Got Leftover Grilled Meats? These 8 Recipes Will Help You Use 'Em Up (2024)

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Devour every last bit of the grilled meat in your fridge.

Rabi Abonour

Rabi Abonour is a planner specializing in transportation, but has also been a photojournalist, writer, and editor for several online and print publications.

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Published July 05, 2019

Got Leftover Grilled Meats? These 8 Recipes Will Help You Use 'Em Up (2)

I don't fire up the grill all that often, so when I do I try to make it count. That means cooking up mountains of beef, pork, chicken, and just about anything else I can get my hands on. As a result, I usually end up with leftovers, and a grilled steak just isn't the same the next day, but with a little know-how, yesterday's feast can taste just as good today. From a Japanese-inspired cold steak salad and smoky barbecue beans to pork fried rice, keep reading for eight of our favorite recipes to make the most of leftover grilled meat.

Steak and Corn Salad With Salsa Verde
You can try to reheat leftover steak, but you're just going to end up overcooking it. A better option is to thinly slice and serve it cold, in this case with grilled or broiled corn and a Spanish-style salsa verde made with pickles, capers, anchovies, fresh parsley and mint, and lots of olive oil.
Get the recipe for Steak and Corn Salad With Salsa Verde
Cold Steak Salad With Cucumber and Ponzu-Mustard Vinaigrette
This cold steak salad is inspired by tataki, a Japanese dish of thinly sliced seared beef served with shoyu ponzu, a soy- and citrus-based dipping sauce. Our recipe takes rare or medium-rare steak and pairs it with thinly sliced Japanese cucumbers, scallions, and a ponzu vinaigrette. The yuzu juice used in a traditional ponzu is pricey, so we cut ours with lemon and lime juice.
Get the recipe for Cold Steak Salad With Cucumber and Ponzu-Mustard Vinaigrette
Steak Carpaccio Salad
Carpaccio is traditionally made with raw beef, but rare leftovers make a delicious version too. As with Niçoise salad, serving carpaccio as a composed salad makes for a pretty presentation but a subpar eating experience—we prefer to toss the arugula and red onion in a caper-studded vinaigrette before topping with beef and Parmesan so that every bite is perfectly balanced.
Get the recipe for Steak Carpaccio Salad
Grilled Chicken and Cabbage Salad With Creamy Tahini Dressing
With the right technique, grilled chicken breast can be remarkably juicy when served fresh, but even perfectly grilled chicken will be pretty dry the next day. To breathe new life into the meat we massage it with olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic and toss it with a tahini-based dressing. Shredded red cabbage and tons of fresh herbs add crunch and brightness to further revitalize the leftovers.
Get the recipe for Grilled Chicken and Cabbage Salad With Creamy Tahini Dressing
Continue to 5 of 8 below.
Smoky Barbecue Beans
You can make a great pot of barbecue beans with bacon, but it will be even better if you used leftover smoked meat (beef, pork, and turkey all work wonderfully). These aren't sweet, molasses-laden beans—we lean to the savory side with onion, celery, garlic, paprika, cumin, and dried red chilies. The most time-consuming part of the recipe is letting the beans soak overnight, but if you have a pressure cooker you can skip that step and make the dish in two hours, from start to finish.
Get the recipe for Smoky Barbecue Beans
Cornbread-Coated Pulled Pork Mac and Cheese Wedges
Even a relatively small pork shoulder can feed a dozen people, so any time I make pulled pork I end up with enough leftovers for several days. When I'm feeling lazy I'll crisp it up carnitas-style, but if I'm in the mood for a project I turn to these over-the-top mac-and-cheese and pulled pork wedges. To make them we layer cold macaroni with pulled pork, jalapeños, and extra cheese, cut it all into triangles, dip in cornbread batter, and fry until golden brown.
Get the recipe for Cornbread-Coated Pulled Pork Mac and Cheese Wedges
Leftover-Lamb Sandwiches With Tapenade Mayo, Watercress, and Caciocavallo Cheese
Who doesn't love a good leftovers sandwich? This one takes leg of lamb and layers it with tangy caciocavallo cheese, briny tapenade-spiked mayo, and spicy watercress on crusty toasted bread. We developed this sandwich to be made with roast lamb, but grilled lamb will work just as well.
Get the recipe for Leftover-Lamb Sandwiches With Tapenade Mayo, Watercress, and Caciocavallo Cheese
Quick and Easy Pork Fried Rice With Corn and Shish*to Peppers
Fried rice is my favorite way to use up leftovers—just about anything in the fridge can find a home in this versatile dish. This version is made with corn, shish*to peppers, and whatever pork you have around (our co*ke- and pineapple-glazed ham would be perfect). As with all fried rice, be sure to cook in batches to keep the wok as hot as possible.
Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Pork Fried Rice With Corn and Shish*to Peppers