Salad bar, a lunch experience

Initially published on 24/05/2011

I usually bring food from home at work (not in matpakke paper which is a waste but in a plastic box). Not something I prepared on purpose but leftovers from the day before's dinner. Yep, inFrance, every meal is "middag", as I understood it meant "warm meal".

I think I just found where I would buy my lunch in case of "no leftovers":

Coop and Ica in Tromsø sentrum offer "salad bar". You take a (throwable plastic) box, fill it with whatever you like and then pay the price per (kilo)gram. The more you fill, the more you pay.

It's 129 kr per kilo at Coop (the one by Stortorget) and 119 at Ica. Cheaper then, but not that different. The food is basically the same: paprika, pasta salad, corn, cucumber, ham cubes, feta (Oh yeah!!:)) and so on.

The advantage when you are not a big eater is that you really eat what you want. I paid 30 kr which I think is quite cheap (I don't have a big appetite and buffet were never worth it for me). Last time I bought a sandwich I couldn't even finish it! So this may be the best solution for me.

The fact that it is healthy is a bonus too.

However I know it would be better to buy locally-grown vegetables (I prefer that rather than an organic paprika from argentina), but this is really really hard to put into practise in Norway. Maybe at the next farmer market on June 18th?

The other drawback I see with the salad bar is the use of plastic box. But the solution is to reuse the same box several times (=zero waste). You would have to wash it anyway to recycle it (they ask for it at least in Tromsø) and if you wash it with COLD water it is still the most ecological solution. Not true anymore with hot water; plus, it is never recommended to wash plastic with hot water. It "opens" the plastic and make the fat in it.

All of this to say that reuse the same box they sell is much more discreet than bringing your own packaging: reused ziplock for example, or a reusable plastic box. But since you pay the weight, packaging included... This is another good reasons to chose the smallest (throwable) box what you need can fit in it. How much plastic did I pay today among my 240grams? I wanted to reuse my small box from Coop but they don't have it at Ica (and I thought it would look suspicious), so I took the huge one. So maybe Coop is cheaper after all.

Another solution, share a big box with a colleague (if you have the same tastes).

To sum up: tasty, healthy, and ecological enough (if I reuse the box) for lunch. Adopted!

Comments

1 - How: the saponification process

0 - Why and how to make your own soap? 1 - How: the saponification process Soap is the result of a chemical reaction between fatty substances (oils, lard, vegetable butter) and sodium hydroxide also called lye or caustic soda (NaOH). Caustic soda is a dangerous substance and is to be used very carefully, but it is totally transformed through the process: none of it remains at the end of the chemical reaction...if you used the right quantity of lye. If you use more lye than required your soap will be "caustic" and irritating. Therefore it's recommended that you use less soda and more oil than the exact amount required for total saponification. Firstly, it's a safety precaution: using more oil than necessary for the chemical reaction is a guarantee that the lye will be entirely transformed through the process. And more than that, with extra oil (nonsaponified - remaining oil), your soap will be even softer on the skin. This extra oil is called "sup

Eco-take care of your skin, that's easy & cheap

Oil is your best friend! (see below) Are you sick of using creams you don't understand half of the ingredients (usually not a good sign), and which your skin does not seem to appreciate? Here are easy solutions to replace them. You can first decide to buy organic cosmetics, but since it's rather expensive I understand why many people give up. But at least you know that stuff you put on your skin are healthy. You can also decide to make your own cosmetics yourself ; it is not that hard to find raw material but it doesn't mean it's easy to to make a high quality cream. That requires knowledge on your type of skin, on the ingredients you use, on chemistry (a cream is an emulsion) and on hygiene precautions. The great advantage is that you know exactly what's in it and choose the ingredients according to what you really need. On this blog I will only speak of easy stuff to make, like lip balm for example. But as regards skin care, I like simplicity, wh

How to recycle a fleece jacket?

Fleece is a very useful material and there are many things you can turn an old jacket into, like make up pads ( see previous article ), baby wipes, dusters and so on. Every piece of fleece is reusable, so the first step is to remove all the threads. It's even more interesting because where the fleece was folded (hemline) or inside the pocket, the fabric has remained very soft, perfect to use on the skin. I think, other parts, more "exposed" are still soft enough. You might see the different textures by clicking on the picture. Once the fleece is ready, there is nothing easier: you just have to cut the shape you want, and it's done. Small squares for facial pad s, bigger pieces for baby wipes ...or duster . I didn't expect it the first time I tried but fleece is a very efficient dust catcher. As efficient, maybe more than microfiber cloth . That's why I use it to clean the floor too. I cut a long rectangle so I can tie it on my specia

The Green touch

Search This Blog