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scraping out the jar......


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This morning I was cleaning my cereal bowl in the kitchen area at work and I happened to glance into the trash can before I tossed in a paper towel. There was a peanut butter jar in there and I could see there was still a good bit of PB on the sides! Looked to me like there was enough to make a decent sandwich with what was left. I got to thinking how I just can't toss a jar with that much product still in it! And then I got to thinking about some of those newer, pain in the butt jars with all the ridges that make it virtually impossible to scrap out easily. So-- give me some validation here, please! Is anyone else, well, somewhat fanatical I guess, about scraping out as much as possible from a jar, and do you get PO'ed trying to scrape out those ridgy ones?

"Fat is money." (Per a cracklings maker shown on Dirty Jobs.)
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This morning I was cleaning my cereal bowl in the kitchen area at work and I happened to glance into the trash can before I tossed in a paper towel.  There was a peanut butter jar in there and I could see there was still a good bit of PB on the sides!  Looked to me like there was enough to make a decent sandwich with what was left.  I got to thinking how I just can't toss a jar with that much product still in it!  And then I got to thinking about some of those newer, pain in the butt jars with all the ridges that make it virtually impossible to scrap out easily.  So-- give me some validation here, please!  Is anyone else, well, somewhat fanatical I guess, about scraping out as much as possible from a jar, and do you get PO'ed trying to scrape out those ridgy ones?

I dont screape out every last bit, but I do save the jar until I have 2 and then let me dogs have a go at them. After they have licked and licked and licked and cant get their little dachshund faces further down into the jar, we cut the jars in half and let them finish it off.

I also save my mayo jar's and when I make coleslaw, I throw the vinegar in there and shake it all up. I'm turning into my mother i swear, she used to do that with salad dressings( with water) when we were kids.

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I stuff my plastic scraper into the jar to get every last glob out of a jar! Spaghetti sauce is particularly prone to sticking to sides, I turn the jar upside down, rinse with a bit of water, everything to get those last bits out!

I can't STAND wasting food, and I can't possibly throw away a jar with perfectly good food in it -- often there are two or three servings left :biggrin:

I think I'm compulsive :unsure:

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I'm notoriously cheap, and I obsessively get those last bits of stuff that stick to the side of jars. With jarred spaghetti sauce, I pour in some red wine. Chinese condiments? Add a bit of water and pour it into my sauces. Where did I get the latter from? Dad. Promised myself when I was a kid that I'd never do that, but what happens? Calipoutine, you're not the only one that's turning into your parents.

Karen C.

"Oh, suddenly life’s fun, suddenly there’s a reason to get up in the morning – it’s called bacon!" - Sookie St. James

Travelogue: Ten days in Tuscany

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When it comes to Nutella, I'm going to get every last microgram out of the jar. Otherwise, I'm not too obsessive.

"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced" - Vincent Van Gogh
 

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Does the fact that my wife calls me The Anal Retentive Chef answer your question?

"Last week Uncle Vinnie came over from Sicily and we took him to the Olive Garden. The next day the family car exploded."

--Nick DePaolo

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Invest in a tall skinny spatula and every jar should come clean with ease.

So yes, (raises hand) I'm guilty, too! :biggrin:

 

“Peter: Oh my god, Brian, there's a message in my Alphabits. It says, 'Oooooo.'

Brian: Peter, those are Cheerios.”

– From Fox TV’s “Family Guy”

 

Tim Oliver

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Embarrassingly, yes. Cans, jars - every last bit. Too many things to list but especially with hot fudge, peanut butter, maple syrup, honey, coconut milk - these are just some recent examples. A microwave comes in handy if you can't fit a spatula in. Store dressing, ketchup, mustard, etc upside down sometimes too.

I blame it all on my mom, who trademark maneuver was to stretch the dishwashing liquid with so much water we would unsuspectingly go to wash dishes and it would just flood everywhere as you poured it. Curses! Whenever she came over to visit, I had to make special note to her not to thin the dish liquid because I haven't picked up that habit... yet.

N.

"The main thing to remember about Italian food is that when you put your groceries in the car, the quality of your dinner has already been decided." – Mario Batali
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In addition to water/wine in the spaghetti sauce jar trick, I'll sometimes put some cooked pasta in and shake up the lidded jar. That gets just about all of it.

And of course I have five spatulas on each hand :smile:.

Thanks,

Kevin

DarkSide Member #005-03-07-06

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My grandmother used to say, "Some women can throw more out the back door with a teaspoon than their husbands can bring through the front door with a shovel." I'm a scraper -- I'd rather keep my money for other things rather than throw it in the trash.

~ Lori in PA

My blog: http://inmykitcheninmylife.blogspot.com/

My egullet blog: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=89647&hl=

"Cooking is not a chore, it is a joy."

- Julia Child

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I'm notoriously cheap, and I obsessively get those last bits of stuff that stick to the side of jars.  With jarred spaghetti sauce, I pour in some red wine.  Chinese condiments?  Add a bit of water and pour it into my sauces.  Where did I get the latter from?  Dad.  Promised myself when I was a kid that I'd never do that, but what happens?  Calipoutine, you're not the only one that's turning into your parents.

