The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook.

As a revision of my very first book, The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook is unlike any other cookbook you may have seen. It takes the vegetables you’re already familiar with and turns them upside-down (or right side up) with recipes that use the “scraps” you ordinarily throw away (think leek tops, carrot tops, radish greens, kale stems, and watermelon rind). Like the veggie version of nose-to-tail, if you will.

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Where to buy

About the book.

This is more than just a cookbook. It’s a guide for helping you waste less food in the kitchen and look at plants in a whole new way. If you grow tomatoes, squash, beans, and peppers at home, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find recipes for tomato leaves, squash shoots, bean leaves, and pepper leaves—vegetables that are delicious in their own right.

You’ll learn what you can or cannot eat from the plants you grow or buy, and turn them into full-fledged meals that showcase all the new flavors and textures you’ve been missing out on.

The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook is an indispensable book for home cooks with adventurous appetites as well as sustainably-minded people striving to go zero-waste in the home.

Recipe page inside The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook

I am so impressed with this cookbook!

It takes a new perspective on cooking. It is designed to teach you how to use all of the plant, not just the normal part that is eaten. The author provides a LOT of information about cooking. For instance, there are about 20 pages devoted to cooking terms, foods, measurements, and directions. I’ve never seen such a comprehensive gathering of cooking terms in one place. I’ve learned a lot, just reading the front of the book. It would have been nice to have this book when I first began cooking, about 55 years ago!!

—LMW

What’s inside.

Every one of my books is packed with helpful resources (such as recommended tools, brands, and kitchen techniques), useful tips and ingredient substitutions, and beautiful photos of what your dish will actually look like when you make it. Here’s what else you can find inside.

The basics
Chapters
Special features

80+ recipes
Full-color photos for every single recipe
Hardcover, 192 pages
Published by Harvard Common Press
ISBN: 1558329978
Release date: April 7, 2020

Preface
Introduction
The Basics
Tomatoes & Peppers
Leafy Greens
Peas & Beans
Bulbs & Stems
Roots & Tubers
Melons & Gourds
Resources

Mix-and-match chart for making “kitchen sink” vegetable stock
Foolproof formula for making pesto out of anything
Tips for storing produce for maximum freshness (and what to do when they wilt)
“Tool Tips” and “Cook’s Notes” throughout the book
Preparation tips that teach you how to use up all your vegetables
Practical substitution ideas for greens, herbs, and other ingredients
And more!

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Spicy Minty Tomato Sauce Infused with Tomato Leaves
Tomato Leaf Pesto
Spicy Fermented Summer Salsa
Tomato Soup Topped with Olive Oil-Toasted Pine Nuts
Skillet Eggs Poached in Serrano Tomato Sauce
Heirloom Tomato Galette with Tomato Leaf Pesto
Peak-of-Summer Roasted Ratatouille

Southern Hot Pepper Vinegar
Italian Hot Chile Oil
Bacon and Pamesan Stuffed and Roasted Baby Bells
Ginger-Spiced Chicken Soup with Wilted Pepper Leaves
Grilled Pepper, Peach, and Portobello Stack

Kale Stem Pesto
Spring Bulgur Salad with Kale Buds
Zuppa Toscana
Chard Stalk Hummus
Chard and Cheddar Frittata
Swiss Chard Summer Roll with Citrus Soy-Marinated Tofu
Gruyère Grilled Cheese with Chard and Caramelized Onion

Stuffed Collard Greens
Down-Home Collard Greens
Potlikker Noodles with Collard Greens
Roasted Romanesco and Broccolini Salad with Wilted Arugula
Sriracha-Roasted Broccoli
Broccoli Green and Baked Falafel Wrap

Pea Shoot Salad with Radish and Carrot
Stir-Fried Snow Peas and Pea Shoots with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette
Fresh Pea Soup
Three Bean Summer Salad

Pan-Charred Beans with Bean Leaf Pesto
Yardlong Bean Curry with Wilted Spinach
Fava Leaf Salad with Citrus, Feta, and Walnuts
No-Stir Fava Bean Risotto
Charred Fava Pods with Parmesan

Fennel Frond and Ginger Pesto
Fennel and Seafood Stew
Caramelized Fennel and Onion
Kohlrabi and Carrot Slaw
Kohlrabi Home Fries with Thyme Aioli
Kohlrabi Green and Wild Mushroom Ragoût with Polenta
Leek Green, Wild Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Crostini

Leek and Bacon Breakfast Pizza
Leek Green and Saucy Shrimp Stir-Fry
Seared Scallops over Melted Leeks with Tarragon Butter Sauce
Grilled Green Onions with Chile Lime Marinade
Green Onion Pancake with Spicy Soy Dipping Sauce
Oyakodon-Style Omelette with Spring Onions

Skillet Greens and Bacon Bits with Pomegranate Gastrique
Beetza Beetza
Shaved Raw Beet Salad with Warm Pecan Dressing
Rosemary-Roasted Carrots on a Pillow of Pesto
Carrot Top Salsa
Vietnamese Carrot and Daikon Pickles
Carrot, Leek, Beef, and Barley Soup
Quick-Pickled Sweet ‘n Spicy Radish Pods

