Leftovers that Make You Say "Yes!"

[Chris Amirault]

15-hour workday yesterday, and I came home expecting nothing worthwhile for a late-night dinner. But sitting in the fridge was a bowl of cold, unsauced spaghetti that made my heart leap with joy. Crushed and sauteed a couple of cloves of garlic in salted olive oil, sprinkled a few flakes of crushed red pepper, tossed the spaghetti in the oily mess, and grated parmigiano reggiano over the top: spaghetti aglio e olio from the gods.

Most leftovers make me sigh, cringe, or gag. What are the leftovers that make you sing when you discover them?

[aliaseater]

Chili and stews, like beef or lamb are always better the next day!

[Kerry Beal]

I made colcannon last week - thoroughly enjoyed it, but there were leftovers. On the advice of Anna N - I fried up the leftovers in a bit of oil and butter - even better than the original!

[Magictofu]

If I have a few greens or even fruits I love to find leftover steaks to include in a salad.

In the winter, leftover soups is heavenly.

[Andrew Fenton]

Leftover barbecued ribs are a treat, of course. Best eaten at midnight, standing up, with the refrigerator door open.

[vloglady]

I LOVE that cold sesame noodle dish. Made with peanut butter, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and red pepper flakes. I have to be careful how much I make, I could eat it all.

And of course, vanilla ice cream for dessert.

[Margo]

Cold risotto formed into cakes, coated in panko, fried in olive oil plus butter to golden brown deliciousness.

[Special K]

Leftover barbecued ribs are a treat, of course.  Best eaten at midnight, standing up, with the refrigerator door open.

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Mmmmm, especially if there's also one last beer hidden in the back.

[Holly Moore]

Pizza

[Beebs]

Another vote for pizza, eaten slightly warm.

Cold chicken wings.

[weinoo]

Are they still called leftovers if you make extra on purpose, like in the case of risotto mentioned above, or when I make extra pasta with a tomato based sauce so that I can then prepare a frittata?

[Chris Amirault]

Yes. They are. J'approve.

[Holly Moore]

Like buying an extra-large pizza so there will be something for breakfast in the morning.

[Magictofu]

Leftover barbecued ribs are a treat, of course.  Best eaten at midnight, standing up, with the refrigerator door open.

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Mmmmm, especially if there's also one last beer hidden in the back.

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I always thought of beer as a staple like salt, flour and dried pasta .

The open door fridge and middle of the night nibbling makes everything tastes so good.

[chezcherie]

from another thread (recipes that rock '09), mine are the stove-top version of these "crashed potatoes" that we do in my cooking school:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06...h-hot-potatoes/

here's why:

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...dpost&p=1670571

[judiu]

Pot roast, not too lean. Deli sliced roast beef, very rare. Half a sub sandwich from the night before (just something about the wilted lettuce that still has a soft crunch at the middle...) Boiled new potatoes, barely warm with real butter. Corn on the cob. Corn off the cob to be fried with butter and onions. Cold rare steak, cold rare hamburgers. Cold pork chops. Turkey stuffing for a sandwich with mayo and cranberry sauce. Smoked salmon with lemon ( what's leftover smoked salmon? I never HEARD of such a thing! ) Bits of left over cheeses from the cheese plate to make a crazy grilled cheese sandwich. Dammit, now I'm hungry, and it's over an hour to lunch!

Please do not get me started on left over sweets; I try very hard to pretend that they're not there...

Oh, yeah, Chinese takeaway. My fave!

ETA: Chinese food

Edited May 28, 2009 by judiu (log)

[Tri2Cook]

Another vote for pizza, eaten slightly warm.

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Or college breakfast style. Stumble out bleary-eyed in the morning, spot the pizza box on the table, lift the lid without much hope and... Yes! There is some left! Now where did I leave that beer I was working on when I fell asleep?

[phatj]

I like almost all leftovers.

[BarbaraY]

Leftover corned beef. Make a sandwich. Heaven

[Sony]

I felt like eating something sweet last night....and discovered a 1/2 pint of frozen lemon curd in the freezer. I stuck in in there last week to cool off rapidly, and it was a happy mistake that I forgot about it! When I spied it, I figured it was a loss, because I made it with less sugar and butter than the recipe called for. Thought the texture would be grainy...

Best frozen lemon dessert I've had in a long time- smooth, dense, perfectly tart and sweet all at once. Scooped a spoonful next to some fresh blackberries, and was thoroughly happy.

[Marmish]

Meatloaf. Sliced thinly on white bread with lots of ketchup.

[Holly Moore]

Anything and everything having to do with US Thanksgiving. Especially a turkey, stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce sandwich. Heating is optional

[petite tête de chou]

Slices of cold, medium rare steak eaten directly from the 'fridge with salt shaker in hand.

[Tim Dolan]

I recently went to a Korean bbq joint with two female friends who left me with all the leftover chicken and beef. I got home from work the next day, noticed that I placed the leftovers next to some flour tortillas and shredded cheese. Eight minutes later I was enjoying some awesome leftover Korean bbq quesadillas.

[Anna N]

Slices of cold, medium rare steak eaten directly from the 'fridge with salt shaker in hand.

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Oh YES!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sometimes I think that for me it's all about the leftovers!

Once a year we have up to 15 people over for Danish lunch and while it's always great to have so many friends and family here the best part is always the following day when hubby and I dig into the leftovers washed down with lots of akvavit.