People Are Lapping Up This Yucky 'Garbage Soup' To Save Money

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43. That's where experience comes in

Spend enough years cooking and experimenting and you start to get a feel for what does and does not go together. You also learn to taste as you go along and make alterations as needed. Cheesy broccoli and meat scraps? Make a broth with the meat, add the cheesy broccoli and maybe some more cheese for a broccoli cheese soup. The sweet potatoes? Probably not in the same dish with the broccoli, but with same broth and a handful of carrots they might make for an interesting soup.

When you cook a lot you find you tend to use certain herbs and spices more than others, which is also going to help with combining. My best never-to-be-duplicated chili was made from some leftover ribs which turned out too dry and leftover baked beans. The spicy rub on the ribs complemented the sweetness of the baked beans: with some additional dry chiles and some vinegar to offset the sweetness it turned out great.