The average household size in Finland is 1.96 persons (2020), and the figure is getting smaller every year. Meal prepping takes up the same amount of energy regardless of the amount of food prepared. This is why you should consider how to act wisely in the kitchen and save energy as well as effort. These tips are useful also in larger households.

• When cooking, cook more. Prepare meals for several days with the same effort and energy. Store the meals for the following day easily in the fridge and heat them up in the microwave oven, and you will save energy and time.
• If you prefer not to eat the same food on consecutive days, use the freezer. Pack the cooled meals into portions, label the freezer boxes and put them into the freezer. It’s so easy to take your frozen meal and heat it up in the microwave oven!
• The oven consumes considerably more energy than the stove, let alone the microwave oven. When using the oven, double the amount or prepare two different meals at a time. Preheating the oven wastes energy, so don’t preheat the oven while empty – most meals can be placed in the oven immediately. Turn off the oven five minutes before the food is ready: the food will continue to cook in the residual heat.
• In a fan-assisted oven, you can bake several baking trays at once. When baking, place all the pastries in the oven at the same time. Bake more at once and freeze the pastries. When the oven is hot, you might want to prepare some oven-baked food at the same time. 

Lumo homes is participating in the Down a degree campaign organised by Motiva, the Energy Authority, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of the Environment and Sitra.