What's your most successful "thrown-together-from-stuff-in-the-frig-and-pantry" dish?
As a change from my usual practice of conceiving of a menu, and then going to the store and picking up stuff I need for it, I have, as an economy move, been trying to craft dishes based on what I have on hand.
This resulted in Sunday morning’s spinach, mushroom and parmesan fritatta (which was great) and tonight’s chili macaroni with pepperjack cream sauce (which I hope will turn out). I actually like the challenge of cooking this way.
What are your successes?
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28 Answers
saute some chicken then add frozen veggies and crushed garlic, put it over some curly noodles and sprinkle olive oil and salt and pepper. So easy, mostly healthy, and most importantly- yummy!
Mix ground beef (or turkey) with macaroni & cheese, stir up some cream of chicken soup in it, put it in a baking dish, top with shredded cheese, and bake it. Voila!
Pre-prepare a small pot of brown rice. Take a c., add a c. of canned black beans, a c. of frozen corn, several T. salsa, and shred some quality mozarella over all. MV. (I will occasionally throw in one sliced chicken sausage.) Similar treatment is possible with barley.
I have one similar to essieness. Leftover shredded chicken mixed with frozen veggies, cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup and egg noodles. Mix and put into a 9×13 baking pan. Top with refridgerated biscuits and cheese. Bake for about 30 min. Yummy comfort food!
Left over Spaetzle. Feta Cheese not fully drained layered on top. Greek sausage sliced and layered on top of that. Somewhat dried out sourdough bread slathered with olive oil and garlic on top of that and then baked. I did it in a baking dish and then turned the dish upside down on a plate when it was cooked and the whole concoction on top of that bread was an unbelievable taste treat.
Potato fritata.
Saute garlic and onion with olive oil. Add 3 potatoes cut in thin circles. Once potatoes are crispy add 6 beaten eggs and cook. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy.
Tonight I took some thawed chicken breasts cut as tenders, dipped them in a beaten egg and dredged them through a Parmesan cheese / Italian bread crumb mixture seasoned with salt and pepper and put then in a pan that was greased with a little olive oil. I sprinkled rosemary on top of them and in the oven they went at 350° for 15 minutes.
In a separate dish, I chopped up some zucchini, red and yellow peppers, mushrooms, and onion, added oregano, salt, pepper and garlic, and spritzed that with a bit of olive oil. At the 15-minute mark, I put the veggies in the oven, reset the timer for 10 minutes and had a nice healthy meal.
My daughter’s Mother in law takes everything (no matter what it is) in the fridge and throws it into a casserole dish, then smothers it with cream of mushroom soup… yuck!!
@Marina That woman’s concoctions can be disgusting!! And yes, she has used grape jelly in some of her casseroles!!
I’ve made many veggie lasagnas from all the veggies left in the drawer, I’ve also done a lot of vegetable soups that way too. I’ll also take all the leftover pieces of meat in the freezer:
beef, pork, chicken, and cook it all day in a tomato sauce to make a spectacular pasta sauce. Add some fresh chopped onions, garlic & basil, toss with some zucchini and whole wheat pasta.
Refried Bean/Cream Corn Casserole.
You can use grape jelly to make a nice sauce- grape jelly, chili sauce, put it all in a crock pot with some of those lil smokies sausages- Mmmmm grunt.
Also, put some crushed red pepper flakes in the thing I mentioned before if you like a little spice.
Brown a pound of ground beef and drain off the grease. Return it to the skillet and add some red pepper flakes(I use about a half a Tbsp. but I like it hot), a can of diced tomatoes, a couple Tbsps. each of lime juice, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce, and a half a can of beer. finish the rest of the beer yourself and crack another Cook it over medium high heat until about three quarters reduced and then toss it together with some cooked spaghetti noodles and a couple of Tbsps. of dried basil.
hits the spot when i’m hungover
@Blondesjon You forgot the tablespoon of sugar, and dinner is almost ready!
I almost always have some kind of baked, roasted or grilled chicken in the fridge, ready to go. I usually make a few extra when I make chicken, to have on hand for lunch the next day – and I’ve found it great for times like this. We also have bagged fresh spincah in the veggie draw, almost always – or frozen on hand.
I’ll cook some orzo pasta, (just cooked, not mushy!), drain (do not rinse) and let it cool a bit. In a larger fry pan (due to the spinach) I’ll melt a tablespoon of butter and add a tablespoon of olive oil, saute’ some garlic and a little ginger (great to have in the freezer, ready to grate at any moment), add the spinach – you are going to wilt the spinach. Through some of the chicken (chop it – rough chop, first) and saute. You can add lemon or white wine.
I either serve it on over the orzo or stir the orzo in the spinach mixture. Either way, it doesn’t last in my house.
I’ve been roasting a whole chicken just to have the leftover chicken. I keep several different frozen and fresh vegetables on hand. The night after I roast the chicken, I make chicken pot pie with the leftovers and the veggies.
PS: I buy several whole chickens when they are on sale.
Roasted chicken dinner in my house equals chicken stoup in the following days. I pick the remaining meat off and then boil the carcass with odds & ends of veggies & spices for hours to make stock. I drain all that (throw the mess away) then I add the now chopped meat, whatever veggies we want, and thick egg noodles. It’s thick stew/soup, and it’s hearty.
@cak – that orzo dish is getting added to my list. yummy.
Some great ideas here, and making a meal out of everything in the fridge around here is called ‘biker casserole’. No, I’m not a biker (thank Evelyn) but I have associated with a few over the years.
@bythebay: Add 1 T white vinegar to the stock while it is simmering; that will leach the calcium from the chicken bones and not affect the taste of your wonderful stoup. (Nice to start the day with a smile.:-)
(For those interested in Yiddish slang and/or the vernacular for dirty words; Shtup: literally, “push” is used colloquially to refer to the act of sex.)
@gailcalled: Thank you for that tip. These bones need all the calcium they can get. I remember George from Sienfeld using the word Shtup!
@gailcalled – I’ve come to learn that sometimes, the only right word is the Yiddische one!
I made this for a friends on Sandwich day:
2 slices of white bread
Marshmallow Fluff on one side
Peanut butter on the other(smooth, not crunchy)
A few strips of beef jerky
Pour some chocolate syrup on (Fox’s_U-Bet)
Close it up and enjoy
@Waffle I am GAing you for making a contribution, but I must say that sounds ghastly.
@cak That sounds great.
@bythebay and @marina thanks! I just caught my spelling mistake…not sure how often I keep things in the “draw”....it was late. :)
Pizza crust made from flour, yeast, water, and a little olive oil and cornmeal. (There’s probably a recipe online.) Then, top with tomato sauce, herbs, cheese, and whatever toppings don’t run away fast enough. Mmm, pantry pizza!
@laureth…For some reason, pantry pizza, sounds vaguely salacious to me.
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