When it comes to food, people are really budget conscious. Instead of buying by the bulk, they would tend to buy rather in small numbers to save money and kitchen space as well. And instead of cooking many food items at the same time, they'll just cook at least a viand or two and some rice. But still, it is inevitable to have some left overs in the table. What do you do with the foods left on the dining table? Do you place them on the fridge to reheat or do you just throw them? Is it safe to reheat foods? What food are safe to reheat and what are not?
I save the leftovers to have another day or to turn into something else instead of throwing them away. Any food can be reheated as long as it has been kept in the proper way. Foods need to be cooled to 41 degrees F or cooler within 4 hours and can be kept at that temperature for 7 days. To reheat food, it should be cooked until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Those were the rules when I worked in a restaurant. I just reheat my food in the microwave before I serve it for dinner. I have never been sick from reheating foods. Most times we don't have leftovers especially if it is something my kids really love.
We have pet dogs and cats at home, so the leftover food that we have goes to them, but only for that specific meal only. The rest of the viand and rice that's still fit for human consumption goes to the ref to be reheated next meal time.
Leftovers aren't a big deal and are an excellent way to save money. However, though, to get the max enjoyment of them we need to make sure the containers are air tight. In fact, there is a specialized product sold at Wal-Mart that does just that. However, I and my close family haven't tried it. Have any of you?
I try to make use of what I can. I also make use of the left over foods whenever possible. For example making using for the pizza if possible. I have also used leftover for the office food and other places. I think it's possible to make use of the food whenever possible. It's just that you have to watch out if anything goes bad quickly like milk products.
It's good to eat leftovers to save money. If you don't like leftovers try not to cook too much at one meal then you won't have leftovers. I prefer something new all the time to eat, but there are times when you got leftovers. Like most I eat my leftovers, or make something new out of it. Like hamburger patties one night, the next spaghetti with meat sauce the next night.
In my case, I love freshly cooked food. However, as you said, it is inevitable to have leftovers. As for me, I put the food in a fridge put it in the fridge or on a cold floor to reheat on the next day. The thought that there is someone somewhere struggling to put bread on the table, is too obssessive, I cannot bring myself to throw away leftover food. In rare cases, even the leftovers can be excess. An example of this, is when there's a sort of a party in one's house. In cases such as this, it's good to invite a friend or two and/or a relative to share a meal. For me, most of the foods I cook, are reheatable therefore I reheat all of them, except in cases I where I feel too lazy, or am too much into the television. In such cases, I eat it cold. I have not heard of any safety concerns that come about with reheating food. In fact, I have had some very rough times when I eat cold food. Raising the temperature, improves digestion as it activates the enzymes involved in the digestion activity.
All the foods left on the dining table are put in the fridge and we eat it in the next day. We do not throw away food, in some special cases when we have too much food I donate it to a very poor family that lives on my street.
Leftover foods usually ends up as toppings for frittata, pizza and fried rice. In case of bread I either turn it into crumbs for frying or pudding for dessert.
I always reuse them all and rarely do I waste anything because if there's something that makes me very upset, it's a waste of food. I can not understand who does it... I just can't.
You may not believe but leftover rice can last a week in the fridge. However, you have to fried it so it will be palatable. But it can be reheated in microwave and tastes like the same even after 3 days in the fridge. With the dishes, we always compute for the exact volume that we need so we do not buy extra. It is a waste if you buy more and then it becomes leftover. That's especially with vegetables since they are not good to eat as leftover.
I have a very sensitive stomach so I have to be very careful of how I preserve or eat left-overs. I rarely have left-overs. I cook exactly or more or less what is needed for the day. When I do have leftovers, it has to be freezed and eaten within days. However, this is not applied to dairy or baked products. I can freeze things like chicken pieces or meat.
I make it a point to cook enough so that everyone eats well and there is not much left over. But there are some days when enough food is left and I just put it in the refrigerator and we finish it at the next meal or the next day. That way, much food is not wasted and there is no danger of the food going bad if kept for too long.
I never throw away food. I dislike people who throw away food. I always store the leftovers inside the fridge. I will reuse the food when I am eating again. Before, I eat I heat the food. Storing cooked food in the fridge and preheating it before you eat is ok. I do this all the time. Sometimes I make a new dish from leftover food. By eating the leftowver, you save a lot of money.
We hardly have leftovers at home because we usually just prepare what we can eat for the day. In rare cases like after a party either at my house or that of my sibling's, we store left over food in the freezer for consumption on the following day and never beyond that. That's because our refrigerator is set at close to minimum temperature level to save on electricity. We don't even try to make a new dish out of left over foods as they're usually good as they are and just need some reheating.
@morgoodie It's a cool insight over there. Actually I never bother to check those temperature setting, I just place the foods all at once. @NicholasMukuha It's hard to calculate things especially when there are parties or birthdays happenings. Usually there are lots of foods left behinds when some guests forgot to attend or is not available. When this happens, we urged the guest to take home the foods they want to avoid some foods being discarded since the fridge can not take all in. @Jamille I agree. If you placed too many stuffs on the fridge, the motor works harder to cool them so electric bills may go up. So sometimes I just placed leftovers properly covered on the table to be consumed at a later time.
At my home, we usually store the leftover food in the fridge and reheat it the next day. This leftover will be eaten during breakfast or lunch. It helps to save quite an amount of money as we do not eat large amounts of food.
Some foods don't last long even when you placed them inside the fridge. Other foods would only take like 3 days and then it become spoiled. For foods that are easily spoiled like pasta or noodles and salads, I usually place them on the freezer. Doing this extends the foods shelf life. I just thaw it when I feel like eating them.
I just watched a little clip from John Oliver's show and the report was that 40 percent of food in America is thrown out, which is absurd to think about if that number is even close to accurate. I have worked in a restaurant though and seen it first hand, and it just makes you shake your head.
As a child, I remember my mother saving leftovers and making "gulosh". I'm not sure if that is how it's spelled, but it was basically the leftover meat and vegetables mixed with beef noodles; kind of like Hamburger Helper. When my kids were younger and our schedule was insane, saving leftovers helped out for cheap and quick meals. These days, I rarely make much more than needed, so there aren't any leftovers!