Portuguese Sausage and Radish Green Soup
Butter-Braised Radishes and Radish Greens with Farro
Oven-Baked Potato Parmesan Fries
Smashed Red Potatoes Heaped on Roasted Portobellos
Savory Sweet Potato Hummus
Creamy Sweet Potato Soup with Maple Syrup
Sweet Potato Spears with Mustard and Thyme
Saigon Curry with Sweet Potatoes and Carrots

Watermelon Rind and Jalapeño Pickles
Watermelon, Tomato, and Basil Salad with Tangy Red Onion
Stir-Fried Watermelon Rind
Sweet Japanese Quick-Pickled Cucumbers
Spicy Korean Quick-Pickled Cucumbers
California Breakfast Bowl with Cucumber Sprouts
Pan-Fried Cucumber in Honey Sesame Sauce
Four Ways to Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Sicilian Squash Shoot Soup
Gingered Butternut Bisque
Squash Blossom and Roasted Poblano Tacos
Zucchini Noodles with Roasted Tomatoes, Pesto, and Pine Nuts
Bottom-of-the-Box Bibimbap
Drunken Pumpkin Chili
Autumn Acorn Squash Stuffed with Kale, Cranberries, and Walnuts

Praise for The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook

Real reader reviews

The writer shared part of her family values that are similar to mine even if I’m Italian and not Vietnamese and my parents were telling me “we don’t waste food because in Africa there are kids dying of hunger and we should be grateful for all we have.” That’s being conscious about the environment and our imprint more than a vegan environmentalist that eats out-of-season veggies shipped from all over the world.

She doesn’t use food scraps for her recipes, she uses the entire vegetable and sometimes the plant (peas shots or tomato leaves). It helps to use parts of the veggies we are not familiar with and enjoy them with flavorful dishes. The book is full of tips and ideas. I’m very grateful she put the effort to write and share her experience and experiments.

—Chiara Swan

I wish I had had this 40 years ago. All of her recipes have been so good. The idea to use all of the veggies, every part, is eye opening. I am richer now with the knowledge and experience of Linda Ly. Very well done.

—Herzuki

I’m not terribly creative when it comes to cooking or figuring out what to do with all of the leftover parts of a vegetable. Hence the need for the shelf of inspiring cookbooks in my kitchen. I don’t want to be wasteful nor do I want to chuck parts I can use or eat into the compost or trash. The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook by Linda Ly, provides people like me who are clueless about what else I can do beyond chopping up carrots and boiling my potatoes, by giving me recipes and techniques for whole plant cooking. I like the line, “Isn’t it about time to start nose-to-tail cooking with vegetables?” Yes. I think so.

—Teethnclaws

Most cookbooks are consistent in their use of specific ingredients, but here the author has significantly expanded use of vegetables (and some fruit as well) to include components that you’d normally toss in the compost pile, or at most use to create a vegetable stock. We started off with the tomato soup, specifically leaving the skins on the heirloom tomatoes that we chose, using freshly grated Parmesan, and some basil from our own garden; served to a family of 6, the soup quickly disappeared. We had similar results from other recipes in the well-written and well-supported book. We’ll be returning back many times.

—Dr. Stuart Gitlow

I had no idea what to expect from this book with that cover. I guess I thought it would be more about side veggie recipes to complement your own main course recipes. I was pleasantly surprised to find a diverse range of delicious recipes, about 98% of which appeal to me. The recipes are not very complicated and the ingredients are mostly easy to find. Additionally, the pictures are so enticing and the paper used is of great quality. This cookbook would make a nice gift for foodies.

—C’est Moi

“I’ve always been a fan of using what you have in the pantry and fridge before purchasing anything else. I make my own veggie broth with scraps I’ve collected throughout the week so I thought this book was something I could learn from and enjoy incorporating in my kitchen. The book gave me great ideas on alternative ways to make my own pesto using various herbs and greens as well as flavorful salads! This book is a great kitchen must have!

—Desiree

Actually had never heard of the author but the title is what captured me. I just learned this year I could eat radish tops, carrots tops, tomato leaves, etc. All my life I went wasting these items. This book, given those new revelations, seemed right up my alley.

Beautiful hardcover book. Feels great in my hands. Lovely to read. Great photographs. Intriguing recipes. We have our own organic garden and I plan to utilize this book more fully in the coming weeks. No regrets. Exceeded my expectations. Worth a read!

—CGR

I am pretty jaded when it comes to cookbooks because it seems like most are just repeats of previous ones, but this one is really good. This is a must for those looking to live zero-waste. Linda Ly has an engaging writing style, and her recipes are really good. I am finding new uses for things like tomato leaves, carrot tops, and other things that previously would have ended up in the compost pile. Lastly, the photos are beautiful. This would make a great gift.

—Kim L.