Do you currently have forgotten leftovers at the back of the fridge? If the answer is yes, this post is for you! I am going to show you exactly how to make cheap meals, using your leftovers.
I’ve been consciously using leftovers over the last few weeks and creating another meal with them. This is especially helpful when you have a fussy toddler, who also wants food on demand. How amazing is it that previously cooked food could be stored and then literally be produced on demand? With the assistance of a microwave of course.
The benefits
We all know money is tight for most households at the moment and people also don’t have a lot of free time.
Having access to quick, easy and cheap food to feed the family can be beneficial.
Let’s take a look at the food waste statistics for the UK
Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of good food is wasted by the UK food industry every year. At the same time, millions of people are struggling to afford to eat. Our work addresses these two issues by redistributing food industry surplus, which would otherwise go to waste, to the people who need it most. Find facts and figures on food waste and hunger in the UK below.
FareShare.org.uk
How reducing food waste helps our family
I already meal plan and count the cost at the supermarket. I also ditch any items we don’t need that week and add them to next week’s shopping list. Being strict with the food shop has helped us massively. It also allows me to identify any potential for food waste before we make purchases that week. If an ingredient isn’t needed for any of the meals I have planned, I simply don’t buy it.
Using leftovers for the next meal, or lunch the next day helps us make use of leftovers. And make cheap meals.
Some of the examples of meals we use more than once
Sunday night chicken dinner
I use the chicken for several purposes in the days following this meal. Including, my lunch the next day (chicken sandwich or chicken pasta), and then it’s added to a summer stew the following night. All slow cooked, which makes it simple for me.
This week, I even saved the chicken juice and vegetable water and added this to my slow cooker recipes throughout the week. Which adds goodness and also plenty of flavours.
Lasagne
When you make lasagne in a large dish, unless you are having all the family around, there are likely to be leftovers. I box up portions for the next day and have this for lunch when I work from home. I also then freeze any surplus.
Pies or anything with pastry
I sometimes make my own cornish pasties. these days it is so easy to buy roll-out pastry and add whatever flavour you want to. These can be used as snacks throughout the week, or as a treat for lunch. In the summer, you might want to add some salad. Yum, Yum.
Meal planning
Meal planning in general, allows you to plan ahead. You are reducing your food bill and making it easier to cook during the day. We make use of our slow cooker most days. As a busy mum, I need food to be cooking in the background and not have to worry about it.
Because I’ve changed my family meal plan to incorporate snacks and leftovers, I have also created one for you all to download and use.
Need some assistance with meal prep and meal planning?
Degusta Box
Maybe with all the money you’ve saved in meal planning, you want some treats.
- Enjoy 10 to 15 products, many are completely new to the market!
- Receive your Degusta Box every month filled with goodies.
- All for a cheaper price than you would pay in the shops!
New customers can get their first box for only £7.99 (instead of £12.99) and delivery is free!
CODE: DEGUSTA5
Final thoughts
Do you meal plan?
How about making use of leftovers?
Share your recipes with me below – I would love to hear from you.
I am a huge fan of repurposing leftovers for new meals. Leftover chicken can be used in so many ways! I will also cook extra of things like pasta when I’m making it and freeze it for a quick meal when I need it. Anytime you can cook once and get multiple meals out of it is so helpful for busy families. You’ve reminded me that I need to pull out my slow cooker and use it more often. I would be thrilled to have dinner already waiting for me after a busy day. Great tips!
It’s great to know you also use leftovers. I totally agree with cooking only once and making as much as possible. When I lived alone, I used to prepare all my meals, which made it easy to still eat a hot home-cooked meal.
The slow cooker is my best friend!
We love meal planning, and while we have fallen off the wagon lately, we can’t wait to start it again! Our leftovers are always used up, thankfully we don’t waste as much as we used to x
That’s great to hear. It can be challenging to stick to it, but so worth it.
These are all such great ideas. I love using leftovers too! Thanks for sharing
Glad you found the post useful.
Amazing ideas! I love meal planning and these ideas help add to what I already do. Thanks for sharing.
Really glad you found this helpful 🙂
I totally agree with you. Meal planning singlehandedly decrease or eliminate food wastage and over the long term, save a lot of money in one’s pocket. Thanks for sharing your leftover food storage ideas; they are very practical and useful.
It’s about being aware of what you have left and what can be done with it. For me, writing down a plan and sticking it on the kitchen cupboards works.
It’s also proving easier for whoever is cooking that evening, You just don’t have to think about it!
I always meal plan and then write my shopping list accordingly to make sure I don’t buy any unnecessary food. I love cooking a meal that will leave leftovers for lunch 🙂
It’s fun to eat something the next day. And some things like lasagne almost taste better!
These are such good ideas! It’s really important to be conscious of food, especially with shortages all over due to the war in Ukraine and China closed due to Covid. Plus, it’s definitely cheaper when you can find good ways to use your leftovers 🙂
It is more important than ever. It feels good to establish certain items are not needed that week and save a bit of money.
These are great ideas! We have leftovers a lot and I meal plan as much as I can. We only buy what we need for the next week’s meals when we shop. I don’t do much meal prep, though. That is my next goal! 🙂
That’s great to hear. And meal prep can also help, but setting aside time to do is difficult.
Ooh I love this! We always try and use leftovers whenever we can, although we definitely have a way to go. I really need to get into the habit of meal planning too! Thank you so much for sharing x
It’s great to hear you use leftovers. I am doing better now I write down what I can do with them. Meal planning is the best thing I did.