No Leftovers Left Behind!

I'm sure all of us have experienced the filled-to-the-brim-fridge that is the aftermath of a house gathering. Or maybe you went to a restaurant, and in a haze of hunger, ordered a bunch of appetizers and got too full to eat your entree, and ended up leaving with a big bag of takeout boxes. Whatever be the reason, we should all work hard to avoid adding to the OVER 2.3 TRILLION POUNDS of food wasted globally each year! Other than composting (check out my early blog post on that!), repurposing leftovers into delicious new dishes is great way to reduce food waste. Here a few tips for various leftover situations:

Gone-dry meat?

Simmer grilled chicken, pulled pork, or roast beef in a broth to make tacos, quesadillas, dumplings, or even pot pie.

Have a bunch of fruit you don't want to eat, but also don't want to go bad?

Blend them up into a smoothie, search up jam recipes, or chop them up and add them onto cereal, salad, oatmeal, or yogurt!

Leftover pasta or bread from Italian food night?

Add some cheese, vegetables, and sauce, and make a casserole.

Straggler vegetables?

Toss some into a soup, omelet, or pizza, or try mashing potatoes, adding onions and other chopped-up veggies, and frying the patties to make a sort of mixed hash brown.

Unused cheese?

Try making your own Fromage Fort (a French cheese spread method -- every Fromage Fort is different, as anyone can melt together a unique mix of cheeses), adding some seasonings, and enjoy with bread or crackers.

Made too much rice in the cooker?

This is one of my favorites -- the best egg fried rice is traditionally made with day-old rice! Simply add the old rice to a pan and stir-fry, scramble some eggs, add some diced veggies (if you want), and top with soy sauce, chili oil (I highly recommend), scallions, sesame or a different condiment of your choosing!

I'm definitely not much a cook myself, but as you may have noticed, many of these tips require minimal or no cooking. It's much easier than it seems to repurpose leftovers, and you don't have to strive for perfection. Getting another day of meals out of something that would have otherwise been thrown away is rewarding enough!

Send me the recipes you come up with at luanniewang@gmail.com!