Hosting a New Year’s Eve gathering need not be an affair ridden with guilt at the amount of waste generated through the evening. With simple party planning tips and hacks, it is possible to curate a zero-waste gathering where everything from food to drinks to decor is prepped in as sustainable a manner as can be. Such a stylish and elegant party can do without overflowing bags of rubbish, to instead become a gathering with a sophisticated and an ecologically-conscious edge.
Ditch Disposables For Reusables
First things first, cut down on all the disposables you would use at the party. This means, the good China must be put out for guests, the crystal cocktail glasses need to see the light of day and steel cutlery has to be present at the dinner table. While the washing and cleaning-up can be managed efficiently by curating a low-frill menu, what reusables do for the zero-waste party is totally take single-use plates and bowls out of the equation. Moreover, this brings an elevated elegant feel into the party and guests experience the sheer joy of being honoured members at your gathering.
Stylish Waste Station
Help guests to clean-up as they go along, and minimise the overall waste generated at the party by separating the washing and the rubbish into separate piles. Place chic wicker baskets or wooden crates that match the party vibe where guests can throw in compostables and reusables in designated spots. Such waste stations will not only make cleaning-up efficient but it will also help you to plan what you would do with the leftover compostable scraps on plates or garnishes in cocktails, rather than throwing them out in the trash while doing the dishes.
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Zero-Waste Food Menu
The next thing to plan for is a food menu that uses every part of your raw ingredients. If you are making sweet potato fries or patties for sliders, use the peels of the root vegetable to make wafers and crisps that can be served with dips. Similarly, other veggie peels and bones from meats and chicken can be used to make delicious broths added to soups, bouillabaisses and an assortment of roasted meats cooked in the oven. The same goes for grazing boards and one-pan mains too, which tend to reduce the amount of waste as you lay out only the most essential elements on these platters.
Sustainable Cocktail And Mocktail Options
Another interesting alternative for a zero-waste party is sustainable drinks made with ingredients that are reused and repurposed. This can involve crafting garnishes out of citrus peels, making tepache using leftover tropical fruit cones and reinventing newer ways of fashioning bitters and shrubs out of peels and veggie scraps. Along with planning for such signature sustainable cocktails, another way to minimise waste is to prepare large-batch drinks instead of single-serve bottles and serving these out of dispensers, that cut down on individual garnishes and cocktail ingredients.
Plan Ahead For Leftovers
If there is one element at a party that generates waste in the most predictable manner possible, it is leftovers. Plan ahead for what you would do with leftovers: whether it involves sending them out with guests so they can enjoy them the next day or converting them into soups, sliders and festive sandwiches the morning after. Prepped ingredients can be frozen and reused later, if you end up marinating meats and veggies in bulk. This will cut down leftovers substantially as you will only cook as much food as required.