Dining at home always saves more money. But you can stretch those dollars even further when you engage strategies to help you better use leftovers. From a big holiday meal to everyday eats, the ways you store and use leftover food brings convenience and more money to you! Check out these smart strategies to better use leftovers every day.
Invest in Reusable Containers
My grandma always used any and every container she had to store her leftovers. While it saved plenty of money in the short term, some of the food went to waste because it wasn’t easy to identify exactly what was inside that Country Crock plastic bowl. For this reason, it’s a good idea to invest in reusable, seal tight containers. If possible, use glass dishes that you can see directly in so you know exactly what’s inside. It’s OK to start small and add a piece to your collection from time to time.
Place Items in the Front
When it comes to leftovers, location is everything. If they’re the first thing you see, you’ll be more likely to reach for them first. Rather than allowing your leftovers to hide in the recesses of your refrigerator and freezer, keep those items up front and center. For items that go in the freezer, be sure to label exactly what’s inside the dish or container and then clearly write the date on the leftovers, too.
Divide Large Meats Before You Cook
See a great deal on a large cut of meat? Odds are a family of four won’t be able to eat the entire pork loin or bulk sized portion of ground beef in one dinner. You may want to consider subdividing the meat and even chopping it up before you cook it and then freeze the extra portions. In particular, I use this strategy for pork loin that I purchase at ALDI. I cut a larger size into three pieces. I use one third for pulled pork. A second third I cut into four chops. And the third portion I cut into bite sized cubes to use in stir fry.
Prepare A Double Meal
For messy to prepare dishes like lasagna or casseroles, sometimes it’s smart to make a double portion and freeze one. Then, you’ll have a complete meal ready on a busy night in the future. But even if you don’t prepare two meals, you can also cook a larger portion of a single component like ground beef, grilled chicken, or rice and then freeze the extras. That way, you can put together a meal with less work.
Think Through Your Week
Meal planning requires forethought. Consider your weekly calendar and how you might make a dish that stretches throughout the week. Perhaps you’ll prepare rice as a side dish on a Monday night and then use the leftovers for a soup or stir fry on Tuesday. Or, maybe you purchase a rotisserie chicken from the deli on Monday. You can use it as a main dish on the first day of the week and then stretch it into quesadillas or tacos on Tuesdays. Not only does this strategy help you stretch your foods further, you also eliminate hassle and worry about what’s for dinner.
Pack Your Lunch Before Dinner
Worried you won’t have enough leftovers for lunch the next day? Pack a divided plate before your family eats dinner. That way, you’ll have plenty to eat and you don’t have to worry about rushing to pack a lunch in the morning or feeling too sleepy to mess with things after dinner.
Plan a YOYO Night
It’s more than OK to take one night per week (or more) off from cooking to use up those leftovers. When you meal plan, schedule a YOYO (You’re On Your Own) night for your family. You may not have enough leftovers for everyone to have the same thing, but after a week of dinner at home, everyone can put together their own dinner.
Up your leftover game and make your grocery budget sing! Don’t let foods go to waste. Stay out of the drive through. Plan your lunch to save hundreds of dollars a month. The benefits of wise meal planning and leftover usage make a huge difference in your finances.
What are your favorite leftover strategies? Let me hear them in the comments!
My book is now available: Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After. You can also check out The Debt Free Devotional
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