Easy and Delicious Ways to Reuse Leftovers
Easy and Delicious Ways to Reuse Leftovers
Many of us have gotten used to the habit of throwing away leftovers. It's either they head straight into the bin or are stored in the fridge only to be forgotten the next day. But did you know that there are tons of ways you can repurpose your leftovers? Not only can it help you whip up great meals, but it can also reduce how much you waste precious food.
Food scraps can be delicious if you only know how to cook them properly. If you don't know where to start, here are some recipe ideas you may want to try:
Make buddha bowls.
Buddha bowls are a well-loved dish because of just how easy they are to prepare. Not to mention, they taste pretty good, too. All you need to do is throw in some protein, grains, greens, tasty sauce, and anything else you feel like eating, and you automatically have a meal to chow down on. If you want to step it up a notch, you can even infuse an interesting twist, like making it Thai-inspired. You would only need to slice or shred leftover chicken, cut pepper into thin slices, and arrange the bowl by placing each of the chicken, pepper, rice, greens, and some edamame in a pile next to each other. Blend all of the dressing ingredients (think peanut butter, coconut cream, lime juice, honey, soy sauce, and water) and add to the bowl, mixing in as you eat.
Make soup.
Perhaps one of the easiest (and tastiest) leftover recipe is soup. The vegetables that you served as a side dish one night can become soup on the next. When you happen to have leftover veggies, you can turn them into delicious soup just by pureeing them in a blender. You can also go the chicken broth route, where you warm the soup in a pot, season with salt and pepper, and finish with a bit of pesto, olive oil, or croutons.
Whip up a rice cooker meal.
An often overlooked but versatile appliance in the kitchen is the humble rice cooker. In case you haven't heard, you can use rice cookers to make more than just rice. You can use it to prepare a variety of meals, and of course, you can also use it to maximize leftovers. Any inexpensive rice cooker will do the job, as all you really need are the basic functions. If you have leftover roasted chicken, you can create a rice cooker chicken meal by placing it inside the cooker, along with cups of chicken broth, slices of ginger, and cups of long grain rice. Set the typical cooking setting you use to cook rice, and voila, you have an instant savory chicken meal! Just don't forget to add garnish and sauce for good measure.
Cook some stew.
Who could deny stew? No one, that's who. Leftover or not, stews are always a hit, as they usually hit the spot when the weather is cold and dreary. If you happen to have leftover beef, you can make a mean stew with onions, garlic, celery, carrots, potatoes, herbs, and stock. For a thicker consistency, you can also mix in gravy granules in the last few minutes of cooking, or gently mash the potatoes and larger vegetables with a potato masher to create a thicker texture without turning everything to mush.
Written exclusively for Harvestimefoods.com
by Alexandra Silverman
