Double-duty side dishes

Every time I make chicken with mustard cream sauce, I make my veggie rice, and there is always a lot leftover. That means it is time for veggie fried rice. I just heat some veg oil in a large pan, add the leftover rice. Once that gets heated through I add some soy sauce and one beaten egg. Mix in a little chopped green onion at the finish and there you have it.

What are your favorite double-duty dishes?

Yum Linda...that sounds good! What's in your veggie rice? Do you mind posting the recipe?

Pretty much all my dishes are double duty...LOL...I really hate wasting food. Leftover mashed potatoes make sheppards pie, leftover lamb roast becomes lamb stew, leftover beef and leftover onion soup are mixed together to make beef stroganoff. Leftover salmon is usually served cold on a salad. Leftover chicken becomes chicken pot pie. Pork roast becomes BBQ pulled pork sandwiches. Even leftover ravioli (when there are some) get dipped in egg and bread crumbs and deep fried...then served with leftover sauce.

So what does everyone else do with their leftovers?

Our leftovers from dinner are either dinner again the next night or lunch the next day. Rarely do I make another recipe. Last night we had chicken and rice. The leftovers will feed us tonight and no doubt be better. My sides are always different. Last night I roasted brussels sprouts, had the leftovers for lunch today. Tonight I have a green salad with the chicken and rice.
Fun question......I always love the ones we find out how others do things. Very interesting and always gives me a new idea.

Fritatta is the great user-up of all things around here.

Maria, thanks for asking. Here is my recipe.

Rice and Vegetable Medley

This makes a very colorful side dish.

1 cup regular white rice
16 oz. liquid (water, broth, etc.)
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
2 large carrots, diced
1 cup chopped onion
1 TB butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Spray a large casserole with cooking spray. Add all ingredients except peas and butter and stir. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 55 minutes. Add peas and butter and stir. Cover and return to oven for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve.

Yield: about 6 servings

Note: I use a 14 oz. can low-fat chicken broth plus ¼ cup water. You could also add some sautéed mushrooms when you add the peas.

Thanks Linda! That sounds delicious and easy to do! I will definitely be using that recipe a lot!

My favorite use for a leftover: whenever I make a pot of spicy chile verde, I make extra so that there is some for Sunday breakfast. I heat it up in a small frypan, then put some on a plate, and top with two fried eggs.

[Jenise]

Half of the meals I eat during the daytime are leftovers, so I never mind making more than I need but I rarely intentionally make leftovers with which to do something else. Basically, I love being in the kitchen and have the luxury of lots of free time, so being spared the work of making another meal from scratch if more punishing than helpful. However, whatever survives my grazing is most likely going to get combined with other leftovers and will re-emerge as soup. I love using leftover rice to bulk out broth soups, for instance, often with Indian or Mexican seasonings--I could eat soup for breakfast every day.