We're all as guilty as the next person of forgetting about those sad carrots at the back of the fridge, or using the phrase 'I just don't fancy it right now'. We justify such choices, but they do eventually add up – in the UK’s case, to about 10m tonnes of food waste a year.
Not only is food waste such a crime, wasting good food that has been lovingly produced. Wasting food, in turn, forgets those who are not as lucky as us to have so much choice. It is also a horribly missed opportunity to get the best out of our ingredients.
We need to remove the stigma of 'leftovers' and instead see them as ingredients that are ready to be turned into something magnificent again, a little like a chef's mise en place, some of the work in getting to flavour Nirvana has already been done.
There is nothing more simple, and more satisfying still, as whacking all your gorgeous leftovers into a hearty pie. Throw in that leftover Christmas cheese, those last few shreds of festive ham, the drumsticks of the festive bird that never seem to get consumed at the same pace as the white meat, it can all go into the pot.
This is not so much of a recipe, but more of a guide and reminder not to scrape your yuletide treats into the bin, but instead take a little time, a couple of pinches of this and that, and treat yourself to a memorable meal - again.
