Creative Leftovers III: Waste Less Food
I am continuing my experimentation to waste less food. As previously discussed, one of the major shifts over the past couple of years has been to consume more leftovers, a big shift in my behavior from say a decade ago, where I hated leftovers and used to dispose of embarassingly large quantities. Since I get bored eating the same thing over and over again, one of the ways that I try to encourage leftover consumption is to serve the leftovers in a very different way. In other words, if the dish was relatively plain, to create leftovers that are spicy; if the dish was baked or grilled to morph it into a great soup. I also like to combine leftovers with fresh foods like raw vegetables to make them even healthier and crisp and crunchy, which is the last thing most people expect of leftovers.
–Leftover chicken, turkey, pork tenderloin, or shrimp– although I enjoy using these protein rich additions in curries or stews, one way to make leftovers compelling is to add fresh raw vegetables and make Vietnamese Rolls. These are fresh (use fresh cilantro and mint if you can) and crunchy.
–Leftover steamed or roasted vegetables – I like to arrange these on a bed of spinach or baby romaine together with some fruit to make a nice salad such as the butternut squash salad which can be made of leftover roasted squash (or sweet potato).
--Leftover rice — congee, or rice cooked down to a porridge is a comfort food. To dress the congee up, you can add all types of cooked meats and vegetables. Try some fresh minced ginger, scallions, and fried shallots to garnish.
Clean the Fridge Salad
3 cups spinach or baby greens
1 cup leftover cooked chicken meat, cubed
1 cup leftover roasted butternut squash cubes
1 cup leftover roasted other vegetables, zucchini, eggplant, asparagus
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
2 T dried cranberries
2 T pumpkin seeds
dressing
On 2 serving plates, layer the ingrediengs in order for a nice presentation. Sprinkle with dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds. Serve with dressing on the side.
Dressing
1 t dijon mustard
2 T lemon juice
1 t honey or agave nectar
2 T orange juice
salt to taste
combine all ingredients in a small jar and shake vigorously. Serve over salad. Optional: 2-3 T good quality olive oil.
shared at Pennywise Platter, Food Renegade, and Frugal Friday
I have been known to make what I call “five tupperware soup” which is everything that’s about to go in the fridge. I also made “freezer chili” once, which was a bunch of random things I found in the back of the freezer.
I’ve learned now when I make a large batch of soup to freeze half of it immediately. I’m lazy enough that I will eat the same thing 5 days in a row, but if I take that option away from me, I truly enjoy the soup a few weeks later when I’m in a pinch for time, rather than silently hating the thought of eating the same thing for the fifth time.
I do have a question for you…I read on your about page, I think, that you live in the NE, yet you talk often of “seasonal” produce. Where does this come from? Aren’t you in the thick of winter? Or do you mean it in a more broad term (seasonal from a bit further south, but not necessarily south america?)
I live in the Midwest, and if I relied only on truly local seasonal food, I’d be eating snow about now.
LDH, great to hear of the tupperware soup, similar to the Everything soup that I make.
I live in northern California (although I travel quite a bit to the NE), so seasonal local produce is available year round and relatively reasonably priced. For this cold season, I see sweet potatoes, winter squash, kale, cabbage and brussels sprouts as seasonal.
Best of luck with the snow. Amazing weather this year, isn’t it!
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