Filipinos love to prepare bountiful meals during the Christmas holiday season. At times, this causes leftovers. Give them to your guests as take-home. Enclose reheating instructions. This would reduce your leftovers. However, you may still have some food items to store at home.

Here are some tips:
Storage:
Store food items in a clean dry plastic or glass container.
Food must be tightly covered.
Label the containers with the name and the date.
Store it in the top shelf of the chiller or freezer.
Consume food chilled food within three to four days.
Consume frozen food within a month.

Reheating:
Reheating stored food while maintaining the taste and consistency can be tricky. Many will say it is easiest to microwave. This may be true, but unfortunately, this does not heat the food evenly, unless you mix every five seconds.

My preferred method is steaming. It heats the food fairly and allows it to retain its natural moisture. This is ideal for those with sauces as well as roasted and steamed dishes.

I don't really recommend storing fried food because the quality is never the same when reheated. Should you still choose to keep it, you can reheat it on a non-stick frying pan with little oil. Cover over low heat and turn it every few minutes until completely heated. You may also use the toaster oven or the air fryer for about 5 to 10 minutes.

For food stored in the freezer, allow it to defrost in the chiller overnight. It may also quickly defrost in the microwave. Heat it by steaming, roasting or via stove-top.

Remember: Reheated food should be consumed immediately and should be disposed if otherwise.