Comments on: Make leftovers better

By: ARC

ARC — Wed, 03 Feb 2021 18:52:29 +0000

In reply to Diane C..

Yes! We talk about this with our kids a lot – you don’t have to LOVE every meal. Sometimes you just need to eat…something.

By: Alexicographer

Alexicographer — Sat, 30 Jan 2021 14:11:26 +0000

In reply to Diane C..

This! The internet … tv … etc., make me nuts. No, every meal does not have to be “the best beef stew…” or whatever, it just has to — feed us. I’m quite happy to eat boring sameness much of the time, if doing so limits the amount of time I have to spend in the kitchen.

By: Maggie

Maggie — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 20:40:40 +0000

In reply to Eva.

Same here, as a European, wasting food is just…not really possible. Too painful. There’s actually a Swedish dish named Pyttipanna which is what Laura describes with the potato, steak and veggies: all your leftovers sliced into tiny cubes, fried in a pan. Literally it translates to Tiny-in-pan.
Things like stews, I find, taste even better as leftovers, somehow it improves their taste to just sit for a night.

By: Kristin

Kristin — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 19:50:32 +0000

In reply to Maria. Yes! When I was going into the office and my husband was coaching (the "before-times", ha) we would arrive home between 4:45 and 5 and try to eat by 5:15, otherwise my 3 and 5 year olds spent the whole time whining or eating snacks and then not hungry for dinner. So I would often cook big meals on weekends and we'd eat them all week or fill in with quick meals like tacos. I'll have to check out that book. Thanks!

By: Marcia (OrganisingQueen)

Marcia (OrganisingQueen) — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 15:25:54 +0000

This post reminds me of one I read on A cup of Jo yesterday:

https://cupofjo.com/2021/01/how-to-use-rotten-produce/

I love leftovers too if at least a day elapses from when I first ate it. That’s also a great tip for the bottom of cereal boxes.

By: Catherine

Catherine — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 14:51:38 +0000

My go-to for leftovers is soup. Just about anything (other than lettuce or fruit) can be turned into soup. We don’t usually have enough leftovers to eat exactly the same thing for more than one meal, but there is always something left. Once a week or so I just put everything in a big pot and add some broth and an extra bag or two of frozen vegetables and see what needs to be done with seasonings. In your examples above, it’s so easy to put leftover potatoes, pasta, etc in a soup and they aren’t dry. I always have bone broth on hand (because I make it in the crockpot after we get rotisserie chicken, super easy) and so turning things into soup or chili is really easy.

But I’m a very extemporaneous cook anyway, so this might not work for someone who always needs a recipe .

By: Maria

Maria — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 12:57:31 +0000

Great post and comments. I am a big fan of leftovers, but even if I wasn’t I think my current dislike of cooking on weeknights would outweigh it! Our evenings just flow SO much smoother if we eat close to right when my little one comes in the door (kids 6 and 3). Cooking with a hangry 3-yo hanging on you is also not pleasant. We have shorter school hours though (husband picks her up by 5pm) and so I really need to work every minute of that childcare so I don’t spend all night/weekend working. Enter: leftovers, a lot! (Also quick things like scrambled eggs). The book cook once, eat all week (author was a BOBW guest) has good ideas for things that translate well to leftovers.

By: Kathleen Layman

Kathleen Layman — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 22:16:39 +0000

I save leftover cereal bits for simple homemade bread by microwaving them for 1 minute with a cup of the bread’s liquid. The resultant “mush” actually improves bread texture. I use a super simple recipe over and over that I now have memorized. This works best with leftover oats, shredded wheat, bran, etc. More flavorful cereals could be incorporated into banana bread or zucchini bread.

By: Lori C

Lori C — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 20:41:08 +0000

I confess I am the only one in this thread who doesn’t like leftovers. And my family doesn’t seem to either, so sadly we waste a lot of food! I prep the meal, I diligently save the remains intending to eat them, but eating the same thing a couple days later just doesn’t appeal to me. When I type that out it sounds horrible! I guess a reasonable change would be for me to start cutting recipes in half, so there are no leftovers? I’m inspired by this post however and going to preheat the oven now for some sausage/spinach baked ziti leftovers. Fingers crossed that it gets eaten at dinner! I will try to be more creative about reheating as this post suggests.

By: Diane C.

Diane C. — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 20:22:24 +0000

Food ware is one of my pet peeves too!
One thing we try embrace in our family is that food doesn’t always have to be tasty; it just has to not kill you. There is an anecdote from The memoir of one of Obamas staffers where she just couldn’t with the umpteenth salmon dinner on the campaign trail, and said as much, and Obama’s response was, “Food is fuel. Eat the Salmon.” And this has become a catchphrase in our family. So yes, leftovers might be less appealing than something else, but food is fuel and they just need to eat it and move along.