Store it Right!

We love to throw house parties.

but after all the guests leave,

 we face the sorting out, 

cleaning and clearing part of the day. Usually, we're tempted to just throw everything in the fridge.

Left-over food? Post-party dilemma!

What should you do?

For Spaghetti or Pasta dishes:

• Separate the sauce from the pasta (if not mixed yet). Put the sauce in the freezer. Red sauce in the freezer may last for almost a week, but white sauce should be consumed within 2-3 days.
• It is NOT advisable to store cooked pasta because it gets stale easily. But if you really must (or if the sauce is already mixed), store pasta in a dry, air-tight container and consume as soon as possible.

For Lechon Manok (roasted chicken) or Crispy Pata:

• Use aluminum foil to wrap it before placing inside the fridge or the freezer.
• Since lechon manok easily spoils, it is better to rehash it (see below: rehashing).

For Bread:

• Use aluminum foil to wrap hard breads such as French bread, dinner roll or pan de sal, and store it in the freezer. To re-use, just thaw and warm in the oven (served with herbed butter).

For Grilled Seafood or Barbecue:

• DO NOT store grilled fish or seafood and grilled pork together. Wrap separately with aluminum foil and store in the fridge.
• To avoid too much left over barbecue, grill until its half-done then store it in the fridge. Grill it again, just a little at a time (until fully cooked) when your guests arrive.

For Milky, Soupy dishes:

• Put in an air-tight container before placing inside the fridge. If your soup has noodles, the noodles will absorb the soup. Just add more milk when you re-heat the soup to thin it.

For Fresh Salads:

• Separate the dressing from the greens. Store green leafy vegetables in a ziplock or an air-tight container.
• DO NOT store slice tomatoes as they spoil and wrinkle easily.

For Leftover Cake:

• Wrap leftover cake in aluminum foil to keep it moist.

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☺ TIPS on REHASHING PARTY LEFTOVERS☺

• To your leftover fruit salad, add more cream and canned fruit pieces (or chopped fresh fruits). Then us this as filling for your Icebox cake.

• Flake leftover ROAST CHICKEN and re-use it for sandwich spreads, soup, pasta, stir-fried vegetables, and rice dishes.

• For your leftover Crispy pata, boil the meat and ligaments until very tender. Add carrots, macaroni pasta, and milk to make a very tasty soup dish.

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What must be ABSOLUTELY stored INSIDE the fridge?

☺ Cream-based dishes

☺ Food that easily melt

☺ Salads

Leftovers that can be stored OUTSIDE the fridge:

☺ Food with vinegar as base

 (such as, dinuguan or paksiw)

☺ Fried dishes

☺ Fresh fruits that have NOT been sliced open

☺ Wine