Sustainability

Sustainable recipes

Two people prepare a meal together. Vegetables are being chopped and a salad mixed on a kitchen workspace.

Sustainable recipes: environmentally conscious and delicious cooking

Our eating and consumption habits influence our bodies and have a significant impact on the environment. Sustainable and climate-friendly recipes can make an important contribution to reducing environmental pollution. In this article, we explain how you can easily and effortlessly integrate sustainability into your everyday life and which sustainable recipes quickly and easily bring enjoyment into your daily eating habits.

Why are sustainable recipes important?
Good food makes us happy, healthy and can even contribute to a better future. With a sustainable diet, we set an example for a just and future-proof world. Buying the right foods, wasting less, paying attention to Fairtrade labels and giving priority to plant-based diets makes a difference to the nutritional situation worldwide.

A bowl of mushroom soup with parsley and fresh mushrooms on a wooden table.

What do our eating habits have to do with the environment?
Both the production of food as well as our eating habits have a significant impact on our environment. To what extent these burden or alleviate our environment depends, among other things, on the type of food, its production and processing, as well as transport, preparation and cooking.

A significant part of our food is produced through agriculture. This requires extensive land and resources. Around half of Germany’s total land area is used for producing our food. Depending on how work is conducted there, this can either cause damage or protect our environment.

An example: Too much fertilizer harms organisms in water bodies. And: Plant protection products not only kill harmful insects, but can also harm bees and butterflies. How we treat the areas used for producing our food thus has a significant impact on our environment – and ultimately on ourselves.

From harvesting, breeding or manufacturing to processing and subsequent packaging and presentation on shelves, food passes through numerous stages. Through one's own purchasing and eating habits, opportunities arise to reduce negative environmental impacts.

Benefits of sustainable recipes for your own health and the world

When thinking about sustainability, some initially consider saving electricity and water, as well as climate change. Our eating habits are often not considered very relevant – wrongly so, as much can be achieved through this lever.

Yet sustainable eating means much more than just buying organic products. Additionally, it's beneficial to focus on regional and seasonal foods, and to prioritize plant-based products. Ideally, meat consumption is even entirely avoided, because the fact is: both livestock farming and production produce very high greenhouse gas emissions. And: frequent and high meat consumption also increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases or cancer.

Incidentally, the situation is similar for fish: overfishing of the world's oceans results in entire species being on the brink of extinction and severely threatens the sea and its delicate ecosystem.

If you give up or reduce your fish consumption, or only buy fish from domestic aquaculture, you take a big step towards sustainable eating.

A person wraps vegetables in beeswax wraps, including bell peppers, broccoli, and avocado.

Cook quickly, deliciously and sustainably

Sustainable cooking is often associated with increased time investment, specific knowledge for preparation and cooking, and less enjoyment. With the following recipe, we want to prove you the opposite - in just 15 minutes.

A wooden bowl filled with yellow lentil stew, garnished with fresh herbs and carrot pieces.

Vegan Chickpea Curry

Our vegan chickpea curry is delicious for everyone. If desired, it can easily be enhanced with tofu, feta and almost any vegetable. Actually, you only need 6 ingredients and 15 minutes of time.

Organic ingredients

1.5 cups brown rice
400 g chickpeas
75 g coconut milk
350 g tomato paste
1 tsp Garam-Masala spice
1 tbsp canola oil

Preparation

Heat rapeseed oil in a large pot, add chickpeas and Garam Masala. Briefly stir and fry for 3-4 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.
Add strained tomatoes and coconut milk.
Heat for approx. 5 minutes until the curry is hot. Feel free to add additional spices such as salt, pepper or ginger powder according to taste.
Once the curry is hot and creamy, divide into bowls and serve with rice and, if desired, with Indian flatbread.

Tips for environmentally friendly shopping planning

Anyone who consumes food in a resource-friendly manner helps mitigate the negative impacts that food production processes have on the environment. Furthermore, sustainable dietary choices protect biological ecosystems and biodiversity. The following tips not only save the environment and climate, but also your wallet.

Regional and local products shorten transport routes and thus reduce CO₂ emissions. To find out when specific produce is in season, you can consult, for example, this seasonal calendar.
Buying unpackaged items primarily reduces plastic waste and can be easily integrated into everyday life (keyword: cloth bags).
Fresh or homemade products are better compared to highly processed foods due to lower energy consumption and usually contain less fat, sugar and additives.
A climate-friendly food choice is therefore oriented towards plant-based products and organic goods.
Using refrigerators, dishwashers, kettles and other electronic kitchen appliances consumes energy. Energy-efficient kitchen appliances noticeably reduce overall energy consumption.

A notebook with a pen surrounded by vegetables on a white wooden table.

Where can you find more sustainable dishes?

In the Nolte blog you will find many delicious, easy-to-cook and sustainable dishes suitable for every occasion.

Nolte Magazine

Book tips for sustainable cooking

If you would like to delve deeper into the topic "Sustainable Kitchen," we recommend the following three books:

Zero Waste
For beginners by Kate Arnell and Annette Ostlaender Step by step in 6 weeks towards less waste: valuable tips and guidance on how to reduce waste in all areas of daily life.
Food for future by Martin Kintrup
Bestselling author Martin Kintrup demonstrates in his work that sustainable cooking doesn't have to be complicated or time-consuming. He also reveals how to successfully make a simple transition to the "green kitchen".
Do it yourself instead of buying by smarticular.net
Since 2014, the ideas portal smarticular.net has been publishing instructions and tips centered around a simple and sustainable life. In this book, you will find 137 healthier alternatives to processed products that save money and protect the environment.

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