfect fridge clean out that will leave your kitchen feeling cle...
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Product spotlights
Getting to the Root of Root Ve...
We team up with a chef to answer our community’s top questions about cooking wit...
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Ingredient guides
Vegetable Wisdom Straight from...
Chef Abra Berens shares some useful kitchen wisdom on how to cook with root vege...
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Waste-less tips
Cooking Tips for Busy People: ...
Learn some tips for saving time in the kitchen so can fit delicious meals into y...
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Ingredient guides
Flavors That Love Each Other: ...
We spill the sweet secrets of pairing spices with all of your favorite fruits an...
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Ingredient guides
How to Cook More: Cooking Oil 101
We break down everything you need to know abou...
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How to Buy Less: Understanding...
Ever wondered about the difference between “best by,” “use by,” and “sell by” da...
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Use the whole thingWaste-less tips
What the Fork: Citrus Peels
Learn why citrus peels are a delicious and underrated ingredient that we can all...
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Ingredient guides
Citrus 101
Get the lowdown on all of the delicious varieties of citrus that winter has in s...
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Everything You Ever Wanted to ...
We share our top tips for taking better care of your knives so you can stay shar...
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Ingredient guides
Baking Fats 101 – The Bi...
Our big fat overview of cooking fats!
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Leftover hacksWaste-less tips
4 Steps To Use Up Your Thanksg...
How to navigate the sea of Thanksgiving leftovers like a pro.
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Leftover hacksWaste-less tips
How to Turn Holiday Leftovers ...
Learn how you can turn your Thanksgiving leftovers into an amazing brunch or three!
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Ingredient guides
What the Fork: Fresh vs. Dry H...
Learn which herbs you should buy fresh vs dried and get some practical tips for ...
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Ingredient guides
Root Vegetable 101
We demystify all of the many root vegetables that fall and winter bring our way.
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HolidayLeftover hacks
What To Do With Your Old Hallo...
Learn what to do with your Halloween pumpkin after the big night so you don’t cr...
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Ingredient guides
Your Squash Cheat Sheet
Eating seasonally during the colder months means learning to love squash. Here i...
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Everything You Ever Wanted To ...
We share our top tips for using a knife like a pro in the kitchen and de-mystify...
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SoupWaste-less tips
How to Make the Most of Soup S...
We’re dishing out all of the soup knowledge that you need to make the most of th...
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What The Fork: Broiling and Br...
We set the record straight on broiling vs brûléeing and outline why you should a...
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Ingredient guides
What The Fork Do I Do With Pom...
We demystify the regal pomegranate, teach you how to open it quickly without sta...
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Lunch
Level Up Your Lunchbox!
Guest author Elaine Westcott shares her tips f...
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Leftover hacks
How To Make the Most of End of...
Learn our top tricks for preserving the last of your summer fruit for the delici...
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Use whatchu gotWaste-less tips
How to Make Jam at Home
Everything that you wanted to know about making jam at home.
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Ingredient guides
Kale Yeah: How to Love Kale Again
We teach you how (and why) to massage, season, and love your kale!
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SoupUse the whole thing
How To Turn Your Corn Cobs Int...
Learn how to turn your corn cobs into a sweet and delicious broth!
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Ingredient guides
How to Cook Radishes
Learn 4 tips for cooking delicious radishes at home!
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Waste-less tips
How to Use Stone Fruit Like a ...
Learn some kitchen secrets for turning your stone fruit into delicious desserts ...
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Ingredient guides
12 Easy Ways to Get Your Famil...
Follow these tips and your family will be eating more healthy fruits and veggies...
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PartnershipsWaste-less tips
Cooking Ugly With Chef Anna Po...
We sat down with Anna Posey of Elske in Chicago to chat about how she thinks abo...
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PartnershipsWaste-less tips
Cooking Ugly With Chef Tom Car...
We sat down with Chef Tom Carlin of Dove’s Luncheonette in Chicago to learn abou...
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Ingredient guides
4 Tips for Cooking Excellent E...
4 tips for making more delicious eggplant dishes at home!
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Storage tipsWaste-less tips
How to get the most out of you...
Our handy cheat sheet for making the most of your fresh herbs this summer!
