How to Revive Food You THINK You Should Toss

Many of us are quick to toss leftover food that's been hanging around for a few days -- but not so fast! Take a closer look.

Amanda Freitag from “Chopped” visited our show, and she showed Rach how to salvage SIX different foods.

“This is really important to us,” says Amanda. “As chefs, what we do is we make sure we use everything.”

And now you can, too! Check out Amanda’s eye-opening tips below:

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Coffee Beans

If you don’t go through a pound of coffee in about 12 days, you can put leftover beans in a zippered bag and throw it in the freezer to maintain freshness. The freezer is better than the fridge, because the beans may absorb flavors and odors of other foods in the fridge.

And if you’re ever unsure if your beans are fresh (remember, stale beans make bitter coffee!), you can test them. Put the beans in a zippered bag overnight, and, as Rach puts it, if your bag looks like it needs to “burp” by morning (A.K.A. it’s filled with carbon dioxide), they’re still fresh!

If your beans ARE stale, you can still revive them by toasting them in a pan on your stovetop. This will release some of the beans’ oils and bring back some of their freshness and flavor!
 

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Honey

WAIT, don’t toss that crystallized honey in your cabinet!

Instead, isolate the crystallized portion of your honey, put it inside of a microwave-safe jar, place the jar in a microwave-safe bowl of (just a little) water and microwave it for 30 to 45 seconds. And voila, your honey comes right back!

“Honey’s amazing,” Amanda says. “It never goes bad.”
 

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Lettuce

If you have wilted lettuce laying around because you never got around to making that healthy salad, pop your leaves in a bowl of ice water to rehydrate them. It’s as simple as that!

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Carrots

Much like with your lettuce, get the snap back in your droopy carrots by cutting the core off and putting them in a jar of ice water.

But remember, not every piece is salvageable!

“Of course there is a difference between wilted and rotten,” Rach points out. “If the vegetable is slimy, discolored, has an unpleasant smell, you’re not going to fix that with ice water.”

Similarly, if your potatoes are soft, drop ‘em in a bowl of ice water to bring them back to life.
 

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French Fries

You KNOW we saved the best for last!

Nobody likes a soggy French fry -- so instead of reheating leftover fries (if those even exist!) in the oven, use a FRYING pan. Sautee the fries in a little bit of oil and they’ll practically be as good as new.