What to Make With Leftovers: 3 Fast Weeknight Dinners
It's 5:30 and the useful food is already cooked. Leftover rice, a roasted chicken, half a pot of pasta. You don't need a new recipe project. You need a way to heat it so it tastes like a decision. These three are a hash, a fried rice, and a pasta skillet. The time on the card is the total, and none of them start from raw meat. Got more in the fridge? Snap a photo and we'll pick dinner for you. Free.
Quick picks: 3 dinners with leftovers in 30 minutes or less
Fastest option: a 12-minute dinner
12 min
Leftover pasta skillet
Total time, start to plate · One skillet · serves 4 · Kid-friendly
Leftover pasta fried with garlic and an egg so it tastes like a new dinner.
Ingredients
- 3 cups leftover pasta
- 2 eggs
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
Steps
- Heat the olive oil and garlic in a skillet for 30 seconds.
- Add the leftover pasta and fry until some noodles pick up color.
- Pour in the eggs and toss until they cling to the noodles.
- Taste for salt. Plain leftover pasta usually needs it.
Keeps: Best tonight.
One-pan option
Leftover pasta skillet is already one skillet. There is no second pan to wash.
The other dinners
18 min
Leftover roast hash
Total time, start to plate · One skillet · serves 4 · Kid-friendly
Leftover roasted potatoes crisp again, and leftover meat warms in the same skillet.
Ingredients
- 2 cups leftover potatoes
- 1 cup leftover roast
- 1 onion
- 1/2 tsp salt
Steps
- Dice the leftover potatoes and fry them in oil until the edges are crisp again.
- Add the onion and cook until it softens.
- Add the leftover roast in small pieces, just to heat it. It is already cooked.
- Salt only what tastes shy. Roasts are often seasoned already.
Keeps: Fridge for 2 days. Crisp it again. Don't steam it.
15 min
Any-leftover fried rice
Total time, start to plate · One skillet · serves 4 · Kid-friendly
Cold leftover rice, a fried egg, and whatever cooked meat or vegetable is in the container.
Ingredients
- 3 cups leftover rice
- 1 cup leftover meat or vegetables
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
Steps
- Fry the cold leftover rice in a hot skillet until it crackles. Warm rice will steam. Spread it out if it is still warm.
- Add the leftover meat or vegetables just to heat them.
- Pour in the eggs and toss until they set in threads.
- Add soy sauce. Taste. Leftover rice may already be salty.
Keeps: Fridge for 2 days.
Make it with leftovers
Cold rice fries. Warm rice belongs in the soup on the leftover chicken and rice page, not in a screaming-hot pan. Cooked meat gets warmed, not recooked until it dries. Pasta that is already boiled only needs a slick of oil and an egg.
Pantry staples you'll need
- Oil
- Salt
- Soy sauce
- Egg
- Garlic
No leftover rice: use the pasta skillet or the potato hash. No leftover meat: an egg still makes the fried rice and the pasta dinner. If the fridge is actually empty, use the nothing-in-the-fridge page.
Picky-eater and healthy tweaks
Fried rice is the familiar bowl. Leave the onion out. The hash can be potatoes and chicken side by side. The pasta skillet is noodles and an egg, which is as plain as leftovers get.
Using what you already cooked is the point. A spoon of oil to crisp the rice, not a new creamy sauce. Add a handful of frozen vegetables if the plate is only starch.
Have something else in the fridge?
Got more in the fridge? Snap a photo and we'll pick dinner for you. Free.
Snap your fridgeRelated dinners
Questions
What can I make with leftovers in 20 minutes?
Any-leftover fried rice takes 15 minutes if the rice is cold. Leftover pasta skillet is 12. The hash is 18. All three heat food you already cooked.
What's the easiest leftover dinner?
The pasta skillet. Garlic, oil, leftover noodles, and an egg. One skillet, no thawing, no new sauce.
Can I make this with leftover rice?
Yes. Cold leftover rice is what the fried rice wants. If the rice is still hot, make the soup on the leftover chicken and rice page instead of frying it.
What else can I add?
Frozen peas, a handful of spinach, or the last of a rotisserie chicken. Don't shop for a special sauce.
Is leftover fried rice a healthy dinner?
It uses food you already have, with an egg and a spoon of oil. Add a vegetable if the container is only rice and meat. This page doesn't print calorie counts.
How do I make leftovers kid-friendly?
Fried rice with the sauce on the side, or pasta and an egg. Leave the onion out of the hash. Familiar shapes beat a mixed mystery bowl.