Leftover Soup

Slow Cooker

Although there is no ‘recipe’, this is the very best soup! Most recipes from my cookbook eliminate leftovers, but at some point you will have a small amount of excess.

At the end of each meal, we may have a few tablespoons of vegetables along with a half cup of rice and maybe a two-inch piece of steak still in their serving dishes. I cut the steak and veggies into bite-size pieces and place all of these leftovers in an airtight freezer container. When the leftovers have accumulated enough to fill a large stock pot, I add some chicken broth and spices; garlic powder, oregano, basil, brown gravy mix, herb & garlic soup mix, etc., and heat it through until everything is thawed. I also make it a practice to go through the refrigerator and freezer to scout for any other foods that might be a good addition to this soup. (Remember, I never keep anything in the freezer longer than 3 months.) I then take about 2-3 cups of the mixture and whirl it in the blender to make a thick and hearty broth. The next day I bring it to work, pour it into my large slow cooker, turn it on high…and at lunchtime, my coworkers love me!

Another option to bringing this to work would be to invite family and friends for soup and a board game or maybe a game of cards. Or, accumulate just enough to have soup-for-two.

Suitable ingredients:

– Meats including those that are breaded
– Rice
– Pasta
– Vegetables
– Gravy
– Cream soups (non-seafood)
– Plain lettuce leaves, finely chopped
– Tomato sauce

Non-suitable ingredients:

– ‘Mexican’ flavors, unless you separate any Spanish flavors just to make a ‘Tex-Mex’ style soup.
– Sweet ‘n’ Sour flavors
– Ginger or Chinese flavors
– Seafood
– BBQ flavors
– Hard cheeses

Both of these lists are not exhaustive. If you are a novice cook, begin by experimenting with plain foods until you become more familiar with blending flavors. Some of my soups have been better than others, but I can never remember my coworkers complaining about any soup that I have made for them.

Leave a Reply