Delicious Thanksgiving leftover recipes, from casseroles to stuffing waffles

If you’re stuck with leftovers this Thanksgiving, you might find help on TikTok.

Video bloggers come to your rescue with recipes to use up all your leftovers when your family and friends are away and your fridge is still full.

By reusing the old crockery, you not only save money, but also do the environment a favor. According to ReFED, a nonprofit that fights food waste, Americans wasted more than 305 million pounds of food worth over $400,000,000 during last year’s Thanksgiving holiday.

So don’t plan on throwing anything away just yet! Here are some creative ways to make new meals out of those pesky leftovers.

The turkey

When the centerpiece of your meal — the traditional Thanksgiving turkey — is more than a carcass on Thursday night, TikTok’s food bloggers have you covered.

Most Delicious Life, a food blog run by mother-daughter duo Cindy and Corinne, suggested a “Thanksgiving Casserole.” It’s so easy, you can make it right at the table when dinner is over. All you have to do is fill a skillet with mashed potatoes topped with shredded turkey, gravy and stuffing.

“Cover and refrigerate and when you’re done, throw it in the oven at 350 for half an hour and you have a wonderful Thanksgiving casserole,” the bloggers said.

If you’re looking for a nutritious alternative for the colder weather, try turkey soup. TikToker @_gloyoyo_ showed how to make the soup using leftover turkey along with carrots, celery, onions and the turkey skin.

Place the carcass in a saucepan, fill the saucepan with water, then add the other ingredients with some salt and pepper, the TikToker said. Then strain the broth, cut the carrots, pluck out the boneless meat and put everything back into the soup. Add some pasta, cook it all together and voila – turkey soup!

Another option is turkey pho. My Nguyen, who runs the My Healthy Dish TikTok account, demonstrated the broth, made with a turkey carcass, onions, ginger and spices.

She dropped a bag of spices into the pot, then added fish sauce, salt, and rock candy. Then she simmered the broth with rice noodles, spring onions, coriander, bean sprouts and quail eggs. She topped the dish with some lime and hoisin sauce.

Make a sandwich out of it!

Sandwiches are one of the most popular reincarnations of Thanksgiving leftovers, but you might be looking for inspiration.

Home cook Alice Choi offered “Mini Gobbler Sandwiches”. She layered all of her leftovers — shredded turkey, stuffing, roasted Brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce — between the top and bottom buns of King’s Hawaiian Rolls. She drizzled an onion and Worcestershire sauce mixture over it.

“Bake these in the oven and you end up with this deliciousness,” Choi said.

TikToker Macy Blackwell shared her recipe for ham and cranberry sliders, while blogger Meals With Mama demoed a grilled Thanksgiving cheese.

the filling

Stuck on filling? Blogger Grilled Cheese Social has an idea you might never have thought of: waffles made with filling, served with a layer of butter and salt.

Other TikTokers have recommended a stuffed pie and stuffed crust pizza.

Happy rest time!