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Use whatchu got
How to Build a Dinner Tablescape
Learn how to use Imperfect produce to decorate a table from our friend Christian...
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SustainabilityWaste-less tips
4 Tips For Going Zero Waste
Practical advice from zero waste superstar, Kathryn Kellogg of Going Zero Waste.
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Partnerships
How to Practice Mindful Eating...
teaches us to how to practice mindful eating and why it matters more than ever i...
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Tips for Cooking With Kids!
Tips on how to get kids excited about cooking from Chef Andi Davis, aka “The Sal...
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Ingredient guides
3 Tips on How to Cook Artichokes
3 tips for turning this bizarre-looking, prickly flowers in to the stuff of Medi...
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Waste-less tips
How to cook like a Zero-Waste ...
6 ways to apply chef tricks in your kitchen to waste less food and cook more del...
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Storage tips
How to Dry Your Leftover Lemon...
Learn how to get more out of your lemons and waste less by drying the peels!
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Storage tips
How (and Why!) To Freeze Your ...
Learn how to keep your extra onions from going to waste by freezing them!
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Sauces and dressings
Dress to Impress: Why You Shou...
How to ditch the plastic bottles of sugary dressing from the store, and whip up ...
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Composting
Composting 101
An overview of how to turn your fruit and veggie scraps, peels, and cores into h...
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Use whatchu gotWaste-less tips
5 Tips for Waste-Free Meal Pla...
Less waste starts with a smarter meal plan!
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Ingredient guides
How to Cook with 5 Lesser-Know...
When it comes to fruits and veggies, there are no strangers, just friends that y...
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Waste-less tips
Turn Your Citrus Peels Into a ...
Citrus peels don't have to go to waste and cleaning your kitchen doesn't have to...
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Waste-less tips
Everything You Wanted to Know ...
Learn the answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about fermentation!
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Waste-less tips
Waste Less, Save More! Why You...
The easiest way to waste less food, save money on groceries, and become a better...
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Ingredient guidesSide
Bye Bye Bland Bowls: 5 Easy Ti...
Farewell obligatory, bland brown rice! Up your brown rice game with these easy k...
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Holiday
3 Ways to Give Less Wasteful G...
3 ways to give thoughtful holiday gifts without wasting rolls of wrapping paper ...
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Everything You Need to Know Ab...
We're taking the expensive and stressful guesswork out of buying a knife this ho...
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Ingredient guides
Imperfect’s Guide to Coo...
Fresh herbs are essential to cooking delicious meals with seasonal produce. Here...
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SoupWaste-less tips
Stock Tips: How to Turn All Yo...
Make an investment in more flavor and less waste with these market-tested, kitch...
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Ingredient guides
“Help! I’ve got to...
Whether you mistook 2 pounds of chiles for 2 chiles during customization or just...
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Ingredient guides
Cook With Your Coffee!
In addition to being a delicious beverage in your cup, your Imperfect Sightglass...
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Leftover hacksWaste-less tips
How to Pickle Everything in yo...
Pickling is a quick and easy way to give new life to your produce, use up excess...
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Ingredient guidesWaste-less tips
Flower Power! A summer love st...
Why nothing says "I love you but dislike food waste" quite like a bouquet of flo...
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Ingredient guides
What do I cook with THAT?
So you got an unfamiliar vegetable in your Imperfect box...Now what?
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10 Essential Kitchen Tools for...
There are a ton of kitchen gadgets and gizmos on the market so we thought we'd w...
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Ingredient guides
Our Top 5 Must-Have Ingredients!
Get these 5 ingredients in your pantry and enjoy delicious, versatile meals no m...
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Leftover hacksUse whatchu got
In Search of the Perfect Sunda...
We reveal some of our kitchen-tested tips for turning the straggler veggies from...
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Ingredient guides
5 Tips for Better Roasted Brus...
Our definitive guide to making the best roasted Brussels Sprouts on the planet.
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Holiday
5 Tips for an Imperfect Valent...
Valentine's Day is around the corner so we're sharing our top tips to make a rom...
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Winter
5 Tricks To Avoid The Winter C...
Free yourself from repetitive winter meals with this helpful guide from your fri...
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Ingredient guides
What the Fork: Persimmons
We finally clear up the difference between Fuyus and Hachiyas, because let's fac...
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