I have not been watching the American Food Network's Good Eats reboot, but Joel has, and this morning he shared a very good tip from the most recent episode, Hittin’ the Sauce II.

It's well-worn advice at this point that one of the highest-impact ways to eat more healthily, and also spend less money, is to get it together and prepare your own food. Which is fine, because it's true!

Potatoes are somewhat notorious for not reheating well. Baked potatoes, french fries, and hash browns are their best selves straight out of the oven, fryer or pan. It’s quite tricky — some would say “impossible” — to return them to their former glory.

Mashed potatoes, however, are an exception, which is extremely lucky, as that means you make, freeze, and reheat them for any day of the week.

You think you love nuts, but you have never loved a nut the way you love a frozen nut.

Homemade canning and pickling is a lot of fun, but you know what sucks? Standing over a pot of boiling water in an already-swampy kitchen for hours to sanitise and seal slippery glass jars. No thank you. I switched to freezer pickles years ago and haven't looked back since. If you've got some available freezer space, this is a great technique to have in your arsenal.

The best toast starts with the best bread, but bakery-fresh or homemade bread has a tendency to stale and mould more quickly than the pre-sliced bag stuff. To get really good toast everyday without wasting a single crumb, slice, then freeze a fresh, whole loaf.

I can't tell you how many times I've taken meat out of the freezer in the morning, only to have a sudden change in dinner plans that evening. It may be tempting to pop the cut back in the freezer, but doing so will adversely affect the taste and texture of your meal.

Freezing food for later consumption is a good way to stretch your grocery bill but, for the best-tasting, safest leftovers, you only want to freeze and thaw cooked food once.

Slicing the top, rounded portion off of a cake before frosting gives it a smoother, more professional look. To make removing that top crumbly layer even easier (not to mention smoothly frost the sides), just pop it in the freezer first.

Sometimes you just want a couple strips of bacon, but you don't want to defrost the whole package to get to them. Bacon coils is the answer.

Ginger is one of those ingredients that freezes really well. In fact, freezing ginger can make it easier to peel and grate. As an alternative, freeze it after you grate it for quicker meal prep.

Like roasts and Justin Bieber, frozen vegetables need an image makeover. They have gotten a bad rap, but in reality, freezing your vegetables is an affordable way to access your favourite produce all year long, and in some cases, they retain nutrients even better than their fresh counterparts. The process, while more involved than freezing fruit, is still rather easy.

When you're shopping, buying in bulk can save you a lot of money. If you have a smaller household, freezing your excess milk and other dairy products can help you make sure none of that food goes unused.