Does your family know that you are serving them left-overs?
@beautyqueen26 (16030)
United States
September 6, 2007 8:15am CST
I've always thought that the ultimate cooking trick would be to serve yesterdays left overs in such a way that the family could not tell they were eating left overs. Currently, I'm already doing that with some tomato/beef based dishes.
For instance, if I made Sloppy Joes on Monday, I might be able to recycle leftovers into spaghetti topping on Tuesday or Wednesday or add the remainder of the Sloppy Joe meat mixture to crock pot chili. And, then no one would know they were eating the same dish. That would save both time and money.
So, does your family know when you are serving them left overs or have you found a way to creatively spin the left-overs into new dishes? What are your best tips for recycling left over food into new dishes?
2 people like this
14 responses
@gr8life (6251)
• Malaysia
6 Sep 07
Hello beautyqueen26,
I never have left overs. I cook in a small amount for my husband and I. I don't have to worry about whatever I cook as my husband will definitely trying hard to finish the dishes. He doesn't like to see the left overs and so he will finish up everything. It is easier for me too.
Before I cook, I will ask my husband what he wants to have and only cook whatever he wants to eat. It saves my time and our budget. Even if I have some leftovers, I don't recycle the left overs into new dishes. I don't feel good doing that to my family but alas, I 'feel good' to throw away the left overs.
1 person likes this
@beautyqueen26 (16030)
• United States
6 Sep 07
Tee hee! You are such a good mother and wife. I'm sure your spouse and son appreciate the loving care you provide for them. I could only hope to aspire to your level. I am still learning many things even after all these years and pleasantly surprised when I find someone who values the art of family care as much as I do. Be well and thanks for dropping by.
@krebstar5 (1266)
• United States
6 Sep 07
I'm so glad that I'm not the only one who spends time trying to figure out how to disguise my leftovers as something else. It's not that I think my boyfriend wouldn't eat the leftovers, but when we have a lot of leftovers sometimes and we can just get tired of eating them. Really, you can only eat the same leftover chicken for so many nights before you just can't stand to look at it anymore.
Here are somethings I do:
-add leftover meat to make a stirfry
-make a fritta with leftovers and cheese
-add meat to tomato sauce
- use leftover tomato sauce for pizza, calzones, or add it to a soup base
-like you, I also do chili
1 person likes this
@beautyqueen26 (16030)
• United States
6 Sep 07
I love all those ideas. You've inspired me! I'm thinking about doing some homemade grilled stuffed sandwiches. Toss the leftover meat, chopped veggies, sauce and shredded cheese between bread and grill it up on the George Foreman grilling machine. Mostly the meat and sauce would be left over and I could use frozen veggies which last longer than fresh anyway. Would not have thought to do that one before. Many good ideas.
And, I know what you mean about getting sick of the same dishes. Once we ate Chinese dishes for three days in a row and it's been hard to look at them ever since!
@sudiptacallingu (10879)
• India
7 Sep 07
Yes, we eat leftovers and the entire family knows it. I don’t get time to cook all the meals fresh everyday so generally in I cook enough to last me two days. We mainly eat rice or hand-made bread, so these cant be kept as leftovers. The rice spoils easily and the bread becomes stiff. Other than that, I can keep fish curry or some veggies as leftovers which can be had the next day.
@sudiptacallingu (10879)
• India
7 Sep 07
Yes, we eat leftovers and the entire family knows it. I don’t get time to cook all the meals fresh everyday so generally in I cook enough to last me two days. We mainly eat rice or hand-made bread, so these cant be kept as leftovers. The rice spoils easily and the bread becomes stiff. Other than that, I can keep fish curry or some veggies as leftovers which can be had the next day.
@violeta_va (4831)
• Australia
7 Sep 07
I dont even trick yhem I just serve them the left overs as they are if they dont like it bad luck get something from the fridge. But they are ok my son if he likes something he would eat it even if it 1 week old (just saying not that I would serve that to them), husband is ok as well as long as he has something to eat. (I have made him cook his own meal few times when he is complainig so now he is not saying anithing)
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
6 Sep 07
Gee you brought back a lot of memories for me, when I was a little girl once a week my mother would serve up a lot of leftovers by frying them up somehow, there was a special name for this but I can't think of it, it was very nice, it was a little bit of everything all fried up, it was probably nicer than the original meals....:)
@TerryZ (22076)
• United States
6 Sep 07
Oh sure my husband would know if I served him leftovers. But he doesnt like them and frankly I dont either. I might eat leftovers the next day for lunch but not for dinner. I like to make a nice meal every night for my sweet hubby. He so deserves it.LOL
@carlaabt (3504)
• United States
6 Sep 07
When we have leftovers, my husband just takes them to work for his lunch the next day, or two days later. I never work them into something else, because then I would have to figure something else out to send for my husband's lunch. lol And I just don't want to get up early enough to cook a lunch in the mornings! :) And I'm sure it wouldn't take him long to get tired of lean pockets and peanut butter sandwiches with fruit and veggies if that's all he had everyday for lunch.
When my husband deploys this winter, I might have to start recycling leftovers into meals, though. I don't know that my son will want to eat leftover food just heated up that much. And I know I don't really like leftovers most of the time.
@mossjanicelynn (1240)
• United States
6 Sep 07
Yes, I love to take leftover meatloaf and make it into spaghetti. Freezing noodles doesn't taste good
to me I like them fresh. But chili and then there are beans that are for leftovers, you can make so
many quick, I love frozen veggies too. Green beans are good cooked and frozen but not any kind of
squash. We eat a lot of sausage too. And that is good leftover and frozen.
@anetteh (3590)
• Sweden
6 Sep 07
Since we are only me and my son, I always ask him what he want´s ant I do use leftovers but not in cooking. We can eat it as it is. But mostly I do not cook that much to be any leftovers. I do not feel we need that. I do however cook for three, becouse I take with me for lunch to work. Or if I will work evning, my son have something to eat when I am not around. And he is OK with it.
@3lilangels (4639)
• United States
6 Sep 07
yes i have served left overs before,and for some reasons the left overs always taste better the next time around.i had left over fried chicken so i turned it into chicken parm and boy it was goog,you can do alot of things with left overs.pattie
@ssf12ster (488)
• India
7 Sep 07
no please avoid this. its very bad for health and also it is not a good family tardition to do such things.yesterday there was some curry left over so i rought home. my son ate it. but he kew we ahd brought in a leftover. he also knoew that sometimes we are usedto eat those. but now i totally want to avoid such things.
