Christmas may be the “most wonderful time of the year”, but did you know it’s also the time when food waste is at its peak?
According to Respect Food, every year in the UK approximately seven million tonnes of food is wasted. And just during the Christmas period, there’s two million turkeys, five million Christmas puds, and 74 million mince pies that get disposed of while still edible.
With the cost-of-living crisis making Brits think more about where they are spending their money, the festive feasts cooked up over the holiday season will also have to be planned better than ever.
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Using the Christmas dinner leftovers is a great way to reduce food waste, while also making your food spending go further. Here, experts give their advice and share recipes for how to use leftovers this Christmas.
1. What to do with Christmas leftovers
Expert advice
Christian Onia, head chef at SUMI
“For Christmas leftovers, most savoury items can be given a new lease of life, simply with a dash of olive oil, some garlic, and a pinch of paprika. As most leftovers are already seasoned, these three ingredients work to refresh and elevate the existing flavours of a dish – why not try this technique with roasted carrots or leftover Brussels sprouts for a smoky vegetable side dish to go with cold leftover cuts of meat.” sushisumi.com
Aman Lakhiani, chef patron at Junsei
“During this busy holiday season there is always some sort of leftover food in my fridge/freezer, but the one constant is that there is always leftover rice. I look to the Japanese for inspiration and go with a warming Chazuke – it is a simple concoction of warm green tea or broth poured over the leftover rice, topped with any condiments you like from soy, sesame seeds, seaweed or even little bits of flaked fish. A beautiful comforting meal on a cold London morning.” junsei.co.uk
Natalie Coleman, head chef at The Oyster Shed
“For a perfect way to use leftover turkey (along with any remaining veg and seasoning) without too much effort, how about a hearty turkey chowder? Simply shred the leftover turkey and combine with some stock and double cream, along with thyme, bay leaves, potatoes, onion, leek, celery and carrots, plus some crispy bacon lardons for the ultimate Boxing Day meal. Best served with a warm, crusty bread roll – this is comfort food at its finest!” oystershed.co.uk
Oliver Marlowe, owner/chef director at Ganymede
“More often than not, there’s always some Christmas pudding left over and the best way to use it up is to make ice cream! For best results, either make your own vanilla ice cream or use a really good shop-bought one; let it defrost a little, then fold through chunks of Christmas pudding until evenly distributed. Pop the mix back in the freezer and leave to set again. Once set, top with clementine zest and a good measure of your favourite Christmas booze!” ganymedelondon.co.uk
Vivek Singh, executive chef and CEO of The Cinnamon Collection
“I think using up leftovers is important, and something every household could certainly do more of to reduce waste. At Christmas, I like to use left-over turkey in the ultimate Boxing Day stir fry curry with mustard seeds, onions, curry leaves, turmeric and a tin or two of coconut milk! Trust me, it’s the cheapest and quickest way to find yourself in Kerala on Boxing Day without having to take a flight.” thecinnamoncollection.com
Ioannis Grammenos, executive chef at Heliot Steak House, London
“The leftovers from the Christmas Day can be used up to two days after the event and there’s so many options. You can make pies, sandwiches, curries, casseroles, and vegetable purée side dishes. One of my favourites is to use the roasties to make epic potato croquettes, delicious dipped in yoghurt with olive oil and garlic.” hippodromecasino.com
2. Perfect hot roast turkey sandwich with a Brussels sprout aioli coleslaw
Recipe
To help you make the most of your Christmas turkey, TV chef Rachel Green has teamed up with the farmers at Golden Turkey to serve up some brand new delicious ways to enjoy all those leftovers. Cooked turkey is the ideal leftover ingredient. It is versatile and is equally delicious cold or reheated.
Makes four sandwiches
Ingredients
For the coleslaw
200g Brussels sprouts, trimmed and finely sliced
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely crushed
3 spring onions, finely sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
4 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tbsp sour cream
2 tsp Dijon mustard
Zest and juice of ½ lemon
Sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
For the sandwiches
1 small onion, diced
30g butter
1 tbsp cranberry sauce
4 stuffing balls
200g cooked turkey meat, shredded
Leftover gravy
4 brioche buns, halved
8 rashers cooked bacon
4 slices mature cheddar cheese
8 cooked pigs in blankets
Method
Make the coleslaw. Put the Brussels sprouts into a bowl along with the red onion, garlic, spring onions and carrot and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, lemon zest and juice and season with a little salt and pepper. Tip the mayonnaise mixture into the bowl of vegetables and stir to coat.
Fry the onion in the butter and add the cranberry sauce, stuffing and the turkey. Stir in enough gravy to moisten the meat, set aside and keep warm.
Preheat the grill and toast the buns under the grill, cut side up. Once toasted, top the bottom halves of the buns with the turkey mixture, followed by the bacon then the slices of cheese and grill until oozing. At the same time pop the pigs in blankets under the grill to warm through.
Top with the other bun halves, stick a couple of pigs in blankets into the top of the bun using a skewer and serve immediately with the Brussels sprout coleslaw.
