The turkey has been worn out, the final baked potato has scrambled, and the household is sprawled on the sofa in a sophisticated state of postprandial drowsiness…however the depletion of leftovers has solely simply begun. 2013 was the yr that food waste made headlines, and Christmas isn’t any exception. every year we inventory the equal of two million turkeys, 5 million Christmas desserts and a staggering 74 million mince pies. “The important thing meals that go to waste are those we purchase particularly for Christmas however would not usually purchase. Folks inform us that turkey, sprouts, bread sauce and cranberry sauce are a very powerful,” says Emma marsh de love food, i hate waste.
We requested prime chefs and food writers for his or her most sensible and scrumptious ideas for making use of vacation leftovers. Not solely will the following tips assist preserve the hordes fed within the break between Christmas and New Years, however you can even lower your expenses and redistribute a few of these Christmas staples as New Years canapés…
turkey
The temptation to purchase a giant chook is powerful, and relating to leftovers, it is easy to get caught up in a rut. Emma Marsh suggests “soaking” the turkey within the food processor to make it minced. freeze and use instead of hen or beef. For a twist on turkey empanadas, strive Argentinian restaurateur Diego Jacquet’s thought for turkey empanadas made with “turkey, cranberries, leftover brussels and store-bought shortcrust pastry.” works properly instead of hen in a murgh makhani (butter hen), “garnished with numerous coriander”.
bread sauce
Leftover bread sauce can hinder many cooks. Happily, “it may be frozen so long as it hasn’t been frozen earlier than,” says Marsh. or strive the bread sauce and ham croquettes, the brainchild of justine pattison, writer of freeze. “combine chilly bread dip with diced smoked ham and shredded cheddar cheese. type into balls and roll in flour, crushed egg and dried breadcrumbs. fry till golden brown and serve with cranberry sauce for dipping. freeze and serve like canapés on new yr’s eve.”
pink cabbage
“Braised pink cabbage can simply be was chutney,” says chef man awford. anna hansen loves the “pink cabbage and potato open-face sandwiches on danish rye bread” and “roasted pork, pink cabbage and cilantro summer time rolls, scrumptious with a bit of hoi sin sauce for dipping” . if you do not have pork, strive marsh’s easy options: “drain moisture from braised pink cabbage, prime with béchamel sauce and breadcrumbs and bake at 180c/fuel 4 till crisp. or, fry with a little bit of leftover ham or chorizo and onion and combine into the pasta.”
shoots
Regardless of what number of vogue adjustments you make to Christmas brussels, there’ll at all times be rejects. As a substitute of tossing out the cooked sprouts you do not like, you may “freeze them and add them to future vegetable soups,” Marsh says. Blanch and shake out uncooked sprouts, recommends Pattison, then: “Open freezer on trays. Pack in freezer luggage, take away as a lot air as potential, and return to freezer for as much as 4 months. Prepare dinner from frozen.” suggests Invoice Granger “shave the sprouts finely. toss them in a pan with some chili flakes, garlic and olive oil. boil some pasta and as soon as it is carried out and drained, add the sprouts. serve with some ricotta on prime.”
stilton
sure, you may freeze cheese. “Stilton will be frozen both crumbled or entire and used later in soups and sauces,” says marsh. however yotam ottolenghi’s boxing day quiche sounds so scrumptious I doubt your stilton will go that far: “crumble the stilton right into a quiche, together with diced quince [quince paste] and pumpkin cubes – a boxing delight lunch of the day. Purchase some shortcrust pastry for the fridge, and the remainder of the elements—eggs, double cream, crème fraiche, and parsley—are certain to be kicking round within the Christmas broths,” he says.
mince pies
“Make a crumble pie with leftover floor beef,” suggests culinary author debora robertson. Muffins additionally work as a deal with combined in with ice cream: “Depart a bathtub of vanilla ice cream to melt a bit at room temperature, then pour right into a bowl and toss rapidly with coarsely chopped truffles. Press right into a bowl at Freezer proof with lid, cowl and freeze for as much as a month. Serve with a bit of heat brandy or amaretto,” says Pattison.
Christmas pudding
Leftover pudding equals New 12 months’s drink ordered: “I prefer to make Christmas pudding with vodka,” says chef Jesse Dunford Wooden. “merely add your desserts to a half bottle of vodka, steep for a day or so, pressure, and get pleasure from.” deli melrose and morgan prepares them with sliced almonds, darkish chocolate and brandy.
and lastly… the Christmas leftover sandwich
There’s an artwork to leftover sarnie (assume ross from associates and his “moist maker” sauce layer): it is not simply dumping half the fridge in there. “Train a bit of restraint and perhaps select the bacon, some leftover cheese, and a splash of sticky sauce juices from the roasting pan,” advises Helen Graves, writer of 101 Sandwiches.
