Stop! Don’t throw out those old leftovers before reading this first. Here’s a handy guide to repurposing and reusing leftover food.

It’s the hallmark of good meal planning; stretching one dinner into two. Of course, it’s a simple change to turn a roast chicken dinner one night into chicken salad the next; but what do you do with those really random ingredients, which might not be so obvious? Reusing leftover food can save you so much time and money!

You have to think outside the box and figure out just how you’re going to use up the rest of that buttermilk, but that’s not always so easy when you’re busy and dinner needs to get on the table, pronto.

One Meal, Two Dinners

I have totally been there! So I put on my designer hat and created a handy cheat sheet that helps you figure out just how go about reusing leftover food in your own kitchen.

You can pin the image to save for later! It’s got some great recipe ideas, each of which is listed below. If the recipe is available on this site, it’ll be a clickable link. If you want access to all the recipe, click the big yellow button below to download a full PDF.  Follow the ‘read more’ link for more!

(psst! Before you click- leave your email to access ALL 22 recipes, cheat sheets, worksheets, templates and advice in this ‘Make More Of Your Kitchen’ series!)

Reusing Leftover Food #1: red or white miso paste

Miso paste is a umami-bomb that punches up the flavor of many a salad dressing or ramen soup, and it also lasts a ridiculously long time in the fridge. Miso is made from fermented soybeans, but a little goes a long way. Since it’s often sold in package form, it’s almost too easy to buy way more miso than you know what to do with. Here are two recipes that will make light work of emptying out that little tub at the back of your refrigerator.

Miso-Rubbed Roast Chicken

Creamy Tahini-Miso Dressing

 Reusing Leftover Food #2: old cheese

Listen, I get it. It sounded like a great idea at the time, buying all.the.cheese!

One time I bought so much cheese that the guy at the cheese counter asked me if I was having a party (it was all for me!) but I got embarrassed and lied and said yes. I know how it feels to love cheese. But that doesn’t mean it all gets eaten at its prime, so here are two simple ways to use all those old heels and dried out hunks at once, instead of throwing them away:

Roasted Broccoli and Cheese Soup

Super Creamy Extra Cheesy 15-Minute Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

Reusing Leftover Food #3: buttermilk

Buttermilk is another one of those ingredients where a little goes a long way. Its acidity is an advantage when used in baked goods, because it helps break down strands of gluten, resulting in moist cakes and muffins that bear a slight tang. But if you bought buttermilk to bake a cake, and didn’t use it all… how the heck are you gonna get rid of this stuff?

Irish Soda Bread

Blue Cheese Dressing

Reusing Leftover Food #4: tomato sauce

It’s easy to go overboard on making marinara, red sauce, gravy, or any other iteration of tomato sauce. It smells and tastes amazing, and is usually pretty simple to prepare. It also freezes great. But since it’s so good in so many recipes, it’s easy to get stuck in a rut. Here’s two recipe to help bust you out:

Eggs Baked in Tomato Sauce

Baked Ziti

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Reusing Leftover Food #5: egg yolks

Make an eggwhite omelet recently? Or perhaps whipped meringue? Both leave you with random egg yolks, and it would be criminal to throw them away when you could make them into these:

Dark Chocolate Pudding

Sweet Paprika Aioli

Reusing Leftover Food #6: chicken stock

Sometimes, a recipe calls for just one cup of chicken stock. But a box of chicken stock purchased from the store is at least a quart or two, and if you defrosted a container of homemade stock, there’s a good chance you didn’t use it all up, either. Here are two ways to use it up without wasting it:

Meatball Soup

5 Ingredient Chicken Soup

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I hope these recipes helped you guys! Reusing leftover food can really help you up your game in the kitchen, especially when you’ve got uncommon ingredients from a recipe that might not be in your regular rotation.

This post is the second in the series so far. Here’s what else I’ll be covering in the next couple of weeks:

#1: How You Can Cook Family Meal Just Like a Chef

#2 The 5+ Best, ‘Must-Have’ Kitchen Appliances Every Cook Needs 

#3 Reasons Why You Need Better Kitchen Organization

And here are ALL the recipes, cheat sheets, advice, images and breakdowns from the ENTIRE series: in one epic downloadable FREE ebook!