Food waste is an enormous problem in this country. It is inextricably linked to climate change, and some studies show that, in the US, a full third of all food goes uneaten. Considering how much food waste happens at home — which is bad for both the planet and our wallets — we can all do our part by finding simple solutions to prevent our groceries from going into the garbage.
Buying less food, using a kitchen composter that turns your food scraps into fertilizer and making sure to consume your food before it even gets to the composter can all help lower your impact. Reusable storage solutions like Stasher bags can help keep leftovers out of the trash while cutting down on plastic waste, which is why we’re always on the lookout for new sustainable ways to keep food fresh.
While I tend to store most of my leftovers in glass storage containers, sometimes, it would make more sense to throw a cover directly onto a container — be it a mixing bowl or tin can. But aluminum foil and plastic wrap are both single-use products that usually wind up in landfills. To find a better solution, I tried out Unwasted’s Reusable Silicone Lids, and after testing them for two months, I believe they can really help reduce waste in your kitchen.
If you use a lot of plastic wrap or aluminum foil to store leftovers, consider switching to these reusable silicone lids. They are easy to use, come in a range of sizes and fit smoothly onto a wide variety of containers, including large glass bowls, small plastic containers and tiny metal tins. They work well at home, and because they are so small and light, they can easily be packed up for travel.
How I found Unwasted Reusable Silicone Lids
I tested half a dozen different food covers to figure out if any of them were actually good enough to recommend. But after trying Unwasted’s lids, it was an easy choice. While all the lids I tested essentially did the same thing — cover containers — they all had some sort of drawback.
Some had big, knobby handles that made the lids easy to remove from containers but made it impossible to stack containers on top of each other. Other lids gently rested over a dish but didn’t actually create a seal. If air can easily flow in and out from under the lid, it means foods can spoil quicker, defeating the whole point of the lid. The lack of a proper seal also means that spills are more likely.
The Unwasted Reusable Silicone Lids avoided these issues by fully sealing onto various containers and providing a flat surface so the containers could be easily stacked on top of each other in the fridge. The lids come in various sizes so that you can stretch them over tiny tins and big bowls alike.
Why Unwasted Reusable Silicone Lids are a score
These little lids are marvelous, and I’ve been using them to cover anything and everything in my kitchen. I use them to cover half a lemon in a cup, to protect some unfinished smoothie that I’ll get around to drinking later or to safeguard leftovers like egg salad, quinoa salad and that little bit of roasted cauliflower that I couldn’t finish but know would make a great topping for tomorrow’s sandwich, salad or pizza.
The stretchy silicone lids easily slide over containers and form a firm seal to prevent air from getting in. Because they also create a leakproof seal, you can use them to store liquids without worrying about them spilling all over the place (which can easily happen with plastic wrap). While I didn’t store super-liquidy soup with the lid, I did store several pasta and vegetable salads with oil- and vinegar-based dressings. When tilting the bowls, the liquid would rise up to the top and bump into the lid without spilling. Note that this only worked when the lid was perfectly fitted onto the container. If a bowl is topped with a lid that is too large, of course it won’t seal and liquids could easily spill out.
Handy flaps give you some leverage to pull the lids off, and because the lids are flat, they are stackable. I stack these lidded containers on top of each other or place them below other plastic, glass and metal containers mingling around in my fridge.
I even brought the lids on a recent family vacation since we knew we would be cooking a lot, but we didn’t want to bring an entire set of Tupperware to store our leftovers. On that trip, my sister and I made a few big batches of bean salad, rice salad and roasted vegetables, and we stored the leftovers in the big glass bowls provided by the cabin, which we then covered with the reusable lids. In a few instances, my mom wasn’t able to finish her meal (oatmeal for breakfast, soup for dinner), so I just threw a lid on top of the bowl, popped it in the fridge and then nuked it in the microwave whenever she got hungry.
I tend not to put any non-glass items in the microwave (even if they are microwave-safe), but I found myself using the lids to reheat items that were likely to mess up the microwave. For instance, anyone who has ever heated soup in the microwave knows that it tends to splatter all over the place, so I was happy to just throw my mom’s leftover bowl of soup (and the lid that protected it in the fridge) into the microwave to reheat. The process was fast, safe and easy, and I didn’t waste a paper towel or dirty an extra plate to cover the soup in the process.
Though the lids are dishwasher-safe (and we’ve washed them numerous times in the dishwasher at home), I hand-washed them quite a few times up at the cabin. In both cases, the lids were easy to clean and even stubborn stains like oily pasta salad and slippery tomato soup quickly washed off.
The lids are extremely affordable, and they save you money by reducing food waste and eliminating the need to buy plastic wrap. They are safe to use in the microwave, fridge and freezer, and they’re also dishwasher-safe. So if you’re looking for a more sustainable replacement for plastic wrap, the Unwasted Reusable Silicone Lids are a no-brainer.