Throughout this book I encourage you to make extra food to store in serving-size containers in the freezer for future use, and to make all or part of dishes hours or even days ahead. This approach to cooking is undeniably efficient and convenient. But until it becomes second nature — and trust me, it will — you might need some tips for reheating.
The best foods for reheating are high in moisture, like soups, sauces, stews, and cooked beans. Crunchy foods usually don’t reheat very well, but can be finessed if you heat them, covered, in the oven, then spread them out to dry a bit and crisp. Remember too that not everything must be reheated — many vegetables, pastas, and grains are best eaten at room temperature in salads, or added to another dish in the last minute of cooking.
In general, it’s best to reheat food gently, but there are exceptions. You can use a microwave, an oven, or the stovetop. Direct heat on a stovetop burner should generally be low; in a microwave or an oven you can use higher heat. How long something takes to reheat will depend on how much you’ve got, how dense it is, and the method you choose to reheat it, so until you have some experience, check frequently.
You can reheat frozen food too; it’ll just take longer. If you have time, thaw food in the fridge for a day or so. Or thaw in the microwave. For safety reasons, don’t let frozen food sit out on the counter to thaw it.