Leftovers taking up too much of that precious fridge real estate?
Here are some self-proclaimed genius ideas to put those extras to work:
To the freezer!
Don’t toss those ‘undesirable’ parsley stems, chicken bones, Parmesan rinds, and other food discards.
Keep those leftovers in their own air-tight sealed plastic bag, date it, and put alongside your other snow-encrusted freezer items.
Now, whenever you need something like a veggie stock, for example, you’ve got a variety of frozen leftovers to enhance the nutrition and flavour of your fresh dishes.
Save leftovers for at least a day
Any food can be kept in the fridge for at least a day. Those leftover sliced roasted red peppers that were apart of your sandwich is unneeded today, but could star in tomorrow morning’s breakfast omelet.
…but always be cautious
Having said that, a good rule to remember is that if it smells or looks off, give it a pass.
This principle can probably be applied outside of the food realm, too. (i.e. people).
Make a salsa/drip/stock/marinade
Leftovers can easily be adapted into a complimentary salsa, drip, stock, marinade, dressing, or what have you. This adds depth and elevates the flavour profile of your dishes with real, somewhat-fresh ingredients.
Stock is probably the easiest example: All of those unusable bones and parts can be leveraged into another tasty element of a dish, that’s just as delicious as the original chicken dish you prepared.
So always look at your leftovers with a fresh perspective, and always consider how else you can incorporate them into upcoming meals. It’ll save meal prep time, money, and maybe some of your sanity!
Photo Credit: Joe Belanger/Shutterstock.com; Ekaterina Markelova/Shutterstock.com
