5 easy and delicious ways to transform leftover beef, chicken and pork

We’ve talked about leftovers on the blog before because they are truly a gift. You know that pot of delicious homemade chili is going to be even better tomorrow, and having extra pieces of grilled chicken in the fridge means countless opportunities for easy salads, wraps, quesadillas, soups and more. You can work wonders with just about any leftover meat—but sometimes, you need a little inspiration before hitting the kitchen.

Here are some easy and delicious recipes that can be started with leftover beef, chicken or pork products from VG Meats. Shop online at VGFarmToCity.ca or visit us in Simcoe or Stoney Creek to find your favourite products in store!

Steak

There are a few obvious ways to use leftover steak—sliced on top of a green leaf salad or in a steak sandwich, for example—but you can up your game and turn leftover steak into a full-on family dinner. We love this steak beef enchilada recipe (and, full disclosure, you can totally use leftover roast beef instead of steak if that’s what you have on hand). The only question left? How spicy to take this dish!

Chicken

If you have leftover chicken, shred it up and make this awesome chicken flatbread pizza. It’s super quick and easy, full of flavour and ready to adapt as needed. Does your family like a different type of cheese? Go for it. Want to add extra garlic, black olives or hot peppers? Do it up! Use this recipe as a starting point and put your own spin on it—anything goes with leftovers!

Ham

Some celebrity chefs try to wow us with elaborate recipes and others, well, they understand the beauty of a good ham casserole. (We can appreciate both approaches to cooking, honestly.) Here’s a super easy, family-friendly recipe for a baked ham casserole. It calls for ribbon-sliced deli ham (and it’s delicious this way) but you can definitely substitute that with cubed ham from your dinner leftovers. Or (gasp!) use bacon instead of ham! We always find good reasons to add bacon to recipes, so why not this one?

Sausage

Grilled sausages are packed with flavour and are super versatile as leftovers. Just about any combination of sliced sausage, tomatoes and/or bell peppers, garlic and pasta is exceptional (trust us!) but here’s a great recipe to get you started. Instead of starting with fresh sausage, warm up your leftovers and start at step two. You’ll have dinner in minutes! Consider making a garden or Caesar salad on the side of this yummy dish.

Ground beef

If you batch cooked some ground beef for chili, pasta sauce and other dishes, don’t stop there. To make these Korean-inspired rice bowls using leftover ground beef, simply warm the ground beef with fresh garlic instead of cooking it from raw. Then, follow the recipe as stated. Pssssst…this would be amazing with ground pork, too. Or, make lettuce wraps instead of serving it over rice! You won’t have any leftovers after this delicious meal but don’t worry…it’ll happen again soon.