How to Reuse Leftover Veggies

Find out how to eliminate food waste by making the very best use of all of the leftover veggies hanging out in your refrigerator!

Reuse a Week’s Worth of Leftover Vegetables

While it is true that there are times when I have the *exact* amount of ingredients for a specific recipe, more often than not when a recipe calls for a veggie, I end up with leftovers in my produce drawer. Your options when you’ve got an abundance of leftover vegetables in the fridge? Either toss ’em or use ’em. This kitchen hack aims to make the most out of those veggies while also significantly reducing potential food waste!

Kitchen Hack: Toss leftover veggies into a specified bowl in the fridge throughout the week for use later on.

Here’s the best way to keep track of all of your leftover veggies from the week so that you can put them to good, delicious use later on:

Toss all leftover veggies in a bowl. Keep a bowl dedicated to leftover vegetables in the fridge, and any time you end up with extras, simply toss them into the bowl. To make things the easiest for your future self, it’s a good idea to make sure all veggies are washed and ready to go before tossing them into the bowl.
Put the leftover veggies to good use. At the end of the week, take a peek at your veggie bowl. Decide whether you want to make a soup, stew, stir fry, or veggie-heavy sauce with your leftover vegetables, get to cooking, and enjoy!

Can vegetables be reused?

Absolutely! Vegetables are one of the easiest things to reuse – even if they’re past their prime (but not past the point of no return). They can be really easily transformed into a yummy meal! I personally meal prep Monday through Thursday, and then use all of my leftover veggies for a hearty sauce on Fridays for our family’s traditional pasta night.

Leftover Veggie Recipes

Let your imagination run wild here, but if you need some guidance on how to use your leftover veggies, the recipes below are all really well-suited for this application. In all of these recipes, you’ll simply substitute the specific vegetables listed in the ingredients section with your bowl of leftovers!