The morning sun rises over your kitchen as you begin your daily routine of preparing breakfast. But as you open the fridge, you're faced with the remnants of last night's dinner - those stubborn leftovers that never seem to disappear. Stale rotis, wilted veggies, and mysterious Tupperware greet you like old friends. What's a home chef to do?
Rather than tossing leftover food, why not transform those leftovers into a delicious morning meal? With a little creativity and know-how, you can give new life to tired ingredients. Those stiff rotis become the base for a savoury bread pudding or get crisped up into homemade chips. Wilted greens find their way into a revitalizing frittata or omelette. And don't even get me started on the possibilities for reinventing last night's protein into breakfast sausage or a veggie hash.
Cooking with leftovers is one of the most sustainable practices that can be adopted in the kitchen. It reduces food waste, saves money on groceries, and lets us savour the flavours of homemade dishes twice. Beyond the practical perks, giving stale and tired ingredients a second chance can be deeply rewarding. With each creative recipe you craft, you're keeping food out of the trash and on the table where it belongs. With a little creativity, you can transform those remnants into a delicious morning meal.
Try these 6 tasty dishes made from last night's leftover rotis:
1. Roti Noodles
A great breakfast or tea-time snack recipe. Serve it whenever you want it. Slice the rotis into strips, which look like a noodle. In a pan or kadai, heat 1 tablespoon of oil, add finely chopped ginger, garlic and green chili. After that, sauté sliced onions, carrots, bell peppers, or any vegetable you choose. Cook them on a high flame and toss them so they do not lose the crunch. Add salt, pepper, schezwan sauce, red chili sauce, ketchup, vinegar, and soy sauce, and then toss cut strips of roti in the pan and give it a good mix. Cook for 2-3 mins, and then serve hot.
2. Leftover Vaghareli Roti
Vaghareli Roti is a quick and easy-to-make South Gujarati breakfast recipe. You must whisk some yoghurt in a bowl with ½ cup of water, make a smooth batter, and keep it aside for later. Like nachos or potato chips, cut the leftover rotis into small pieces. In a pan, heat oil, and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and hing. Next, add the curry leaves chopped green chillis, and sauté for a few seconds. Add the cut pieces of roti and sauté for 2-3 mins on medium flame. Now, pour the whisked yoghurt into the roti mixture, add salt, turmeric, and red chili powder, and keep stirring it continuously for 2-3 mins. Notice when the mixture becomes thick and starts boiling. Switch the flame off. Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves and serve.
3. Leftover Roti Pizza
If you ask any kid or adult their favourite dish, they will say pizza. So, let’s grab some veggies and seasonings and make Roti pizza. Finely chop all the vegetables (onions, green capsicums, red capsicums, black olives, and tomatoes). Boil some sweet corn, too. Spread some cheese on the roti, along with Pizza sauce. Now, add some grated mozzarella cheese to the roti, and after that, add all the veggies and spread them all over it. Add some more cheese on top of the vegetables and a little olive oil. There are 2 ways of making Roti pizza: one in the oven and one in a pan.
Grease the baking tray/pan with some oil and put the prepared roti pizza in it. Cook till the cheese melts and the roti becomes crispy. Garnish with red chili flakes and your tasty Roti pizza is ready to serve.
4. Leftover Chapati Cutlet
This is a delicious breakfast for the family, and to everyone’s delight, it is very yummy, too. To begin with, chop onion, cabbage, capsicum, spinach, green chilli, ginger and some coriander leaves, and keep them aside for later use. Soak 5-6- chapatis in water in a bowl for a maximum of 5 minutes. Now, take the chapatis out and mash them into small pieces. Add the chopped vegetables to the mashed chapatis. Mix 2 tablespoons of gram flour, grated cheese, or paneer. Add the spices, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder, and salt to the mixture as per taste. After mixing thoroughly, make the round-shaped cutlets from the mixture. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to a pan and cook the cutlets. Make sure they are cooked from both sides. Once cooked, garnish it and serve hot with tomato sauce.
5. Leftover Roti Khakhra Chaat
Whole wheat khakhras are incredibly delicious, irresistible and healthy too. Cut the leftover rotis in the shape of khakhras and fry them in a deep kadhai/pan. Once it turns golden brown, remove it and put it aside on a paper towel for the extra oil to be absorbed. Add oil in a broad non-stick pan, garlic, green chillis and onions, and sauté for a minute to make the chaat. Add tomatoes, green peas, chili powder, chili powder and salt. Mix them well and cook on a medium flame for 1 minute. Stir occasionally. Turn the flame off, add chopped coriander to the mixture, along with lemon juice and mix. Add the coarsely crushed khakhras to the mixture and toss well. Serve the Leftover Roti Khakhra Chaat.
6. Leftover Roti Nachos
Be it kids or adults, nachos are loved by everyone. For making this incredibly easy breakfast dish take the leftover rotis and separate the layers to get these nachos. Cut the rotis into triangles, and deep fry them in hot oil, till it turns crispy and crunchy. The Nachos are ready. Sprinkle some salt, pepper, and/or chaat masala as per taste. Add chopped tomatoes, onions, and green chilli, and serve it.