Please settle an argument....Do most families

[PollyannaMom]

I love having leftovers! If it were just me, I'd definitely plan for them, because I don't like cooking every night. DH gets bored a little more easily, but will generally eat most things as leftovers if we happen to have them. DS is the pickiest about what he'll eat as leftovers, but still likes several things (especially pizza and Chinese, both of which which we almost always over-order on purpose!) And all of us will bring home restaurant leftovers if we're coming straight back.

 

[Meriweather]

We almost always have leftovers....DH has them for lunch the next day or 2. If there are no leftovers, he doesn't know what to eat

 

[NHdisneylover]

We rarely have anything leftover . I adjust how much I cook so as not to have too much.
Sometimes, if I'm going to be home all week at lunchtime, I'll make a batch of something which reheats well and eat it fir lunch several days running. Other than that, leftovers are rare in my house

 

[Sabeking]

I do make extra for leftovers but typically am the only one to eat them.

 

[design_mom]

I rarely make leftovers on purpose. If we have extra, DH likes to take leftovers as his lunch, but I really don't. (Although I am eating leftover chicken fried rice for lunch today -- that's an exception.)

I do sometimes like leftovers that can be made into something else. For instance -- leftover roasted chicken >> chicken noodle soup >> leftover soup thickened into "chicken & noodles" and served over mashed potatoes or with dumplings. Even though they're leftovers, they don't feel like yesterday's dinner reheated. And I don't like to have the same thing for multiple meals/days in a row.

 

[kdonnel]

On Sunday night we purposely cook extra so that my wife has a lunch to take M-F. She preps all her lunches Sunday so they are ready to grab in the morning.

Otherwise we try to cook the correct portion size so we are not tempted to eat too much.

We do occasionally bring left overs home from restaurants that usually get eaten at some point.

 

[luvsJack]

We do better with “planned” leftovers.

Roast or turkey breast on Sunday that becomes sandwiches for lunches or hot sandwiches for dinner.

Spaghetti sauce that is eaten for spaghetti and then is used for lasagna or something else.

Grilled chicken and that is either used for chicken sandwiches or chicken salad.

Casseroles, soups and stews are used for lunches.

Some things are better leftover—stews, chili, soup.

Do we use every crumb? No where close. We still throw out food. Sometimes that new recipe was great the night it was cooked but doesn’t translate well to leftovers for some reason. Or no one is in the mood for the same food again. Or the weather changes so that cold weather food doesn’t appeal to anyone for the next spring like week.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

I have a teenage boy. I haven't seen a leftover in years.

Seriously, if we have leftovers, it's because no one liked it. No point in keeping it if no one will eat it.

 

[Disneylover99]

I’m reading this thread while eating my leftovers from dinner last night.

 

[mombrontrent]

My DH works nights so whatever I cook for dinner is what he takes to work to eat the next night. Plus I like to have extras for lunch sometimes depending on what it is. The kids will eat leftovers if it’s a favourite.

 

[mombrontrent]

I’m reading this thread while eating my leftovers from dinner last night.

I thought about doing that as well but broccoli soup didn’t feel very breakfasty.

 

[Disneylover99]

I thought about doing that as well but broccoli soup didn’t feel very breakfasty.

Sounds good to me!
But I’m generally not a fan of breakfasty type foods.

 

[soccerdad72]

We often end up with leftovers, but don't necessarily cook extra on purpose (expect with a few dishes that I know will get eaten).

Most leftovers become my lunches during the week.

 

[NAB]

Yep...Leftover Wednesday in our house. That is our garbage day and compost goes out.

Kids run to the fridge to get the best ones , they hate Wednesday..lol But I don’t throw food out if I can help it. Not to say it still won’t get thrown out that day .

Now that there is just 2 of us this year ,hard to cook for 2 with out leftovers...especially the sides

 

[tazdev3225]

I love leftovers and so does my husband which is a good thing. I grew up in a large family and had 3 kids and various friends of kids at meals when they were younger. I only know how to cook some things in large portions. Now that it is just DH and me there are times I plan meals out with leftovers on purpose. This week I have 2 meetings so it is something I can heat up quickly before I have to run out for 6 PM meetings.

When my one daughter was living with her in laws I would go to visit her there. One night they had gotten Boston Market for dinner. As I was leaving I reminded them to put the food away so it wouldn't spoil. I took home enough food for a dinner and a lunch for my house. Two containers were completely full. My daughter said they did that all of the time. I was amazed at the waste of food and money.

My youngest daughter sends me leftovers all the time. She is an amazing cook but her leftovers aren't enough to feed her 3 boys so I get them.

 

[cabanafrau]

Leftovers wind up as lunches throughout the week for us. It's always a bummer when the meal planning for a week winds up being a string of meals where there are no leftovers at all.

For the person upthread who won't eat leftover mashed potatoes, I don't usually serve them again as mashed potatoes, but they're great for shepherd's pie or adding herbs and spices with a little bit of egg and piping them onto a baking stone or tray and turning them into a duchess style. I've even used some in an experimental potato soup that turned out pretty good.

 

[mom2rtk]

I was raised to think of them, not as leftovers, but as future meals that require minimal preparation.

Amen! I often make a larger portion of something with plans of having it a second night. We do that with tacos and I just did it last night by making a huge pot of tortilla soup.

 

[soccerdad72]

For the person upthread who won't eat leftover mashed potatoes, I don't usually serve them again as mashed potatoes, but they're great for shepherd's pie or adding herbs and spices with a little bit of egg and piping them onto a baking stone or tray and turning them into a duchess style. I've even used some in an experimental potato soup that turned out pretty good.

If we make enough mashed potatoes (and I'm feeling ambitious), I often turn them into gnocchi a few days later

 

[mombrontrent]

Leftover mashed potatoes mixed with green onion and shaped into patties and pan fried, yum! Was my favourite as a child and I always begged my mom to make extra mashed potatoes so I could make these patties for breakfast the next day. Served with ketchup of course.

 

[mrodgers]

I was out tending the grill when a young girl hustling electric rates showed up. I was kind of busy to talk electricity, but she asked what I was cooking. I opened the grill to show 3 large sirloin steaks, 4 sausage patties, 10 hamburgers, and a couple ears of corn. She said, wow, you have people coming over? Nope, just grilling for myself.

Live alone and when my kids are with me, we are usually out and stop somewhere. Yes, I always have leftovers on purpose to put in the freezer for lunch at work.