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How To Manage Leftovers Effectively

Have you ever wondered how to manage leftovers effectively?

Well done! You’ve cooked and enjoyed a delicious meal! Hmmm. Now what to do?

You poured your heart and soul into this creation and the table experience. From the moment you organized the ingredients, through the preparation, the serving and then to the best part, feeding yourself and your hungry brood.

Now what to do with the leftovers?

As a culture, we’ve made endless fun of leftovers.

The journalist and food writer, Calvin Trillin, says of leftovers:

“The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers.  The original meal has never been found.”

The image of food “left over” from a previous meal doesn’t sound appetizing at all.

Think “Ingredients Not Leftovers

So it’s time to think and talk differently about food and leftovers.

Think ingredients, not leftovers.

And remember the old saying, “Waste not, want not.”

Using previously served meals as ingredients for another meal is both innovative and thrifty.

It shows you value food and recognize the real savings of time that savoring that fabulous food a second time affords.

And re-savoring food doesn’t mean that the meal you served previously is the meal you are going to have again.

Change it up!

Change it Up

Make soup from those steamed, roasted or grilled veggies. Roll that cooked rice, meat, and extra veggies with some salsa and sour cream to make a burrito.

Or, save an appropriately sized portion of tonight’s meal for tomorrow’s lunch.

Your freezer is your new best friend forever.

And don’t forget to bring home ½ of your oversized restaurant meal for a quick supper the next night.

Savoring your food a second time will save you time and money.

Store Your Leftover Ingredients Carefully and Safely

Stash your collection of ingredients in labeled containers in either the fridge or freezer.

Be sure to include a description of the contents and the date it was stored.

And if all else fails, scrape the goodies into the compost pile.

There you have it! That’s how to manage leftovers effectively.