People often e-mail to ask how they can reduce their household food waste. One of the easiest ways is to save leftovers. Now, this only cuts waste if you actually eat those leftovers.
I love leftovers, especially as the next day’s lunch, but many folks don’t. For you non-leftover lovers, ensuring that they’re consumed means planning a leftover meal.
It’s easy, all you have to is: nothing. Don’t buy food for that night or plan another meal. And don’t give in to complaints. Making it work may require some repurposing (i.e. throwing everything into a fritatta) or a little spin. For advice on how to do so, this useful column has an idea–give it a sassy name:
I learned years ago that I could create a complete dinner for my family one night a week using one to two servings of previous meals. Family members might eat different entrees, or we might each have a little of all the entrees. The key is to use every bit of the groceries you purchase. When my children were younger, I would call it “crazy dinner,” and they thought that was fun.
I would suggest “Loco Leftovers,” but some prefer a “smorgasbord.” Go with your gut here. Just remember this talking point: Leftover night rocks because instead of eating one boring ol’ main course, you can have a bit of three.
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