Leftovers: 10 Ways to Make Them Awesome

Leftovers- boring, bland, beige, reheated.  Roast beef for three days because that’s what you made in the Crockpot on Wednesday.  For years, I slopped them on a plate like a 90s sitcom lunch lady, nuked them, and spiced them up by adding Ranch.  Bleh.  Now I make a plan for leftovers.  Fun fact: they don’t have to suck.  Not only do they not have to suck, but you can plan for them to be awesome.

10 ways to repurpose leftovers into awesome meals

1. Sandwiches.  This can be the answer to leftover meat, coleslaw, dinner rolls, or the bottom of that bag of spinach.  Bonus points if you use everything on the list.
2. Salads.  Random veggies?  A few bits of grilled chicken that don’t quite make a full serving?  A handful of grapes?  Throw them on a bed of greens and call it a healthy lunch.
3. Quesadillas.  Literally any meat that’s been leftover- roast beef, carnitas, chicken, hamburger.  Toss it on a tortilla with some shredded cheese and salsa on the side.  Winner winner. (Note: don’t buy a quesadilla maker.  Get a George Foreman grill and use it to grill meat, press paninis, or toast a quesadilla.  Shop smarter not harder.)
4. Burritos.  This is a great option for if you have meat and rice and/or beans loitering in the fridge.  Shredded cheese and salsa make it legitimate.
5. Loaded baked potatoes.  This is again a great answer to leftover Crockpot meals.  Bake potatoes, top with last night’s pork roast, sour cream, some fried onions, and cheddar.  Nailed it.
6. Soup.  You can toss all kinds of things into chicken broth and have it work out.  Meat, veggies, rice, noodles, it all goes.
7. Pizza.  My mom makes THE BEST pizza in all the land.  It’s absolutely over favorite recipe that I took with me from my childhood.  I make it on purpose at least twice a month, and honestly the third time that month is the answer to the lonely veggies and half container of sausage hanging about.  We never regret it.
8. Rice bowls.  The great thing about rice bowls is they are transcontinental.  They can go Mexican with beans, salsa, and cumin or they can go Asian with chicken, salmon, soy sauce and sautéed veggies.
9. Pasta.  Grilled meats (not slow cooked meats, choose a different carb for that), veggies of any persuasion, the dredges of that bag of cheese, bacon, nuts, craisins, all kinds of ingredients can find their home on a steaming pile of rotini noodles.
10. Freezer.  When in doubt, freeze.  Sauces, slow cooked meats, and soup all freeze remarkably well.  Lasagna, casseroles, and runzas are also great freezer fodder.  Cooked vegetables, rice and beans do not.  Learn from me- it’s not worth it.

Once you’ve found some winning leftover reincarnations, start incorporating them into your weekly meal plan.  For example, if I grill chicken, I intentionally make extra and use it the next night for either grilled chicken salad or pasta topper.

Examples

Some very popular options that we use on the regular are

• Slow Cooker Carnitas
  • Rice bowl
  • Quesadilla
  • Loaded baked potato
• Grilled chicken
  • Salad
  • Pasta
  • Annette’s Enchiladas from Bread and Wine

My most favorite grilled chicken recipes are in these two cookbooks:

• Roast beef
  • Philly cheese steak
  • Beef stew
• Random veggies
  • Pizza
  • Soup
  • Salad
  • Pasta
• Pork Banh Mi

Hacks

Working in the restaurant industry as well as trial and error at home have led to a few of my favorite strategies for meal planning and maximizing leftovers.  These are some of my best tips:

• Make extra on purpose
• Meal plan in succession e.g. I will make roast beef on Tuesday so that on Wednesday we can have Phillies.
• If you’re going to freeze things, store them in individual meal sizes.  This prevents defrosting a gallon of sauce when you really only need a quart.
• Label and date your frozen meals.  Knowing what and when inspires confidence when you pull something out of the freezer.  (What’s worse than pulling out a container of brown something or other and wondering what it is?)
• Keep a running list on your fridge of your frozen options.  This makes meal planning easier, and when you’re desperate for a quick fix, you know exactly what’s on hand.

Time to raid your fridge and make something amazing for dinner tonight!  Please share your favorite leftover reincarnations (photos encouraged!)- this community of learning wants to benefit from your creative juices!