8 Amazing Zero Waste Kitchen Essentials for A Sustainable Home

Looking for the best zero waste kitchen swaps for a plastic free kitchen? This post is all about the best eco friendly kitchen essentials I wish I had years ago! 

I am so glad I no longer get headaches from kitchen cleaning sprays and I save money with my reusable kitchen products. Each of the kitchen essentials on this list are durable and effective items that help me to maintain a clean and safe home.

Rather than a long list of eco friendly kitchen products I wanted to compile a short and sweet list of my tried and true you should check out for your home!

This post is all about zero-waste kitchen essentials. 

How to Have a Zero Waste Kitchen 

The best place to start on your zero waste journey is for sure the kitchen! Out of all the places in our lives, our kitchens tend to create the most waste, especially plastic. From plastic ziplock bags to disposable paper towels and even food waste, there is a lot of waste happening in the kitchen! Luckily, there are also a lot of incredible swaps you can start making today to offset some of this waste and lower your environmental impact! 

When I first started to make more eco friendly swaps for my kitchen I felt very overwhelmed by all the products being advertised to me. That’s why I put together this list to showcase the tried and tested products worth purchasing for your home. This list is a great starting off point and as you continue on your sustainable living journey you can add new zero waste kitchen essentials as needed! 

After reading through these zero waste kitchen swaps I guarantee you will feel equipped to revamp your kitchen to support a sustainable lifestyle! 

The Best Zero Waste Kitchen Essentials

1. Stahser silicone bags for food storage

If you are interested in the plastic free lifestyle you have probably heard of Stasher bags so you know why they are first on the list! I am literally obsessed with Stasher bags because of how useful they are and how much waste they have helped me reduce throughout the years. 

If you are unfamiliar with Stasher bags, they are a silicone bag that replaces plastic bags! They are great to have in the kitchen because you can store snacks, leftovers and bulk food in them. You can use them to make popcorn or even take with you camping to cook in. I personally love using Stashers for frozen fruit. 

The possibilities are endless and Stashers are definitely an essential part of my kitchen at this point!

*Beeswax wraps are also a useful way to wrap up your food to go or to store in your fridge! I have used them before but just end up using the Stasher bags and don’t want to buy too much stuff for my kitchen .

Everyone’s plastic free kitchen is different so find what works best for you! This is the brand of reusable beeswax wraps I have used! (These are an easy DIY project as well).

2. Zero waste kitchen towels instead of paper towels

Paper towels are seriously getting so outdated! It’s ironic because reusable kitchen towels (just cloth towels!) were around way before paper towels. Unfortunately, we switched to disposable sheets of paper that create a ton of waste. 

It’s time to go back in time to good old washable kitchen towels!  

Really any cloths will do but these unpaper towels are incredible because they come in a beautiful print and easily roll up to look like paper towels on your kitchen counter. They definitely make the transition to reusable kitchen towels a lot easier!

{RELATED POST: 7 Sustainable Home Decor Ideas Guaranteed to Make Your Home the Coziest Oasis}

3. Zero waste kitchen sponge 

Let’s be real, how often do you actually change out your kitchen sponge? No judgment but sponges can get nasty! Not just that, it is like a little pillow of plastic that just gets thrown in the trash and takes forever to go away. 

 That’s why I love reusable sponges! Every week I pop it in the washer with my kitchen towels and it feels like I get a brand new sponge every week. 

These sponges are the cutest and come in plenty of fun designs! 

4. Silicone bottle brush instead of plastic dish brushes

This. brush. changed. the. game. Honestly, it’s a little embarrassing how much I recommend this brush!

First off, this bottle brush is silicone which is a more sustainable choice than plastic. It is easy to clean and doesn’t mold like other wooden zero waste bottle brushes. 

It will keep your reusable bottle spotless and is long enough to reach all the way to the bottom of any bottle. Honestly, I can’t recommend these enough!

5. Solid dish soap bars rather than plastic bottles

Solid dish soap may seem odd at first but it is honestly super easy to use once you get the hang of it!

A lot of liquid dish soaps come in plastic bottles and are mostly water. Solid dish soap is simply just the product which is great because then you are just paying for the product instead of water. Because of this, your dish soap will last longer! 

To use solid dish soap, make sure your sponge is wet, rub the sponge on the dish soap bar and then scrub your dishes! There is a slight learning curve but overall it’s super simple! 

If you really prefer liquid dish soap this is the one I use and love. Dr. Bronners is gentle but still gets your dishes clean. You can simply pour some into a bottle and add water since it is concentrated.

6. Produce Bags instead of plastic bags

These reusable bags are essential to my zero waste kitchen. Instead of having to grab those plastic bags in the produce section at the grocery store, I try to have these on hand to bring home my goodies!

I love that they are super lightweight and I can just throw them in the wash after my grocery run! 

{RELATED POST: How To Shop at a Zero Waste Store}

7. Reusable silicone baking sheet rather than single use foil 

There are ENDLESS ways to reduce your waste in the kitchen. I wanted to add these reusable baking mats to the list to show that a lot of zero waste swaps really depend on your personal lifestyle.

I love baking but I don’t have an oven so I don’t really need this swap currently. Use this list of low waste kitchen swaps as a starting off point but don’t buy reusable baking sheets if you don’t need them! You know what I mean? 

Anyways, if you are in need of baking sheets, I have used these at a friends house and they are SO convenient. No need to scrub pans endlessly after baking! 

8. Glass jars for plastic free food storage

It can’t be a zero waste blog post without mentioning glass jars! No need to spend a bunch of money on new fancy jars. Simply reuse pasta sauce jars or peanut butter jars.

There are endless ways to use jars in your kitchen from storing food scraps for zero waste recipes to using them in your pantry!

Instead of using plastic wrap or single-use plastic bags just store your food in reusable containers. It will save you money since you are not buying disposable products monthly!

Bonus zero waste kitchen essential!

I thought this zero waste kitchen set seemed really handy if you wanted a simple starting off point for your low waste lifestyle!  It’s the perfect kit to cut down on single-use items in your kitchen.

Small changes on your plastic-free journey

There are many ways to cut back on plastic waste in your home. These are the ways I make my eco-friendly kitchen work but everyone has different needs.

Just use this list as inspiration as you decide what works best for your sustainable kitchen!

Even a small step towards a plastic-free life can have a ripple effect and inspire others to live a more sustainable lifestyle.

This post is all about the best zero waste kitchen products. 

Other posts you may like 

• 5 Genius Hacks for Zero Waste Cleaning (My Favorite Products and Routine!
• How to Compost in Your Dorm Room (Simple Tips!)
• 5 Simple Ways You Can Save Money and Reduce Plastic on Your Low Waste Lifestyle Journey

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Stay well, 

Maggie 

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