Anonymous wrote:Why do some people have such an aversion to them? They treat taking some leftovers home like you're trying to hand them a soiled diaper. It's not just holiday food, it's just today reminded me of this. I don't get it. My husband makes terrific money and I've never once thought "our HHI is [now] too high to eat day old good." Is that how some people think -- like eating leftovers is "low" and they're better than that?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I have a good friend who literally sweeps any leftover food directly into the trash at the end of a meal.
Maybe she’s learned, like I have, that it feels wasteful to toss leftovers, so we spend a great deal of time decanting in to Tupperware, placing all in fridge IN TE FRONT, then vaguely planning re-use, “I’ll make Turkey soup, quiche, take the pasta for lunch, will eat stuffing as a side every day for a week, make potato pancakes tomorrow...”
Then five days pass and there the leftovers are untouched and stacked, so all gets dumped down the garbage disposal, empty Tupperware in the dishwasher.
After doing this several times, it’s easiest to skip the intermediate steps and toss all.
Sad, but true.
Caveat: DS18 will ask me to save a few things but these will be gone within a day.

Anonymous wrote:I have a good friend who literally sweeps any leftover food directly into the trash at the end of a meal.
Anonymous wrote:
Etiquette reminders:
It's rude to offer guests left-over food unless you are very close and know this person enjoyed that particular dish. If you do this to other types of guests, it means you don't respect them. Freshly-cooked and well-presented food that you offer on a plate at a table is a symbol of your respect for your guest. Boxed food meant to be reheated the day after is not.
Anonymous wrote:
Etiquette reminders:
(snip)
I'm not American and have family in Europe and Asia.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I just think they are wasteful. We could afford to eat different good everynight. I could drink water only out of plastic bottles but I do not.
What? Wasteful is throwing away uneaten food, not eating it for a later meal. Or do you mean cooking with the intention of leftovers?
My mom is a good cook, but her meals usually take a lot of work. She's a master at mixing leftovers with fresh dishes so it tastes new. I'm a big fan of leftovers, because I grew up with the understanding that some food actually tastes better on the second day. DH just doesn't tend to reach for leftovers unless it's his absolute favorite (i.e. if he liked it but he didn't love it, he won't eat it again), and I suspect it's because his mom (MIL) is not a great cook. It's hard to develop a habit for so-so food twice in a row. MIL finds his aversion to leftovers surprising, which suggests that he did actually eat leftovers as a kid.
I kind of regret that I cooked fresh meals most nights when we were first living together and newlywed. Two kids later, I just don't have the energy.
Anonymous wrote:One of the few good things about this Thanksgiving was that we actually have leftovers. In our usual group of 18 -- including 7 teenage boys -- I've sometimes not even gotten a first serving of some dishes. Leftovers simply don't exist.