Making Restaurants Work Harder For You

Successfully Storing Leftover Pizza

Lockdown orders have increased the number of home deliveries of food, and while pizza delivery is absolutely nothing new, more people are ordering more pizza. Ordering extra pizza so you don't have to make delivery people go out more than they have to is nice, but not if you end up with terrible leftovers that you end up throwing out. Most people are familiar with at least the basics of leftover pizza storage. For those who aren't used to storing pizza in larger amounts, however, here's a basic guide.

For Tomorrow's Breakfast and Lunch

If you're just putting a couple of slices away for tomorrow's breakfast or lunch, this is the easiest storage possible. Either wrap each slice separately in plastic wrap or place them in separate storage containers and refrigerate. Make sure the container or wrap fully encases the slice and doesn't have any gaps. If any part of the slice is left exposed to air, it will dry out. When you're hungry, eat the slice straight out of the container cold (face it—this is the best breakfast) or warm it up.

Longer Storage and Avoiding Freezer Burn

For storage of longer than a day or two, freezing is best. However, you have to avoid two problems. One is slices freezing together, which you can avoid by wrapping and freezing them separately. Wrap each and place them separately in the freezer for a half-hour or so, and then place all of them in a larger bag if you want to keep them together.

The other problem is freezer burn. It doesn't affect safety but does affect quality. Really, do you want to eat freezer-burned cheese? Probably not. To avoid freezer burn, let the slices cool on the counter for a few minutes and then place them in the fridge to cool fully. Then, you can tightly wrap each slice. Eat them within a couple of months at the most; within one month is better. That shouldn't be a problem, though, if you only ordered a couple of pizzas.

Is the Stacking Method Worth It?

One way to store pizza in the refrigerator is to place one slice on a plate, then a layer of plastic wrap or wax paper, then a second slice on top, more paper, another slice, and so on. Then you wrap the entire pile in plastic wrap. On one hand, it can save space, but on the other, if you just want to retrieve one slice, you have to unwrap the whole thing, remove the slice, and then rewrap the pile. Wrapping them individually means you just grab a slice and unwrap just that one.

Pizza delivery is a fast way to get food that is filling and tasty. When you order in, save the leftovers and have additional meals ready to go.