Why You Can Trust CNET Put Down the Microwave and Reheat Last Night's Leftovers Like an Adult. Here's How
If you spent time or money on last night's meal, reheat it with one of these methods and give your food the second life it deserves.
For reheating leftovers, we can all do better than the microwave.
Not everybody loves leftovers, but I find there's nothing more satisfying than a serving of last night's delicious dinner for lunch the next day. It feels like a free meal, even if you spent real time, money -- or both -- making it appear on the table. To make your seconds taste first-tier, forget the microwave and reheat your food like an adult. There are far better ways of warming chicken, pizza, stir-fry and even fried foods, without nuking them to a rubbery death, and I've got them all outlined below.
Whatever you do, don't toss those leftovers. They may never achieve full first-time glory, but with the proper protocol, you can reheat food so it tastes close. If you're looking for the best way to reheat Chinese food, braised beef or deep-dish pizza, don't toss last night's dinner or leftover meal kit into the microwave all willy-nilly.
These are the best methods for reheating leftovers so they taste like they did the first time, every time.
Microwaves are bad at reheating most kinds of food
The microwave is the appliance most commonly employed to reheat leftovers and it may be the fastest, but I'd also contend that it's the worst. Mostly anything that comes out of the microwave is almost certainly going to have a degree of rubberiness, dryness or mushiness that it didn't have when it went in.
Move away from the microwave and toward better leftovers.
"But it's so much faster!" you say. Is it though? Most of the methods outlined below take less than two or three minutes. Plus, microwaves are prone to messy explosions. If you have to clean your microwave after reheating food, it's not a time-saver.
The air fryer cooks almost as fast as a microwave and, in my opinion, much better. Adding an air fryer to your kitchen may feel like an upfront cost, but these budget-friendly superconvection ovens are the best first step towards better leftovers. Plus, they'll save money on your energy bill over time.
Is there any food you should reheat in the microwave?
The microwave is a great place to poach an egg, if you do it carefully.
Though most dense foods shrivel up or dry out in a microwave, some softer foods handle the microwave heat better. Items such as soup (covered), sauce, plain rice or mashed potatoes won't lose too much oomph if you nuke them. The microwave is also a great place to quickly soften butter or make popcorn, or to warm up water, baby formula and other liquids. It's even one of my favorite ways to poach an egg, so the microwave is by no means a useless appliance.
Noodles, pasta and rice dishes
Best way to reheat: Nonstick skillet
This wide-ranging category of classic takeout includes Italian pasta dishes; Indian curries with rice; Thai, Vietnamese and Korean noodles; and Chinese stir-fries. We're talking about any dish featuring starch such as rice or noodles with diced vegetables, meat or plant-based protein and a sauce. The one thing they all have in common is that they're best reheated in a nonstick skillet or wok.
A quick spin in a nonstick skillet is the best way to reheat pasta, noodles and rice dishes.
While you can probably get away with nuking simple fried rice, a microwave tends to overcook pasta and noodles and will likely turn your chicken, shrimp or sliced beef into rubber. Instead, just throw it all in a nonstick skillet on medium heat. Toss intermittently and in a few minutes, you'll have something nearly as good as when it first showed up at your table or door the night before. And nonstick pans typically take all of 15 seconds to rinse clean.
For rice dishes, consider a stainless-steel, carbon-steel or cast-iron skillet to get crispy rice.
Pizza and flatbread
Best way to reheat: Air fryer
There are a handful of reasons I love my air fryer, but none more notable than for reheating leftovers. Microwaves destroy pizza, so let's cross that one off. A toaster and convection oven does better, but still takes too long to heat through and ends up drying the pizza out by the time it's heated.
Why so sad, cold pizza?
The quick blast of an air fryer's superconvection will reheat your pizza to crispy perfection in about two minutes at 400 degrees F, depending on how large and thick it is. Be sure to use the basket or grate or else the hot, flat bottom of the air fryer basket could burn the bottom of your slice. I won't heat leftover pizza any other way. If you didn't have enough reasons to spring for one, air fryers use way less energy than a big oven.
Two minutes in the air fryer. Now, that's more like it.
Fried chicken, french fries and other fried food
Best way to reheat: Air fryer
Leftover fried foods have historically been one of the most difficult to bring back to life. Enter the air fryer, which can revive fried chicken, fried dumplings, mozzarella sticks and even french fries like nothing else in the kitchen. Similar to pizza, it'll take only a few minutes to heat through and you should have a crispy outer shell just like when the fried food was initially cooked.
For thicker pieces of chicken, use a lower temperature of around 325 to 350 degrees F for three minutes or so to ensure you don't burn the outside before the center has time to warm through.
If you thought it was impossible to revive leftover fried foods such as chicken and crinkle fries, think again.
Side note: Beyond reheating fried chicken, a good air fryer also makes delicious "fried" chicken and other foods with far less oil than traditional methods.
Steak, pork chops, burgers and grilled chicken
Best way to reheat: Cast-iron or nonstick skillet
Cuts of meat, including steak and pork chops, are another food that can be tough to resuscitate. Fear not, because there is a way. While reheating grilled steak or fish in an air fryer or oven isn't impossible, you're likely to dry the meat out. Instead, I suggest re-searing it quickly in a covered hot cast-iron skillet or nonstick pan for no more than a minute on each side. The hot surface of the skillet should give life back to the crust. Keeping it covered will help warm it through before the pan heat has time to overcook it. For delicate fish, you might want to use a nonstick skillet to keep the flesh from sticking or falling apart.
Often, the way food was cooked is also the best way to reheat it. For steaks, pork and burgers, be sure to cover the skillet so the meat heats through faster.
Fair warning: These types of reheated foods will never be quite as good as when you first pulled them from the grill, pan or plancha, but this method should leave them more than edible.
Braised, roasted or slow-cooked meat
A covered skillet with a splash of stock is the best way to reheat leftover braised food.
Best way to reheat: Covered skillet with a splash of liquid
Braised dishes such as chicken in wine sauce or short ribs should be reheated in a way that mimics how they were cooked. Just heat them gently for a few minutes in a covered nonstick or stainless steel pan with an ounce or two of water or chicken stock. The hot liquid will warm and revive the braised or slow-roasted meat, giving it back its juicy tenderness.
- For more tasty tips, see how to find cheap wine at the grocery store and how to cook a perfect whole chicken in the air fryer.