People have been recycling prepared food forever. Stale bread is a staple for frugal Tuscans; it’s the basis for many soups and salads. Croquetas, a now somewhat-fancy tapas item, came about when meat was scarce in Spain. Spanish housewives made them out of small bits of chicken and ham leftover from Sunday dinners. Whole culinary traditions are based on prepared food's adaptive reuse.
I’ve taken this to heart. Historically, food reuse related to economic necessity. Today, economic necessity is only part of the reason we’re conserving more, food included. Waste offends. Throwing away something “still good” seems very 1980s.
Conservation ethics aside, there’s something inspiring about looking at the sad remains of yester meals and envisioning fabulous redos. Half a cheeseburger originally the size of my head, could be what? The start of a bolognese sauce? Taquito innards? Not exactly historic inquiries, but not dissimilar to problems faced by economizing cooks the world over, past and present.
What foods started out as leftovers redux? What’s their story?
More on this shortly…
