Please settle an argument....Do most families

[Lisa_M]

Yes, usually 1-2 servings worth

 

[ImDMous]

For the most part, no leftovers for us. Unless it's something really out of the ordinary. Yesterday we had a big brunch at our house, someone brought a delicious tri-tip. So today I have ceasar salad with leftover tri-tip. But that is a very rare occasion. For the most part, I really don't like leftovers and they mostly get thrown out. DH will eat them if he remembers, but that doesn't really happen very often either.
We use Blue Apron for meal delivery and that way our meals are portioned and prepared for the two of us, never any extra.
If I make a crock pot of chili or turkey for thanksgiving, those do get eaten later, but that's only a few times a year.

 

[marthachick]

The first time I cooked a roast for DH, he was not excited about such a large piece of meat being cooked for 2 people. He was remembering his mom's roast. She always cooked them too much to begin with and then put them in the oven to reheat. The whole thing, not just the portion she was serving that night. So by the end of the roast (usually 4 or 5 nights), it was about as tasty as shoe leather. He was pleasantly surprised when my roast was tender and juicy until it was gone.

 

[barkley]

It's not an issue of poor/not poor. For my DH it's more of a visceral reaction to memories of the actual food. He knows it's not 100% rational but like I said, he now has a choice so we go with it.

i totally get it-there are some foods i detested as a kid just b/c of the way my mom prepared them (beans cooked to mush vs. just getting them to the correct doneness, stuffing b/c she put the gizzards from the bird). they made me ill to think of-but gradually i tried them done right but it's always in the back of my mind. i dated a guy who NEVER ate pasta and would politely decline it if offered when dining at someones home (but would enjoy having some of the sauce drizzled on bread) b/c just the sight made him ill-i found out when i saw how his mom prepared her 'spagetti and meat sauce' one night: ground beef (unseasoned) mixed into several cans of campbells tomato soup w/some kraft parm mixed in. this was put on top of pasta that had been boiled to the point of mush.

the poor guy was conditioned not to like pasta.

Butter containers for leftovers that you had to search through

when my late mother moved from her home into assisted living we had to do the final clean out to prepare it for sale-the sheer number of butter and cool whip containers was staggering. i remember her being surprised at the number of trash cans my household had for weekly pickup as compared to when she was raising twice the number of kids-that was because i actually threw out the containers food came in vs. squirreling them away in every nook and cranny.

 

[Squirlz]

My Wife is preparing a whole chicken for the two of us right now. They're cheap and easy to cook in the Instant Pot. after dinner the rest of the meat gets stripped and refrigerated. We'll nibble on it for a couple days then make it into chicken salad.

When it's nice out and we're grilling every night we often have leftover steak. That gets cut up and put into a big salad that serves as a meal another night.

 

[MommyinHonduras]

Family of 12 here and most of the time, no way. But if we do they almost always get eaten the next day.

 

[ronandannette]

My Wife is preparing a whole chicken for the two of us right now. They're cheap and easy to cook in the Instant Pot. after dinner the rest of the meat gets stripped and refrigerated. We'll nibble on it for a couple days then make it into chicken salad.

When it's nice out and we're grilling every night we often have leftover steak. That gets cut up and put into a big salad that serves as a meal another night.

Wow - maybe we do eat too much after all. There's next to nothing left of an average-sized deli counter roast chicken around here when I serve one for dinner (3 of us; 2 adult men and me). I do throw the carcass away without boiling it for soup though so maybe that's wasteful.

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

Almost everything we make generates leftovers to supply us with lunches for the week. If we're out of leftovers, we'll grab a piece of lasagna out of the freezer (so technically still leftovers).

 

[elgerber]

Yes, I plan weekly dinners to have leftovers. My dh takes them daily for lunch.

 

[lovemygoofy]

Yes. We are family of 2 so we typically always have leftovers. I usually have a plan for the leftovers and repurpose into other meals. My husband enjoys leftovers and will eat as is and doesn't expect new magic meals with leftovers. Neither of our mothers are known for cooking skills and it amazes him how I repurpose leftovers into new meals. Recently I made leftover mashed potatoes/mashed cauliflower into potato pancakes topped with chopped bacon, caramelized onions and buttered mushrooms. I impressed myself LOL

Yesterday I made a ham in the crockpot and we had a nice dinner last night. We had breakfast together this morning with omelets and ham. The rest of the ham was put into freezer bags with diced/chunked ham and slices and the ham bone for beans or soup another day.

I like leftovers and helps with meal planning and making things easier for me on busy nights.

 

[RangerPooh]

We have a big family so there's not always left overs. When there are leftovers I sometimes take them to work. In my office it's a mixed bag.

 

[OneOftheB's]

We are a "leftover" family; we have too many nights with kids activities that get out at 5:00 or 5:30 to cook an entire meal every night. For instance, we are having leftover meatloaf tonight, but fresh sides. I won't go beyond two nights in a row of the same meal, but am 100% guilty of making a large pot of soup/chili/etc or making two pans of meatballs and freezing a meal's worth for a later night.

My brother, on the other hand, will not eat leftovers. We have both agreed that this is in response to my mom's "eat it until it's gone" type of meal planning.

 

[CdnCarrie]

So for those who refuse to eat leftovers do you not do any batch cooking ever?
Like freezing soup, lasagna, tomato sauce?
Or do you cook from scratch nightly?

Also if you have leftovers from a holiday turkey dinner do you toss it without making soup, sandwiches, etc?

 

[ronandannette]

So for those who refuse to eat leftovers do you not do any batch cooking ever?
Like freezing soup, lasagna, tomato sauce?
Or do you cook from scratch nightly?

