Left-overs thread?

Would anyone be interested in a 'What I made with my left-overs thread?'. This occurred to me as I was freezing the remains of a cooked chicken we had yesterday. My husband's boss recently admitted that his family threw away quite a lot of food because 'they like to eat fresh food' and he likes to cook exactly to the recipe, not adapt to what needs eating. To me part of good housekeeping/cooking is adapting your meals around what's left in the fridge or freezer, even if it's just putting all the left over veg into some tinned soup.

Oooh! I think that would be fun!  Especially for everyone on here with families, or children who are picky eaters that won't eat yesterday's leftovers.  I always try to reinvent a meal when I have it a second time..

Growing up, my dad would always make a stew called "COTR" (Clean Out The Refrigerator)..using all the leftover meats and veggies, and add some beans, and either a broth/tomato base....just adding whatever needed to be used up before it went bad.

Growing up, my dad would always make a stew called "COTR" (Clean Out The Refrigerator)..using all the leftover meats and veggies, and add some beans, and either a broth/tomato base....just adding whatever needed to be used up before it went bad.

I have friends who make Fridge Soup every Sunday! It's more or less the same thing! 

I know we had a thread somewhere asking how many meals people could get out a chicken. I'm sure that had some good ideas for what to do with leftovers.

I'll go and look for it.....

Here it is! Enjoy!   

I have friends who make Fridge Soup every Sunday! It's more or less the same thing! 

I saw that called 'garbage soup' in a novel recently!

I'd like to see that!

Yeah, I think that's a good idea.  

I take leftover roast chicken or pork and mix with bbq sauce to put on sandwiches or jacket potatoes the next day. Fried rice is another good alternative for leftover meats and rice. Also, leftover taco / burrito meat can be used on jacket potatoes with salsa and cheese, or a taco salad, quesadillas, enchiladas, chili, or some other variation. I make chicken stock with leftover chicken carcasses and freeze it to use for soups and sauces. Usually just making some stock uses up some leftover raw veg and herbs in the fridge that might be looking less than appealing (carrots, celery, parsnips, leeks, etc. are all good for making vegetable or chicken stock or what have you.) Leftover mash is great for potato cakes or fish cakes.

I think the worst is when you cook something you don't really like, and so you don't eat much of it, and then there are loads of leftovers and if you didn't like it the first time, you definitely aren't going to like it the next day. Sometimes there isn't really a way to change it up and it just goes to waste. But, we have the pets who can help out, depending on what it is, and my in laws live across the street so sometimes I take leftovers to them if I think they will like it.

Yeah, I think that's a good idea.  
Also, leftover taco / burrito meat can be used on jacket potatoes with salsa and cheese, or a taco salad, quesadillas, enchiladas, chili, or some other variation.

I'll eat mexican anything! "mexican potatoes" might actually be one of my favorites.

I think the worst is when you cook something you don't really like, and so you don't eat much of it, and then there are loads of leftovers and if you didn't like it the first time, you definitely aren't going to like it the next day.

I made something like this once! I tried to turn it into a pasta dish..it was a bunch of mashed veggies...but after I ate some of it, I decided it would've made a pretty good filler for chicken pot pie.  But alas, no leftover chicken that week.

I saw that called 'garbage soup' in a novel recently!

Eeeeeuw!!! I think Fridge Soup sounds a bit more appetising! 

Wow... I need this thread.  Usually we just freeze or refrigerate it and re-heat or make sandwiches.  So I'm excited for new ideas.  I have zero inspiration when it comes to left overs.

That's why I love Sunday roasts!  Sort of like the chicken thread - leftover roast goes into something else:  sandwiches for lunch sure, but even better - things like curry, shepherd's pie, stew, soup, etc. 

Someone mentioned on another thread about using leftover mashed potatoes for shepherd's pie, fish pie, etc. This was definitely a  moment for me! Now I make extra mash on purpose!

I'm always looking for ideas for my leftover chicken roasts. One my sister sent me recently was her recipe for poppy seed chicken. It's dead easy. Mix 2 1/2 cups of cooked chicken with 16 oz sour cream, a can of condensed cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup, and 2 tsp poppy seeds. Put in an 11 x 7in cooking dish. Then top the casserole with a sleeve of Ritz crackers (or half the box if you're not in the US) that you have broken up and mixed with 2 tbsp melted butter. Bake at 350 degree F for 20-25 minutes, or until it's bubbling hot. I serve this with rice, but my sister serves it with noodles.

It's definitely a comfort food and her 3 young boys love it!

Someone mentioned on another thread about using leftover mashed potatoes for shepherd's pie, fish pie, etc. This was definitely a  moment for me! Now I make extra mash on purpose!

When I was growing up, leftover mash was always made into potato salad.  I never knew that people used anything but mashed potatoes for potato salad until many, many years later!

When I was growing up, leftover mash was always made into potato salad.  I never knew that people used anything but mashed potatoes for potato salad until many, many years later!

The only thing I knew to do with them was make fried mashed potato cakes...and those aren't as good when they're not made with bacon grease! 

The only thing I knew to do with them was make fried mashed potato cakes...and those aren't as good when they're not made with bacon grease! 

Mmmmmm, bacon grease! 

Vegetable bhajis are another good way of using up left over veg.