Red wine for Spaghetti Sauce -- such a good idea! I used water, now I never will again....

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A long skinny rubber spatula, one of the cheap flexible ones that are worthless for anything else, make quick work of scraping out jars, even those ridgy ones. And for anything in a tub, just put hot pasta or leftover rice in there and shake. And ditto on the sauce bottles, a little water or wine in there makes a good rinse-out for pouring into cooking sauces.

I was raised to never throw anything out and I've stuck with it. Even shampoo bottles and cosmetic foundation get the rinse-out treatment.

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My husband does a great imitation of me taking my spatula to the jar of peanut butter, scraping the jar clean, and waving the spatula while I lecture him on how much it costs, how many of these potential sandwiches wind up in the garbage every year, etc. It's pretty funny.

In answer to your question: I scrape till I get everything. Bottles are inverted until they completely drain, and I always, always, dilute shampoo (more like 50-50 for me, amylou!).

"Oh, tuna. Tuna, tuna, tuna." -Andy Bernard, The Office
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Even shampoo bottles and cosmetic foundation get the rinse-out treatment.

I water down shampoo. About 2/3 shampoo 1/3 water.

Weird :blink: ?

Not really. I water down liquid handsoap.

Karen C.

"Oh, suddenly life’s fun, suddenly there’s a reason to get up in the morning – it’s called bacon!" - Sookie St. James

Travelogue: Ten days in Tuscany

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My grandmother used to say, "Some women can throw more out the back door with a teaspoon than their husbands can bring through the front door with a shovel."

Lori in PA this quote would make a great signature. :smile:

A island in a lake, on a island in a lake, is where my house would be if I won the lottery.

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Have to get every last drop, lump or smidge. Open up the seams of the sugar and flour bags, unglue the sides of the dishwasher detergent box, add water to the last of the shampoo, dishwashing liquid, fabric softener. Mustard jar - rinse it around with the acid for a vinaigrette. It goes on and on, obsessively. The worst - Vegemite or Marmite - only fingers finally work - Now you know!

Never thought of red wine for the pasta sauce though! Thanks!

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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Ahhh...my people. :laugh: At least I know where I got it from--my dad, who is a product of the Great Depression. He used to tell us that my grandmother would put water in the almost-empty ketchup bottle and make tomato soup for them. (Note: If you think I believe that, I have some lovely land in the Everglades that's for sale...) My brother does the same stuff, btw--and he's younger than me, so it's officially in the DNA.

But yes, I get Every. Last. Drop. Out of every jar in the kitchen, and of every container in my bathroom. It's ridiculous how long I can go when something is "just about gone" before I actually crack open a new one--whatever it is!

Am I the only one who 'glues' the thin sliver that remains of the bar of soap on to the new one? :wacko:

"I'm not eating it...my tongue is just looking at it!" --My then-3.5 year-old niece, who was NOT eating a piece of gum

"Wow--this is a fancy restaurant! They keep bringing us more water and we didn't even ask for it!" --My 5.75 year-old niece, about Bread Bar

"He's jumped the flounder, as you might say."

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Some of the new silicone "spoonulas" have one very sharp edge on one side and a rounded edge on the other side and are narrower than the standard scrapers. (Discovered at Linens 'N Things)

They are perfect for cleaning every smidgen of stuff from the inside of jars of PB, jams, jellies, honey, molasses, mayo and the very sticky things such as tamarind paste, chile pastes, sambals and etc.

When there is a bit of PB left in the jar, not quite enough for spreading on something, I add a little seasoned rice vinegar, a dash of coconut oil, a little coconut milk, a dab of chile paste, a squeeze of lime juice, a teaspoon of brown sugar (or palm sugar).

Put the lid on the jar and shake vigorously, remove the lid and microwave for 15 seconds or so, replace lid and shake again.

Then I make gado gado salad.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Ahhh...my people.  :laugh:  At least I know where I got it from--my dad, who is a product of the Great Depression.  He used to tell us that my grandmother would put water in the almost-empty ketchup bottle and make tomato soup for them.  (Note: If you think I believe that, I have some lovely land in the Everglades that's for sale...) 

Now I did hear stories of people making “tomato soup.” I have to confirm it with Mr. Duck, but I think his mother used to do that.

Am I the only one who 'glues' the thin sliver that remains of the bar of soap on to the new one?  :wacko:

Guilty as charged. As dad used to say, "how do you think I was able to buy a house?"

Karen C.

"Oh, suddenly life’s fun, suddenly there’s a reason to get up in the morning – it’s called bacon!" - Sookie St. James

Travelogue: Ten days in Tuscany

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I'm not cheap or stingy but with things like yogurt, I occasionally like to take the nearly empty carton back into my room and then slowly disassemble it with my fingers and mouth until it's all licked clean. It's more something to keep my hands busy because I tend to fidget a lot.

PS: I am a guy.

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