Chain Of Foods

Saturday night Hubby Tony and I had carry out Chinese for dinner. He brought home Hot and Sour Soup (accompanied by fried won ton strips), Chicken with Chinese Vegetables, Broccoli with Garlic Sauce, a container of white rice, and three fortune cookies. We ate about 2/3 of everything except for the rice, which we barely made a dent in.

Sunday is Tony's night to put dinner together.  He knew he was going to start with the previous night's leftovers, and add something else to make a whole meal. When I bought home baby bok choy and Japanese eggplant from the Asian market he decided to incorporate the latter ingredient.  He cut the eggplant into cubes and baked it, then added half to the combined carry out leftovers. Next he mixed in a little leftover brown rice and some restaurant white rice and heated everything up in the microwave. When it was done Tony ladled the dish into large bowls and put them on the table, along with packets of hot mustard and sweet and sour sauce.  The tasty dish was a cross between a thick soup and a juicy stew, and it was delicious.  As he was cleaning up Tony put the rest of the eggplant into the refrigerator.

Monday's dinner was a stir fry with the rest of the eggplant, half of the boy choy, half of a container of white beans from the freezer, onion and garlic, and some fresh basil leaves. It had a sauce made from rice vinegar, oyster sauce, red pepper flakes, brown sugar, and sesame oil.  The dish was served over leftover white rice (which almost, but not quite, used up the container).

Today I used up the remainder of the bok choy and white beans by adding them to a curry sauce, along with sweet potato, onion, garlic, and a couple of spoonfuls of peanut butter.  Since there wasn't much Chinese white rice left I made brown rice in the Instant Pot and used some of that, too. The end dish was runny enough to serve in bowls.

Now, after three days of imaginatively using leftovers and ingredients, it's all gone.The refrigerator is looking a little empty, and my creativity has come to a screeching halt. I have no idea what tomorrow's dinner will be, but based on past experience something will come to me. 

Five years ago today: The Cats Weren't Too Wild About The Idea...