Did you know that we throw away a third of the food we produce? And not just in households, but also in restaurants, canteens, and even school kitchens. But the good news is that with a bit of creativity and goodwill, we can save a lot of it! Sunce promotes this through zero-waste workshops that are a true culinary adventure. If you’ve ever wondered how to use food leftovers while preparing something really delicious, keep reading!
How was our experience at ŠKMER?
Imagine this: you’re standing in a professional kitchen, with fresh fish, eggplant, chocolate and a few spices in front of you. Nothing special at first glance. What can we even make with just two or three ingredients? It is a question most of us would ask, but in the hands of an experienced chef and a dose of creativity, these very ingredients became the stars of a true restaurant-quality dish.
At the ŠKMER workshop, representatives of Split’s restaurants and the Sunce team learned a range of creative ways to prepare meals without generating unnecessary waste, in addition to new techniques for filleting fish and preparing food. Fish bones and skin may sound like something destined for the trash. However, those very bones are a key ingredient for a fine fish broth, and the skin can be turned into crispy chips that can even serve as edible decoration.
– It’s not the end of the world if your carpaccio doesn’t turn out. Just chop it finely, season it, and you’ve got a delicious tartare, – taught us chef and ŠKMER president Željko Neven Bremec.
And if crispy fish-skin chips, bone broth and eggplant tartare did not surprise you, wait for this! Participants of the ŠKMER workshop went a step further and made none other than an eggplant brownie. The result? A moist, rich dessert in which no one would ever guess the secret ingredient.
– After you squeeze the juice from organis citrus fruits, do not throw away the peel! You can use lemon and orange peel to make delicious limuncini and arancini, sweets that can be stored for a long time, – explained Ivana Bradarić, head of pastry training.
The benefits of zero-waste cooking
Zero-waste cooking offers numerous advantages, especially for restaurants and hospitality businesses that produce large amounts of food. First, it enables financial savings because better use of ingredients reduces purchasing costs and increases profit. It also helps to protect the environment by reducing waste and preserving natural resources.
Zero-waste food preparation encourages creativity in the kitchen because it gives chefs the opportunity to create new dishes and techniques using ingredients that would otherwise be discarded. Ultimately, zero-waste cooking improves food quality because every ingredient is used to its fullest potential. Today, sustainability and environmental awareness are major trends, suggesting that using zero-waste cooking methods can enhance a restaurant’s popularity and overall image.
AWASTER: cooking smart, wasting less
As part of the AWASTER project, Sunce organized a zero-waste cooking workshop for representatives of Split’s restaurants. The goal of the workshop was to educate participants on ways to minimize kitchen waste and use resources efficiently.
– The Interreg AWASTER project is being implemented in the coastal areas of Croatia and Italy with the aim of minimizing waste production by promoting the principles of the circular economy through educational programs for students and stakeholders in the economic production sector, – said Tea Kuzmičić Rosandić, project manager at Sunce.
Split restaurateurs on sustainable business practices
Representatives of Split’s restaurants agreed that education on sustainable business practices and zero-waste food preparation is definitely needed.
– People in our area are not sufficiently educated on this topic. Additional workshops for citizens and hospitality staff would significantly improve the situation, – says an employee of the restaurant Dujkin Dvor.
Restaurateurs also agree that it is important to educate tourists.
– There is always room for improvement, especially in raising awareness about the importance of proper waste management, – emphasized an employee of Hotel Briig.
Restaurateurs claim that they use recycled packaging and separate waste into designated bins whenever possible. Representatives of Split’s restaurants clearly show a willingness to cooperate in environmental protection and hope that waste management at the city level will improve soon.
– Inefficient waste management originates from the ‘top,’ and I hope the authorities will soon start working on solving this problem, – said an employee of the restaurant Fife.
Start making changes in the kitchen – join Sunce!
It is time to rethink how we cook and what we throw away. Zero-waste cooking is not just a trend, it is a smart, sustainable and creative way to prepare food that offers numerous benefits. Let’s use ingredients to the fullest, reduce waste, save money and at the same time create dishes that delight with both taste and presentation.
With the aim of raising awareness about adopting sustainable principles in everyday life and contributing to the development of sustainable tourism, we are organizing the festival Sustainability is my vibe on April 25th at the Split Pazar from 5 to 7 PM. Split chefs will be preparing zero-waste delicacies on-site, and all visitors will have the opportunity to taste them as well as learn a few tips for applying zero-waste principles in their own cooking at home.
We invite all chefs, restaurateurs and food lovers to take a step toward more responsible cooking. Practice the zero-waste cooking method and show that delicious food does not have to mean a lot of waste.
Every ingredient has value – the peel, the skin and the leftovers we often forget. These can become the star of the plate. With a little imagination and knowledge, anyone can contribute to protecting the environment and creating positive change in the kitchen and beyond. Become a member or subscribe to our newsletter to be among the first to find out what’s new at Sunce.
