Guidelines for Leftover Cooking

A lot of times, leftovers just seem inevitable.  Poor appetite of some members of the family, miscalculation in the part of the cook,  a low turnout after a party or a cooking mishap-- all of these may result in leftover food.  How do you rescue leftover food safely and tastefully?  Take advice from the pros and learn the following guidelines:

Refrigerate leftover food as soon as possible.

Do not let leftover food sit for too long at room temperature to avoid spoilage.  The rules of food handling require that cooked food should not be kept at room temperature for more than 2 hours.  In addition, store leftover food in shallow containers for faster cooling and in clean ones for food safety.   Place leftover food in the front part of the freezer where you can easily spot them.

Thaw leftover food in the ref.

Do not risk having food poisoning by shortcutting thawing.  Always thaw leftover in the ref even if takes longer.  If you are really in a hurry, immerse the food container of frozen food in cold water and return to the ref, replacing the water every 30 minutes.

Eat leftover food within 2 to 3 days.

Commit to cooking leftover food within 2 to 3 days of refrigeration to ensure food safety, optimum taste and structural integrity of the ingredients.  

Transform leftover food into something different.

Our tastebuds easily get tired with tasting the same flavors and textures.  The trick in using up leftover food is to whip it into something entirely new.  For instance, leftover pork roast meat can be made into stew or soup while stewed vegetables can be added to chicken pot pies later.

Alter the taste with spices.

A simple way to bring new life to old food is to freshen up the taste with the robust flavors of herbs and spices.  An Asian sauce, an Italian condiment or a Mediterranean dip could easily perk up your leftover foods.

Dice meats to avoid taste boredom.

If the mere thought of that Thanksgiving turkey causes your family to get sick, dice the meat into tiny cubes which you can use sparingly as condiments in a bowl of salad greens.  The freshness and crisp of the greens have a way of rubbing off on the turkey meat. 

Curry vegetables.

Leftover vegetables are a challenge to reuse as they can get unpleasantly mushy and discolored.  A quick fix to that problem is to make them into curried dishes.  There is something about curry which hides the old taste of leftover vegetables, masks the old color and coats somewhat-mushy veggies with an otherworldly creaminess.