How can you cook, bake and warm up food in a way that reduces your carbon footprint? Does washing the dishes yourself or using a dishwasher have a lower carbon footprint? Choosing energy efficient cooking utensils in the kitchen is a good way of lowering your carbon footprint and saving money on your energy bill. Here are a few tips that will help you use less energy when cooking and washing in the kitchen.

Use an air-fryer to cook food

Air-fryers are worth buying if you do not already have one. Air-fryers act like a small convention fan oven and are increasingly becoming popular because they cook food faster than an oven, they are easier to clean and healthier for us because oil is not needed to cook food. The Energy Saving Trust research shows cooking 600g of chicken breast would cost 14p with an air-fryer and 24p with an electric oven. Air-fryers use significantly less energy than an oven and surveys show that those who have an air-fryer have seen a reduction in their energy bill.

The best ways to warm things up

The best ways to warm things up depend on the amount of people eating. If you are re-heating something that is already made, microwaves use the least amount of energy compared to ovens or gas/electric hobs. If you are batch-cooking, it is best to use an oven. Air-fryers are good for meals for 1 to 4 people, but ovens can be energy efficient if it is used for a large group of people.  

Boil vegetables and rice without wasting energy

The most energy efficient way to boil vegetables and rice is to put the lid on the pan and to boil it gently. Do not boil them furiously on high heat without a lid. The lid makes sure heat from energy does not drift away and it boils vegetables and rice faster.   

Boiling the kettle

The average person has 3 cups of tea a day. It is better to fill the kettle just the right amount you need (one cup) rather than overfilling and boiling water repeatedly through the day. Research suggests the average person puts twice the amount of water than they need to in a kettle, so reconsider how much water you are putting in the kettle when filling it up. It will also save you £30 a year according to research by the Energy Saving Trust.

The best way to wash dishes: should we use the dishwasher or hand wash dishes?

Research shows that handwashing plates only beats using a dishwasher if water is used sparingly and at a mild, warm temperature. If you use lots of hot water, carbon emissions of washing dishes will be higher than a dishwasher. It is also unhygienic because there will be 400 times more bacteria on your plates compared to plates that have been washed in the dishwasher. In comparison to washing dishes by hand, a dishwasher is your best option from a carbon emissions perspective. The worst thing you can do is to wash the plate and then put it in the dishwasher. This is the worst of both worlds and creates the most carbon emissions.

How to use the dishwasher

If your dishwasher has the option to wash at a lower temperature, then choose this option because the lower the temperature, the less energy is being used by the dishwasher. When choosing a dishwasher, the best dishwashers for the environment are modern, efficient and built to last. The less you need to replace it, the less carbon per use. Professor Bernes-Lee’s research shows the change in carbon emissions (CO₂e) with different approaches to washing dishes:

0g CO₂e by hand in cold water (but plates are not clean)

360g CO₂e by hand, sparingly, in warm water

470g CO₂e in a dishwasher at eco-50^o Celsius

600g CO₂e in a dishwasher at intensive 65^o Celsius

3kg CO₂e by hand, with extravagant use of water

The impact of dishwasher tablets

Most dishwasher tablets have palm oil in them and is one of the main causes of deforestation. Palm oil has accounted for 23% of deforestation in this century and has been particularly harmful to tropical rainforests in Indonesia and Malaysia where it is mainly produced. To reduce carbon emissions from washing dishes, choose dishwasher tablets which use palm oil from responsibly produced sources, and they should RSPO certified. RSPO is a global certification system for certified sustainable palm oil. If there are dishwasher tablets which are palm oil free, even better! There are a number of brands that do not have palm oil in their dishwasher tablets and they can easily be found with an internet search.