Leftovers are always a bonus to bring home, particularly when that means you can have at least one meal you don’t have to cook. Though, warming up leftovers is another story as they never taste as good when they’re reheated—especially in the microwave. Soggy fries and dried out noodles…most of us have unfortunately dealt with this catastrophe before. Who knows? Maybe you secretly enjoy it (and that’s ok). For the rest of us out there, we have some simple tricks to help you stop eating soggy and dried out food for good. Though simple, these 4 hacks will change your reheating habits once and for all...
1) Avoid soggy, reheated food by forgetting about the microwave and use your oven (or toaster oven) instead. Turn on and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and warm up your leftovers that way. Or, use the broil option. Stick your food inside your oven and wait for a few minutes until you have crispy goodness. This is a great option for French fries, pizza and fried foods!
2) Heating up pizza at work (or at a place with no oven)? We found this tip and picture below from Ned Hardy, if you absolutely must use a microwave:
3) Reheating rice? The opposite of soggy, rice always ends up being dry as a bone in the microwave. Forget that nonsense. Toss your leftover rice into your pan with a little bit of oil on medium-heat and cover. Stir it around a bit until warm. Problem solved.
4) Warming up some noodles? If you have plain pasta noodles to reheat, boil some water in a pan and stick your already cooked noodles in the steamy mess for about 30 seconds. Do you have a pasta dish with sauce needing some heat magic? Transfer your food into an oven-safe dish, cover with aluminum foil and place it in the oven on 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes. Feel free to add extra sauce if you can.
Photo by: Keith McDuffee | Flickr
