9 Things You Can Do With Your Leftover Curries

2016 Nov 4

This isn’t one of those random articles on the internet that talks about what you could do with leftover pizza or bread rolls. I mean, the chances of those types of food ever being “leftover” in our fridges are not the ordinary because of the rarity of its consumption. Let’s talk about what does get left over typically every night after dinner. Pol Sambol, Parippu, leftover rice and the list goes on.

What some of us do(by that I usually mean our moms and grandmas) is pack the food, no matter how small the portion left over is, into Astra and ice cream containers and chuck them in the fridge. There’s also that window of time where you forget you’ve packed up so much food inside the fridge and only realise it when you decide to clean your refrigerator because it’s overloaded. By this time, you can’t eat the curries again because they’ve gone bad and they end up in the trash can. It’s such a waste of your storage space in your fridge as well.

So here’s a suggestion. Don’t pack them up in Astra containers in hopes that you’ll consume it the next morning or the day after as the original curry it is. Here’s a few things you can do with the food in your containers to make sure that it doesn’t go to waste and that you actually end up making a pretty good meal out of it.

1. Chicken curry: Chicken curry salad

The first time I tried a chicken curry salad was at Kaema Sutra and I was blown away, literally and figuratively. One reason why most Lankans detest salad is because it’s too bland – and too green. A chicken curry salad solves the issue of blandness for you and adds an exciting element of meat to your boring salad.

This recipe is as simple as it gets.

1. Make your salad – whichever way you usually do and like (if you usually add meat, leave that out this time)
2. Take your leftover chicken curry and extract the remaining pieces of chicken. Shred the meat with your fingers or by using a fork.
3. Drizzle it on your salad like you’re making it rain.
4. You now have a chicken curry salad!

2. Parippu: Wadei

Okay, so normally you don’t make wadei with cooked and seasoned parippu. You usually soak the parippu, grind it, mix it with the spices and make small balls to fry.

But we can always experiment. I tried this personally the other day before putting this recommendation in, and it turned out okay. The parippu was made badumata so it was easier leaving it to dry a bit, and then do the usual process.

In case you have no idea how to make a parippu wadei – the usual way- here’s an Aunty D recipe to help you out.

If your dhal curry is one that’s more of the hodi-type then you’d rather abort the idea to make wadei and maybe stick to utilizing the leftovers as a sandwich filling.

3. Pol Sambol: Pol Sambol Sandwiches

I don’t think we need to go into any detail with this. Sri Lankan moms go to town with this one and we’ve usually ended up having many a pol sambol sandwiches for our intervals as kids.

For those of you who haven’t made one before, just add the sambol as your filling. You can then opt to toast the sandwich or not as per your preference. It’s a pretty easy and healthy breakfast meal if you pair this with an egg made sunny side up for the morning. Last night’s leftover pol sambol would no longer hog your fridge!

4. Left over vegetable curries: Hathmaluwa (sort of)

Okay, making a hathmaluwa is not easy and is not the real deal if made with left-over curried vegetables.

So the hathmaluwa is a seven in one multi-nutrient meal that dates back to many generations ago. It was forgotten until a few years and this ancient recipe is now making a comeback. Ideally, the dish is about bringing together some Sri Lankan and authentic village ingredients like Jak seeds, mukunuwenna etc.

You can make your own modern hathmaluwa by combining some of your leftover curries and adjusting the spices so that it tastes the same. My grandma makes something like this sometimes and I can guarantee you, it tastes delicious. You’ve got to make the little decisions like if whether you’d make a baduma or a thick curry out of it with the addition of coconut milk.

5. Left over vegetables: Baked cheesy vegetables

The first time I’ve tried baked cheesy vegegies was at Tsing Tao. The cheese melted in my mouth and this for me, is the best way to cook your vegetables. It even got me thinking, it’s probably one of the best ways to utilise your leftover veggies. All you’ve got to do is to wash your left-over veggies, from beans to radish, boil some more veggies like some corn and broccoli. Create a thick white sauce, to mix your vegetables in and then bake it in the oven with some mozzarella on top. 

Again, it won’t be the real deal but it’ll be a healthy alternative and one that the kids would love.

6. Prawn curry: Prawn/shrimp spring rolls

Don’t let your cooked prawns go to waste, instead try and wrap it up into a spring roll! A great tea time pass around and a great way of using up the leftover prawns without throwing them away.

If you already know how to make it, you are only replacing uncooked prawn/shrimp with already curried ones, so the method might have to be shifted around a tad bit. If you don’t know how to make it, here’s Aunty D to the rescue!

7. Egg: Egg drop soup

Leftover egg whites are a normal occurrence once you’ve baked something interesting or made a dessert. What can you do with your left-over egg whites? Make an egg-drop soup for your next dinner!

Watch one of Aunty D’s recipes to help you make your own. 

8. Leftover meat: Sri Lankan Omelette

This again, was a light bulb over my head the when I tried Kaema Sutra’s signature Sri Lanka omelette dish. It was completely loaded with onions and spices and everything possible, including curried meat. It was also loaded with a few chunks of processed cheese, like Happy Cow. This got me thinking, I can do the same at home with leftover meat curries.

All you’ve got to do is add some shredded or chunks of meat into your omelette and the rest of the additions are completely up to your choice and preference. Your last night’s chicken curry leftovers turned into a Sri Lankan and healthy breakfast alternative!

9. Idiyappa: Idiyappa Kottu

Honestly, who doesn’t like some good idiyappa kottu? Super simple to make too! Shred your leftover idiyappa and your favourite meat and spices into it, cook it for a while and maybe garnish it with a few chunks of cheese, and you now have your own homemade idiyappa cheese kottu!

What else can we do with leftover curry? If you have a few tips or some recipes that used cooked and curried food, let us know in the comments below! Try them out and tell us which one was your favourite.