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RECIPE BREAKDOWN🤯

The frittata fridge cleanout

The best way to use up ingredients

Thanks to their neutral flavor, egg dishes remain king for pairing with almost any ingredient. This is why omelets, quiches, or egg bakes are classics for using up any fridge scraps/leftovers.

We’re proposing the frittata as the ultimate fridge cleanout option:

1. Unlike a quiche, you don’t have to mess with a crust

2. Unlike an omelet, you can make a larger meal in one pan that feeds many mouths

3. It can be sliced and eaten cold/hot for leftovers.

4. It’s fairly foolproof and forgiving

Frittata framework

1 parts eggs

• Optional 1/4 part milk added. This makes for a fluffier frittata and bulks up the volume

1 parts fridge cleanout scraps, such as:

• Aromatics, diced, like onions, garlic, or herbs

• Vegetables of choice, chopped to your liking

• Meat of choice, diced

Flavor adjusters:

• Cooking oil & salt

• Optional additional garnishes: crumbled cheese, more herbs, chorizo, sour cream, hot sauce, you name it.

Method

To make a frittata, sauté your chosen ingredients in an oven-proof pan, mix in beaten eggs and milk, bake in an oven until set, then serve in slices.

Check out the full recipe here:

RECIPE RECCOMENDATIONS🥡

Other fridge cleanout options…

Speaking of great ways to clean the fridge, we’ve compiled an extensive collection of recipes friendly for sneaking in whatever leftover veggies, meats, herbs, or aromatics you need to use up. Check it out:

FOOD TRENDS 🚀

Brazilian lemonade revisited

Last summer we covered Brazilian lemonade, the creamy and tangy drink made by blending limes with cold water and straining, and then blending again with sweetened condensed milk and a handful of ice.

Why does it work?

• Blending the whole citrus imparts the full flavor of the peel — essential oils and a light bitterness from the pith are released into the drink.

• These added flavors balance the richness of the sweetened condensed milk, and make for a more complex, nuanced lemonade.

Make the trend your own

We think it’s worth bringing back for peak summer, and while you’re at it, use the technique to your riff and make your own versions of the drink. Here’s how we’d go about it:

1) Pick a citrus

• Be wary of citrus with thick, overly bitter pith layers like grapefruits or oranges. If needed, blend the flesh of those fruits with just a few peels for similar effects. Meyer lemons, for example, are great for blending because their peel isn’t overly bitter.

2) Modify the liquid base

• Add in fruit juice, bubbles, or alcohol after blending.

3) Pick a sweetener

• Branch out and try other thick sweeteners like cream of coconut, agave, or honey.

4) Garnish

• Make it fancy with mint bouquets, extra citrus wheels, or fruit wedges.

READER Q&A 🧠

Dried vs. fresh herbs

Answer:

In general, most herbs can be used in both fresh and dried forms. However, the flavor can significantly differ. Dried herbs have a concentrated, more robust flavor, while fresh herbs have a bright, vibrant taste.

Herbs like cilantro and basil are usually used fresh because drying can significantly alter their flavors. These herbs have volatile compounds and oils that provide their characteristic flavor but are lost during heating.

• This is why you want to add fresh basil & other delicate herbs at the end of the cooking process. Stewing them too long “cooks out” their fleeting aromas.

• Try this for yourself in this basil beef stir fry — mixing in basil at the end is all you need to perfume the dish.

On the other hand, hearty herbs like rosemary, thyme, and oregano retain their flavor well when dried due to their less volatile aromatics. Here’s a nice summary:

Don’t clear out the spice cabinet quite yet, tho:

• You can keep dried basil around for convenience, but it won't give the same flavor as fresh basil. We think it gives that generic “pizza sauce” aroma, which is great in some cases, but not really a close substitute for the fresh leaves.

• Dried chives could maybe be used up in a sour cream & onion dip deal, where they’ll be rehydrated a bit and add specks of green color.

Dried cilantro, mint, and parsley aren’t as useful, however. Next time a recipe calls for those, go find the real deal.

READER PHOTO SUBMISSIONS 📸

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If you want to be featured with photo credit and bragging rights, plate up a Cook Well recipe and then follow our photography guide to submit a photo.

• The guide & instructions are linked on every recipe page by the photographer's name.

We especially need help with the following recipes, which could use an image refresh:

EXTRA HELPINGS 🍽️

A read: The real difference between European and American butter

In a minute or less: How to choose avocados for guacamole

What we’re watching: Green coffee buyer sources coffee in Central America

Food science: Does Vodka Matter in Vodka Sauce?

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