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Leftovers. The word itself implies “unwanted” or “scraps,” but I’ve started to think of them more as “investments”. When you spend hours making a dish for dinner, you’re creating a ton of flavor, and those flavors make for delicious meals the next day. Also, when you commit to using your leftovers, you’re not only taking advantage of the flavors, you’re also committing to #zerowaste, and saving your hard-earned money.
Many leftovers are best if just reheated; things like lasagna, pasta, stews and soups. But when you’re dealing with leftover meats and veggies, there are a lot of dishes you can create using components from last night’s dinner. These are some of our favorites.
Fried Rice
Fried rice is by far our favorite way to use leftover meats, especially pork. It’s also a great way to use leftover rice, since day-old rice is drier and firmer, providing a better texture. Other than rice and meats, we’ll often add onions, garlic, carrots, kimchi (don’t forget the juice), eggs and sometimes green onions, chives and fresh herbs at the end. You can usually add any leftover veggies you have as well. TasteMatch is a great way to pick ingredients that match well with your key ingredient.
The basic method for making fried rice from the TasteMatch app:
To make Fried Rice, start by cooking your preferred rice, or better yet, use leftover rice. In a large pan or wok, sauté meat, chopped onions, garlic, and other vegetables in a bit of oil. Push the veggies to one side of the pan and crack few eggs on the other side. Once the eggs are cooked, mix them with the meat & vegetables and add the cooked rice. Season with soy sauce and sesame oil, and stir fry everything together until well combined and heated through. Top with your favorite hot sauce.
Sriracha is our most common hot sauce, but we’ll adjust to match with the region and/or flavor profile. As an example, we created an orange habanero sauce for a duck fried rice (see below), using leftover orange sauce from the previous night’s Duck l’Orange.
Fried rice with smoked sausage and homemade kimchi
Made with leftover rice
Kimchi fried rice with braised pork belly and garden kkaenip
Made with leftover Gochujang braised pork belly
Pork belly fried rice with shiitake mushrooms and Thai basil
Made with leftover Thai braised pork belly
Duck fried rice with chive blossoms and orange habanero sauce
Made with leftover duck, orange sauce and wild rice
Breakfast Hash
Breakfast hash is a great way to use leftover beef or wild game, especially if you have potatoes on hand, either fresh or left over from the night before. Hash, by definition, is a combination of different things, so you can put basically anything in there, just be conscious of the overall flavor profile.
The basic method for making Breakfast Hash from the TasteMatch app:
To make Breakfast Hash, start by heating a skillet over medium heat and adding diced potatoes. Cook them until they are golden brown and crispy. In a separate pan, cook bacon, breakfast sausage or even leftover steak or pork belly until it’s nicely browned, then remove it and set it aside. In the same pan, sauté diced onions and bell peppers until they become tender. Once the potatoes are cooked, add the onions, bell peppers, and meat to the skillet. Season with salt, pepper, and any desired herbs or spices. Cook everything together for a few more minutes until the flavors meld together. Serve hot and enjoy!
My preference is fried eggs on top, but you can also use poached eggs and even scrambled eggs if you prefer. Hot sauce is a good idea, or ketchup if you’re so inclined.
Corned beef hash
Made with leftover corned beef
Braised short-rib hash over polenta
Made with leftover braised short ribs
Pork belly hash with kimchi
Made with leftover braised pork belly
Barbecue hash with sweet potatoes
Made with leftover barbecue
Omelettes & Other Egg Dishes
Omelettes and egg dishes are another great way to use leftovers. My favorite for omelettes is to used soft braised meats like short ribs which makes for a luxurious breakfast that tastes like it took hours to make. Donburi (rice bowls) are a great way to use leftover fish.
Szechuan short rib omelettes
Made with leftover braised short-ribs
Salmon and egg donburi
Made with leftover grilled salmon
Salads
We make salads for lunch pretty much every day, especially in the summer when we have fresh tomatoes from the greenhouse. Leftover sliced beef is a perfect addition, as well as leftover lentils and wild rice.
We make a lot of sous-vide tri-tip, and we almost always have some left over. In fact, we’ve gotten in the habit of eating less for dinner so we have enough for salads the next day.
Steak salad with jammy eggs
Made with leftover tri-tip
Steak salad with arugula and burrata
Made with leftover tri-tip
Steak salad with beets & goat cheese
Made with leftover tri-tip
Lentil salad with burrata
Made with leftover lentils
Other Dishes
Whenever we have something extra in the kitchen, we’re always looking for creative ways to use it. It’s a key part of our commitment to #zerowaste and has become a bit like a game. We challenge ourselves to come up with the most creative ways to use what we have. Here are some examples:
Empanadas with chimichurri
Made with leftover flank steak
Lentils with eggs and spring onions
Made with leftover lentil stew
Lamb gyros with fries
Made with leftover roast lamb
Pizza with apples and cheddar
Made with leftover pastry dough
You can think of this list as a sort of starter pack for ideas. The important part is being creative. One of my art teachers from high-school used to talk about how creativity is often inspired by limitations, and when you’re using leftovers, you’re limited by what you have. This means imagining many different combinations, often without a recipe. It’s a perfect use case for TasteMatch.
