The whole family loves a delicious Sunday roast with all the trimmings. A juicy roast turkey or rich leg of lamb, golden brown roast potatoes, tasty veg and even a Yorkshire pudding for good measure. But the very best thing about Sunday roasts are the leftovers the next day! Let's be honest - no one has the time to be cooking a full fancy dinner for every weeknight dinner. That's why leftover recipes are a godsend! We've put together some of our recipes to help you use up leftover dinners and ensure they don't go to waste.
Searching for more helpful tips to help you plan your dinners? Check out our weekly meal planners.
Leftover meat recipes
When you're heading home after a long day at work, the last thing you feel like doing is cooing up a whole meal. But then you remember - there's leftover meat from last night's dinner! Hurrah! By serving up your leftovers, you're ensuring you reduce food waste and you're saving yourself some valuable hours in the kitchen. Win win.
But while it's perfectly acceptable to serve up a collection of last night's ingredients on their own, some nights it's nice to add some variety and mix up last night's meal.
Leftovers create the perfect base ingredients for these great family meat dishes.
Ham and egg pie
Glazed ham is a Christmas tradition here in New Zealand. And if you're anything like most families, you'll find yourself eating it after the big event for weeks to come.
Sure you can serve alongside some easy salad or chuck it in a sandwich by adding a few slices of bread with some cheese nd tomatoes. But eating leftover ham straight from the fridge tends to get boring after the first week!
If you're looking for the perfect dish to give new life to your leftover ham, try this tasty ham and egg pie recipe. You can also pack it with whatever veg you have on hand to make it a healthy option for the whole family.
Another great option for leftover ham is adding it to the toppings of your homemade pizza. We love this Hidden vegetable pizza. Just add whatever toppings you have handy like mushrooms, chicken, bacon, beef or salami then drizzle with your favourite sauce.
Sausage pie
Pies are the perfect way to make the most of your leftovers and this delicious sausage pie is no exception. We guarantee this is a meal that the kids will love to eat! The recipe is also super simple to cook and takes only 10 minutes to prepare.
Serve with a side of vegetables for a yummy dish the whole family will love.
Bacon and corn baked potatoes
So we've called this recipe a meat recipe, but the simple combination of bacon and corn doesn't need to be strictly adhered to! If you don't have any meaty leftovers on hand, or if you'd rather keep the recipe vegetarian, feel free to do so. You could sub in any vegetables that you have available like baked beans or whatever you have in the fridge - this is one of those meals that is incredibly forgiving.
Looking for more of our latest recipes using fresh seasonal produce? Check out our Taste the Season guide.
Leftover chicken recipes
Leftover chicken is a staple in households all across New Zealand. Chicken meals are also the most popular searches on Google when it comes to recipes - probably because chicken is so versatile and simple to cook with!
From tasty treats like our honey-sweet Friday night sticky lemon chicken to garlic-filled Asian chicken rice to a zillion different variations of chicken pasta, there are so many recipes that utilise the humble leftover roast chicken.
Here are some of our favourite recipes for when you need to use up leftover chicken.
Chicken caesar pasta salad
Pasta salad reaches new delicious heights with this twist on a classic Caesar salad. On the table in 30 minutes, this pasta recipe makes for a great dish to bring along to barbeques. For a variation on a theme, you can also add crispy kale to add some extra crunch.
The croutons can also be made using leftover bread. Since you're cooking the bread in the frying pan with dried herbs, it doesn't matter if it's a little stale - it'll still taste the same once in the salad and slathered with the rich creamy Caesar dressing.
Chicken and vegetable fajitas
If you're looking to mix up the usual sandwiches, wraps and fajitas are an excellent way to cook up any leftovers. We're using chicken in this recipe, but beef, lamb, pulled pork, turkey and any other kind of meat also make great fillings. The creamy dill and feta yoghurt dressing from our BBQ vegetable salad recipe also creates a delicious sauce for a vegetarian fajita dish.
Throw in whatever vegetables you have in the fridge!
Turkey quesadillas
Chicken tends to get all the love in the food world, but we shouldn't forget turkey! If you can be bothered cooking it for your Sunday roast, this bigger bird is delicious in sandwiches the next day - or in these yummy cheese quesadillas. Turkey is an incredibly lean meat so tends to be favoured by people who are watching their calories. Cook this recipe in just 5 minutes then serve with a side of mango salsa.Check out more of our delicious Chicken recipes.
Vegetarian leftovers
Whether you're a vegetarian or a carnivore with no meat options in your fridge, vegetarian dishes make some of the best leftovers recipes. When people ask for cooking tips to mix up their range of recipes, we often point them in the direction of veggie recipes. From curry to stew to soup and salad, there is so much you can cook with vegetables (and sometimes a bit of cheese!).
Here are some of our favourite vegetarian leftovers recipes.
Minestrone soup
This minestrone soup recipe may be our favourite meal on this list. It's super easy to prepare - only taking 15 minutes to prep and then 45 minutes to cook - and the flavour gets even better over time. Minestrone soup is also very forgiving. Add in whatever veggies, pasta, beans and meats you feel like then serve with a big hunk of crusty bread.
If you're on the hunt for another similar soup recipe, try our Rustic autumn vegetable soup.
Easy egg fried rice
Fried rice is a staple leftover recipe. In fact, using leftover rice actually makes this recipe better, because if you cook it fresh, the texture is far more likely to be clumpy.
Cook this recipe using any type of cooked, chilled rice, then add in your favourite veggies and even proteins. Although this is a vegetarian recipe, there's no reason you can't add leftover beef, chicken, prawns or pork. Top with cashews and pineapple.
Spring vege quiche
A versatile dish, quiche is a great way to combine leftover bits and vegetable ends that you may already have in your fridge. Cook it as a quiche or as a frittata without the pastry for an option with fewer calories.
Bonus - dessert recipes
We don't tend to associate desserts with leftovers. Let's be honest - if there are any leftover desserts to be had, they're usually devoured pretty quickly!
But we couldn't leave dessert off the list, so we just had to include one of our favourites.
Apple and berry crumble cups
You can cook this delicious fruity dessert using whatever fruit you have at home - from apples to berries to feijoas and kiwifruit! Using only staple ingredients, it's the perfect fruit dessert to bring out on a cold winter's night. If you don't have almonds handy, use pecans or macadamias.
For more delicious desserts, after dinner treats and dessert cooking tips, check out our Dessert recipes.
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