Also if you have leftovers from a holiday turkey dinner do you toss it without making soup, sandwiches, etc?

No, I don't; we don't have a freezer except the one in our fridge. I don't think it's a bad idea though. As I mentioned upthread, freezing something for a convenient future meal isn't the same as eating away at a pan of lasagna for three nights running. And no, I definitely don't cook every night. I work 10 hours a day and we have various things going on a few nights a week. We often scrounge individually for a sandwich or cereal and once in a while we have take out. I'd say I cook a great dinner maybe 3 nights a week and a couple of nice breakfasts a month on Saturdays.

As for holidays, honestly, over the past 23 years we've only had two Christmases and three Thanksgivings at home. When we're visiting obviously the left-overs are the host's to do with as they wish. On the holidays I've hosted (or any other company dinner) I ask the guests to take home whatever's left and they practically always do. Many of our guests are people we know really well and usually they bring their own tupperware.

 

[bobbiwoz]

There are two of us, we have leftovers, and reheat just the potions we need.

 

[CdnCarrie]

No, I don't; we don't have a freezer except the one in our fridge. I don't think it's a bad idea though. As I mentioned upthread, freezing something for a convenient future meal isn't the same as eating away at a pan of lasagna for three nights running. And no, I definitely don't cook every night. I work 10 hours a day and we have various things going on a few nights a week. We often scrounge individually for a sandwich or cereal and once in a while we have take out. I'd say I cook a great dinner maybe 3 nights a week and a couple of nice breakfasts a month on Saturdays.

As for holidays, honestly, over the past 23 years we've only had two Christmases and three Thanksgivings at home. When we're visiting obviously the left-overs are the host's to do with as they wish. On the holidays I've hosted (or any other company dinner) I ask the guests to take home whatever's left and they practically always do. Many of our guests are people we know really well and usually they bring their own tupperware.

Only thing I like about hosting Christmas/Thanksgiving dinner is turkey sandwiches the next day! Slather the bread with butter and lots of salt and pepper. Yum!

 

[PrincessBelle39]

Very rarely here. We don't make extra as we don't want it to go to waste. If we make something like cannelloni or macaroni cheese that uses the entire dish, hubby will take the remainder for lunch the next day but that is about it.

 

[bluezy]

So for those who refuse to eat leftovers do you not do any batch cooking ever?
Like freezing soup, lasagna, tomato sauce?
Or do you cook from scratch nightly?

Also if you have leftovers from a holiday turkey dinner do you toss it without making soup, sandwiches, etc?

I don't refuse to eat leftovers, I just don't enjoy them (other than a small handful of things that I do like reheated) so I *choose* not to eat them.

I have never batch cooked anything. Ever. Many years ago I did try freezing leftovers to have a meals for the future but didn't like the taste of anything that came out of the freezer -- just didn't taste the same as making it fresh. I have numerous individual serving size containers of soup in the freezer right now that will probably never get eaten. I purchased a few quarts of homemade soup through a fundraiser that a local high school group held a few weeks ago. The soup was very good fresh but it's not the same when I reheat it from frozen. It's not spoiled or freezer burned, it just isn't fresh and doesn't taste the same as the "original".

I cook from scratch 4 or 5 nights a week. We usually get take out or go out 2 or 3 nights a week.

I've never hosted a holiday meal (we're usually visiting family out of town) so I haven't had to worry about those leftovers.

 

[CdnCarrie]

I don't refuse to eat leftovers, I just don't enjoy them (other than a small handful of things that I do like reheated) so I *choose* not to eat them.

I have never batch cooked anything. Ever. Many years ago I did try freezing leftovers to have a meals for the future but didn't like the taste of anything that came out of the freezer -- just didn't taste the same as making it fresh. I have numerous individual serving size containers of soup in the freezer right now that will probably never get eaten. I purchased a few quarts of homemade soup through a fundraiser that a local high school group held a few weeks ago. The soup was very good fresh but it's not the same when I reheat it from frozen. It's not spoiled or freezer burned, it just isn't fresh and doesn't taste the same as the "original".

I cook from scratch 4 or 5 nights a week. We usually get take out or go out 2 or 3 nights a week.

I've never hosted a holiday meal (we're usually visiting family out of town) so I haven't had to worry about those leftovers.

Strange. I make soup and freeze individual bowls for work.
Tastes the same to me.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

We often make enough to have leftovers, either for lunches, another dinner, or even a midnight snack.

Leftover pizza is ALWAYS eaten cold.

About five years ago I wrote down on the calendar hanging in the kitchen what we had for dinner each night. At the end of the year I complied the results.
It looked something like this:
Chicken 65
Pasta 57
Beef 48
Fish 41
Leftovers 110 (I didn't break down the leftovers by category, just the grand total from all sources including restaurant meals)

So people actually throw out perfectly good food?

The most appalling waste of food I witnessed was by a male housemate of my stepdaughter's in Florida. We were visiting her and were planning to go out for dinner. DW invited the housemate along and he accepted. He then took a steak from Whole Foods out of the refrigerator (still wrapped in plastic) and threw it in the trash. DW asked why he didn't save it for the next day and he looked horrified at the suggestion. Stepdaughter later explained "he's OCD" and only eats what he buys that day.

We ate leftovers growing up, and I still do today, but I know others who won’t, and at the end of the meal, anything left goes right into the garbage.

In my mid 20's I was dating a young lady. We went out 4 or 5 times prior and I invited her over and prepared a meal. I was hoping that "tonight will be the night." I don't remember what I made, but there were some leftovers in the pan. She took it upon herself to throw the leftovers into the trash. When I asked why she did that, she scrunched up her face and said "you eat leftovers??? yuck." One thing led to another and that was the last time we saw each other.