Which is more environmentally friendly- aluminum foil or parchment paper?
Parchment paper is bleached or unbleached paper coated with silicone. Tin foil is actually a thin layer of aluminium. Mining and processing aluminium takes a lot of energy and resources. And although clean foil can be recycled, once you pull it off something like a lasagna, you have to trash it. Parchment can’t be recycled, but is created from a renewable resource. It also has nonstick properties that most tin foil doesn’t. So parchment wins in the big picture. I’ve started using parchment paper when I bake cookies, roast vegetables, or broil fish.
Go one step further using silicone baking mats, which serve the same purpose and last for a long time. They’re on my shopping list to try out!
Here in the UK you can get compostable baking parchment which is great. It can go in with the food waste collection here. Must have a look out for a silicone mat!
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Thanks for the tip- I’ll keep an eye out for that in the US!
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