What To Do With Leftovers: +1 Save

Marko Balašević Author: Marko Balašević Time for reading: ~6 minutes Last Updated: October 16, 2022
What To Do With Leftovers: +1 Save

The refrigerator is the only place in the house where we can store purchased products and ready meals. Space in the refrigerator is limited, and the shelf life of prepared dishes is not infinite. A special problem arises with small portions of leftover food. One portion of porridge or a few cutlets or boiled vermicelli remained - transferred it to a small bowl or container - and

The refrigerator is the only place in the house where we can store purchased products and ready meals. Space in the refrigerator is limited, and the shelf life of prepared dishes is not infinite. A special problem arises with small portions of leftover food . There is one portion of porridge or several cutlets or boiled vermicelli left over - transfer it to a small bowl or container - and move it from place to place.

The main thing is that the number of such small containers is growing. If you do not stop this in time, then such residues will quickly fill the entire refrigerator, and then there will be only one way for them - to the trash. Which is very uneconomical and wasteful. Therefore, the issue of leftovers of small portions of dishes should be resolved promptly, without delaying or postponing for later.

 

Where do leftovers come from ?

Even the best housewife, who carefully plans the family's meals, sometimes may not calculate the required number of portions. Food prepared for some unforeseen occasion (for example, a trip to visit, a business trip, a party at a family member's house) often remains in the amount of "neither there nor here".

 

What to use leftovers for

First of all, it is practical. You paid money for a product not to throw half/third of it in the trash. In addition, in this way you will reduce the load on the external environment. According to statistics, about 40% of all food grown and produced - almost half of food - ends up in landfills around the world every year. And before that, natural resources are spent on the production of what will soon become waste. Not a very smart approach. Because of this, using leftover food to the maximum is a guarantee not only of domestic economy, but also of global economy.

Leftovers from previously prepared dishes are a great opportunity to save money and a field for showing your culinary fantasies.

 

What to do with leftovers

In fact, there are many options. Let's consider the most economical and rational.

Freeze

Simply transfer leftovers to a special container and freeze.

Plus , it will come in handy in unforeseen circumstances.

Minus - leftovers for the fact that they are not enough for a normal portion.

How to freeze products, read in the article - http://harchi.info/articles/zamorozhuvannya-produktiv.

Homemade buffet

Once or twice a week (depending on the amount of leftovers ), we inspect the refrigerator, and instead of one of the main meals, we make a homemade buffet, where everyone can eat what they like best.

Plus , we set the table in a matter of minutes.

Minus - dishes should not be more than 3 days old.

A wonderful transformation

From the remains of a delicious meal, we prepare an even tastier one.

Plus — rational use of leftovers , savings on food , menu variety.

The minus is that additional products are required, but, as a rule, they are not very expensive, which every housewife has.

 

A few tips

Store leftovers properly

It is best to store leftovers in containers (plastic or glass). Firstly, it is convenient - you can see what is there, so the probability of completely forgetting about the food before it spoils is reduced to a minimum. Second. Special containers will improve storage conditions, unlike bags or plates. For freezing, it is convenient to use plastic bags with a fastener - they can be used several times, noting the content and expiration date on the sticker. Read more about packaging for storage in the article - http://harchi.info/articles/u-chomu-zberigaty-produkty-yak-obraty-upakovku.

Set aside a separate place in the refrigerator for leftovers

Train yourself to put all containers with leftovers on one shelf. So you will definitely not forget. What exactly should be eaten first.

Some products are more profitable to buy in large quantities and freeze. The best example is meat, poultry or fish. It is cheaper to buy a whole chicken, cut it into pieces and freeze it than to buy parts.

Read the basic rules for storing food in the refrigerator here - http://harchi.info/articles/zberigannya-produktiv-harchuvannya-u-holodylnyku.

Dinner can become lunch

If you did not finish the cooked dinner, then let it become lunch for the next day. Or part of it, if there is a small amount of food left.

Cook in “Kitchen Sink” style

"Kitchen Sink" is quite popular nowadays. It means the following: you take products that need to be eaten as soon as possible and prepare one dish from them. Vegetables, pieces of cheese, chicken, meat, lettuce, beans - anything. The main thing is not to overdo it, and do not combine the incompatible. Ideas for dishes in the style of "Kitchen Sink" can be borrowed from famous chefs, in particular, Jamie Oliver.

 

Leftovers = ingredients

Look at leftovers not as waste, but as ingredients for other delicious meals . Yes, vegetables can become the basis of an omelette for breakfast, and also, they can be mixed with tomatoes and prepare a sauce for pasta. Wrap vegetables, meat or chicken in pita bread, add your favorite sauce - you will get a burrito.

Let's take a closer look at what can be prepared from what - the main nuances to know in which direction to move.

Bread

Leftover bread can be used in different ways. The easiest way is to dry them, as a result of which we will get homemade crackers for salads, soups or simply as a separate snack. Or you can grind them and stock up on breadcrumbs.

The second way to use fresh bread is to make croutons. Sweet or salty, with different fillings. Or make hot sandwiches.

Also, leftover bread can become the basis of pudding.

Meat

Leftovers of baked/boiled/fried meat, cold meat snacks, etc. give a lot of space for culinary fantasy. There are a lot of delicious dishes. What can be prepared from these products.

First of all, salt water. It is simply created in order to best combine different types of meat and ham.

Boiled, fried or baked meat can be used in salads, as fillings for canapés or burritos, as well as chopped and prepared as a sauce for pasta, and fried.

Also, a universal "disposer" - pizza - will come to the rescue. Not only different types of meat and ham are suitable for filling, but also leftover vegetables, mushrooms, greens, etc.

And, of course, don't forget about meat pies and casseroles.

Fish

Leftover fish can be used in the same way as leftover meat. Prepare fish salad, sauce or gravy. Make a fish pizza, pie or sandwiches.

 

Vegetables

When you cook with fresh vegetables/fruits, there are often bits left over, which you either eat during the cooking process or throw away in the trash. There is a good option - freeze such pieces every time, and soon you will have a sufficient amount of vegetable mixture (from beets, carrots, onions, tomatoes, etc.) in the freezer for a new dish.

Let's talk about vegetables again. After all, they should be present in the diet every day. Boiled, fried, stewed - from a side dish they easily turn into a delicious soup. It is enough just to fill them with water or broth, and then grind them with a blender. Then the cream soup should be heated, seasoned with salt and pepper, and croutons can be added before serving.

If you have leftover vegetable salad with an oil-based dressing, you can use it to make gazpacho the next day by chopping the vegetables in a blender and adding fresh ingredients to taste. By the way, you can serve it with crackers or fried bread.

Also, you can make a vegetable sauce for pasta, vegetable cutlets, or a filling for ricotta, pies, or canapés. This is a win-win option.

Garnish

Don't rush to throw away leftover cereal or potatoes. They also have the right to a second life. Leftovers of porridge can be added to soup, potatoes to cream soup, cutlets or casseroles can be made from them. You can make pancakes from potatoes.

Cheese

If you have leftover homemade cheese, you can use it to make cheesecakes for breakfast or a delicate casserole. Or add to a light sour cream and curd cream for desserts.

 

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