FOOD SPECIAL..... Don't throw it away

FOOD .... Don't throw it away!





Why let food go to waste when a little creativity is all you need to transform leftovers into delicious meals

The great thing about repurposing your leftover food is that a lot of the work is already done. All you have to do is rummage through your refrigerator, chop up a few greens and gather your oils and vinegars. Trust your instincts, use your imagination and you>>ll find that using up leftovers can become an art in itself. “Many a times we give them to new cooks during their food trial to test their skills and creativity,“ says Mitesh Rangras, Head Chef at Lemon Leaf who loves whipping up leftover rice with bacon, spicy kimchi and fried egg.

One of Chef Ranveer Brar's favourite leftovers recipe requires working with day-old chappatis.“I call it a `five-minute chip and dip'. Cut and microwave chapatis till crisp, drizzle some olive oil, blend some leftover sabzi, dal or curry in a blixer and fold in some hung curd; season this well, and you have a delicious appetiser ready,“ he adds.

USEFUL TIPS

When making something with bread, always use bread that's a day or two old, as it helps in getting the desired texture and a sharp flavor

Rice can always be reinvented by mixing it with eggs, green onions, chillies, fish sauce, and spices. East Indian Bottle Masala, for instance, is a great way to spice up some leftover rice.

Always serve a salad with reconstituted food as it keeps a nice textural balance. Make sure that at least 20-30 per cent of the recipe is freshly cooked as it compensates for the loss of nutrition -a downside of using leftovers.

Making a stir-fry with leftovers is easy and foolproof.Sauté any leftover vegetables with onion, garlic, and ginger.Add a source of protein, some wilted greens and soy sauce and serve it over brown rice or quinoa for a delicious meal in a pinch.

REPURPOSED CHICKEN CURRY

EGG AND CHICKEN CURRIED CUTLETS

THE NEXT time you are left with a bowl of chicken curry and rice, fret not. The dish can be surprisingly repurposed into a variety of recipes. All you have to do is think outside the wok. Possible variations could include stuffing it with cheese and achaar and crumbling it with poha or papad. “Another possibility is to stuff the halved egg with chicken, and coat it with mashed rice to make a Nargisi kebab of sorts,“ says Chef Ranveer Brar whose personal favourite is experimenting with this as a pizza or flatbread topping or panini filling.

CONTRIBUTED BY: Chef Ranveer Brar

REPURPOSED OLD BREAD

BREAD LASAGNA

STALE BREAD and crusts might not seem like the most versatile of foods, but you'd be surprised by how many dishes one can whip up with these. “Some food items taste better when they go old or when leftovers are further mixed with other ingredients to form a totally new dish. One suggestion for day old bread is crunchy cheesy bread dynabytes -these are quickly prepared.All you need is cheese, leftover bread, milk and bread crumbs. It won't take you more than 15 minutes,“ says Chef Jerson Fernandes of Jeon, Hotel Sea Princess. While preparing this lasagna recipe, he says, the cooked minced mixture and the blanched spinach must be dry, or it will make the lasagna runny.Incase you do not have cherry tomatoes, used sliced tomatoes for garnishing.

CONTRIBUTED BY: Chef Jerson Fernandes

REPURPOSED COOKED RICE

HEALTHY TERIYAKI CHICKEN BOWL

ONE DISH that you're almost always going to be left with leftovers of is fried rice, especially when you've had friends over for a meal the night before -Indian hosts inevitably prepare more than their guests can eat,“ says Chef Mitesh Rangras. Instead of just digging into that bowl of rice the next day, or, worse, throwing it out, Rangras suggests perking it up with some teriyaki sauce, spinach, mushrooms and edamame. A little effort and you'll have a whole new dish that will look and taste as good as a takeaway from a fancy Southeast Asian restaurant.

Sayoni SinhaMM27AUG17