3. Next day toad in the hole with turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce
Recipe
Serves four people
Ingredients
Vegetable oil, for roasting
175g plain flour
¼ tsp salt
5 eggs
375ml milk
4 leftover cooked pigs in blankets
Leftover Brussels sprouts, halved
Leftover roast potatoes, halved
Leftover carrots, halved lengthways
Leftover parsnips
Leftover stuffing balls
1 red onion, quartered and thinly sliced
350ml leftover gravy
450g leftover white and dark cooked turkey meat
1 tbsp cranberry sauce
2 tsp English mustard
6 large sage leaves torn
Method
Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas mark 7
Cover the bottom of a roasting tin with a thin layer of vegetable oil and transfer to the oven for 5 minutes or until the oil is piping hot. Meanwhile, make the batter. Mix the flour and salt in a mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Break the eggs into the well along with a little of the milk and whisk until the batter is smooth, then gradually add the remaining milk. Pour the batter into a jug.
Carefully remove the roasting tin from the oven and slowly pour the batter into the roasting tin. Add the leftover pigs in blankets, vegetables, stuffing and scatter with the sliced red onion. Quickly return the batter to the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and well-risen.
Meanwhile, heat the gravy in a pan, add the turkey meat along with the cranberry sauce, mustard and torn sage leaves and heat until warmed through.
1 litre turkey stock (made from the roasted carcass), skimmed and well-strained
4 spring onions, sliced
2 shallots, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 bird’s eye chillies, chopped
5cm piece of ginger, finely grated
6 kaffir lime leaves, torn
400ml coconut milk
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp fish sauce
Juice of 1 lime, plus extra lime wedges to serve
2 tsp finely grated palm sugar or light brown sugar
200g vermicelli rice noodles, cooked
500g leftover cooked turkey meat, shredded
200g tender stem broccoli, trimmed and cooked
A few sprigs of mint and some coriander leaves, to serve
1 bird’s eye chilli, sliced to serve
Method
Put the stock in a pan with the spring onions, shallots, garlic, chopped chilli, ginger, lime leaves, coconut milk, sesame oil, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
Then add the noodles, turkey and broccoli. Cook for a further 25 minutes or until the turkey is piping hot.
Transfer to bowls, top with some sprigs of mint and coriander leaves and serve immediately with the sliced chilli and lime wedges.
5. Pappardelle pasta with portobello mushroom, rosemary, turkey ragout and Parmesan
Recipe
Serves four to six people
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
50g butter
4 portobello mushrooms, thickly sliced
20g dried porcini, soaked
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves chopped
Sea salt flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
300g pappardelle
100ml white wine
300ml double cream
2 tsp Dijon mustard
50g grated Parmesan, plus extra to serve
350g cooked turkey meat, cut into chunks
75g cooked crispy bacon, cut into pieces
Chopped parsley, to serve
Method
Heat the olive oil and butter in a saucepan over a high heat and add the mushrooms, garlic and rosemary. Cook for 4 minutes, add a little of the porcini soaking water with some salt and pepper and reduce slightly.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pan of boiling salted water until al dente (firm to the bite). Drain the pasta, reserving a cup of the pasta water.
Add the wine, cream, mustard and Parmesan to the mushrooms and reduce further until thickened slightly. Stir in the turkey meat and bacon and warm through.
Place the pasta into a serving bowl, top with some sauce and scatter with some freshly chopped parsley and grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.
1 tsp fenugreek leaves, crushed in a pestle and mortar (optional)
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp sugar
A small bunch of coriander, chopped, to serve
Naan bread, to serve
Steamed rice, to serve
Greek yoghurt, to serve
Method
Put the turkey into a large mixing bowl with the yoghurt, chilli, lime juice, tikka masala paste, some salt, pepper and 1 tbsp of vegetable oil, tossing well to coat. Set aside for at least 30 minutes or overnight in the fridge.
To make the curry sauce, heat the remaining oil and butter in a deep frying pan, then add all the cardamom and cinnamon and cook for 20 seconds until you can start to smell the spices. Add the onions with a pinch of salt and cook for 6-8 minutes until they start to colour. Add the ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, turmeric, chopped tomatoes and tomato purée and stir well. Simmer for 15 minutes until the oil starts to separate from the sauce. Use a stick blender to purée until smooth or leave a little chunky if you like.
Heat the grill to high. Transfer the meat from the marinade to a baking tray lined with foil, reserving the marinade.
Grill the marinated cooked turkey for 5 minutes on each side until heated through and the marinade is charring in places. Slowly stir the reserved marinade mixture into the tomato curry sauce, along with the cream and water. Add the fenugreek (if using), garam masala and sugar. Simmer for 5 minutes, then stir in the grilled turkey. Taste and season, adding salt, sugar or lime juice as needed.
Serve sprinkled with some chopped coriander, extra lime wedges, naan bread, steamed rice and Greek yoghurt.
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