Six ways to make leftovers into a new meal
By Becky Striepe
More from Care2 Green Living blog
and wasted money, so rather than scraping your plate into the garbage or leaving uneaten portions at the restaurant where it will end up in the trash, try turning that leftover food into a different meal for later on in the week!
Not only does cooking with leftovers reduce waste, it can help stretch your food budget. And this mean always eating the same meal twice. If you're looking to spice up your leftovers, here are some easy, tasty ways to make yesterday's meal into a whole new dish.
1. Wraps and quesadillas
Burritos and wraps used to mean some combination of beans, rice, and veggies. While a traditional burrito is great, you can really spice things up by wrapping leftovers from another meal along with some veggies in a tortilla.
Think outside the box -- Thai or Indian leftovers would be delicious wrapped up with some sliced potato and shredded spinach, for example.
Or heat up a tortilla, add leftover veggies of any type, sprinkle with shredded cheese, and *ta-da* it's a quesadilla.
2. Sauces
If you have a lot of veggies that you couldn't finish, you can turn them into a nutritious sauce that's great on pasta.
Just heat the veggies with some broth and spices of your choice, then puree to create a flavorful sauce. If you like things creamier, add a cooked potato to the mix. Yum!
3. Fried rice
Whether you had a stir-fry or beans and rice, leftover rice makes a tasty base for a quick meal.
In a large frying pan, combine the cooked rice with your leftover food and stir to heat evenly. If the rice is looking dry, you might need to add around a 1/4 cup water or broth to the pan to moisten things up. The rice will absorb most of the liquid, and the rest will cook down to make a yummy sauce.
Need more help making fried rice from rice in the fridge? Check out this handy recipe.
4. Salads
Toss last night's meal with some mixed greens and chopped veggies for a hearty salad. If your food had a lot of sauce on it, you might not even need dressing.
You can also heat the leftovers before tossing them with your greens. A warm topping on crunchy, cold lettuce adds a bit more interest to the meal.
(Photo by Becky Striepe)
5. Soups
This works well with Asian food, but you can definitely experiment. Combine leftovers, sauce and all, with cooked rice and some broth for a quickie leftovers soup.
Depending on how saucy your dish was, you might want to spice things up with a little soy sauce, minced ginger, or garlic. If you're feeling fancy, garnish with chopped cilantro or scallions.
For savoury soups made from leftovers (even from casseroles), get inspiration from CheapCooking.com.
5. Casseroles
The casserole route works well with all sorts of different types of leftovers like Italian, Mexican, and bar food. I don't think I'd try this with Chinese or Thai food, but if you're feeling adventurous, go for it!
Mix up the leftover food with some cooked pasta or rice, top with cheese (dairy or vegan will do the trick), and bake at 350F until the top of the casserole is brown.
Have you gotten creative with your leftovers? Share your ideas in the comments!
Becky Striepe is a green blogger and independent crafter with a passion for vintage fabrics. She runs a crafty business, Glue and Glitter, where her mission is to use existing materials in products that help folks reduce their impact without sacrificing style. She specializes in aprons and custom lunch bags. Like this article? You can follow Becky on Twitter or find her on Facebook.
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