Use these 5 secrets to prevent food from spoiling

You spend a lot of money on your groceries, so it's both a shame and a waste when you have to throw food away. We'll give you 5 useful tips to keep foods fresh for longer, from milk and dairy to tomato paste.

• Good cheese is expensive, but it gets moldy fast. Mold is fine on blue cheese, but less than delectable on cheddar. You can delay the onset of mold by wrapping your cheese in a piece of cheesecloth soaked in whiskey and then putting it in a plastic bag.
• Alternatively, wrap the cheese in parchment paper and foil and keep it in the crisper drawer.
• To keep the side of a piece of cheese from drying out, rub a little butter on it.
• To keep milk or cream fresh for longer, add a pinch of salt to the carton.

• You can prevent raisins from getting hard (or at least delay the process) by storing them in a jar with a tight lid.
• If you forgot to store them properly, you can still revive hardened raisins. Drop them into a cooking pot and add water until they're submerged. Bring the water to a boil and then turn the stove off. Let the raisins steep in the water for 10 minutes. Set your colander in the sink and let your moist and tasty raisins drain and dry.

• When bananas get too ripe to be eaten whole or to be presentable as slices, they're still fine for shakes or banana bread.
• If you can't use them immediately, peel them and freeze them individually in plastic wrap. Thaw them out before using.

Rather than letting your ginger shrivel up in the fridge or watching carrots turn to slime in the crisper, try storing roots in a pot filled with clean sand, kept in a cool, dark place. An unglazed flowerpot works well. Cover the roots, and pick them out as you need them.

• When you just want a spoonful or two of tomato paste, remove that amount from the can and then drop the remainder by spoonfuls onto wax paper, as if you were making cookies.
• Put these dollops (wax paper and all) in the freezer. Once they're frozen, peel them off of the paper, drop the paste pieces into a resealable plastic bag, and store them in the freezer.
• Next time you need a little tomato paste, just add a "cookie" or two into your sauce or soup. There's no need to thaw them.

Use these tips to reduce food waste and save money at the grocery store. You can even buy some of these items in bulk to save money, and then use these preservation techniques to ensure that the food stays good. Eat more, waste less. What's not to love?

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