Top 10 Foods That Are Still Great Cold

Whether it be last night’s carbonara or the spaghetti bolognaise from two days ago, the flavors in pasta dishes continue to develop to the point where old Italian is almost as good as what comes fresh out of the oven. It’s so good cold in fact that pasta salad has become almost as popular as its heated counterparts. Special mention also goes to mac and cheese, which, while not exactly a classic pasta dish, often has a hefty helping of cheese that isstill damn good after a night of cooling off. And who can forget lasagne? Filled with meat, cheese, various veggies and sometimes even red wine, there’s plenty packed in there that only seems to get better given a little time. Wine gets better with age so it only makes sense that lasagne would also improve, right?

You may lose that straight out of the fryer oily crispy-ness, but instead you get a totally different texture: the batter has fully soaked up all of that chicken flavor and now the meat isn’t quite so ready to slip straight off the bone in a bit of a greasy mess. Some people even buy fried chicken just to let it go cold, often employing it as a fantastic picnic snack or a lazy meal when you just can’t be bothered to cook.

The first, but certainly not the last, of a pastry-like snack to make our list, this savory roll combines puff pastry and sausage meat and is topped off with a glaze made of egg or milk. They are then baked and can be served as a hot snack, while the miniature versions have found a home at buffets and parties. However, sausage rolls are equally delicious after they’ve left the oven for hours and even after being stored in the fridge for a while too. What can we say? There’s just something about ground meat and a light, flaky and layered dough that fills us with satisfaction no matter what temperature it’s being devoured at.

#7: Bacon

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It’s easy to make a bit too much bacon for a big breakfast, but that’s fine: throw it in the fridge and come back tomorrow. Once it’s cold, it feels vastly different in the mouth and those salty flavors gradually become a little mellower without that out-of-the-pan grease. Ideal in a salad or with lettuce and tomato in the classic BLT sandwich, it’s a bit more chewy cooled down, but still just as good.

Often sold at supermarkets to be eaten cold, after being chilled, this pastry becomes softer while the potatoes, meat, onions and peas that hide within will have absorbed all the spices that make Indian food so good. A greatsnack that you maybe wouldn’t have too often, when sampled at a cold temperature, it allows you to appreciate everything that’s in the samosa, rather than be overwhelmed with heat.

Will Ferrell certainly doesn’t mean the slightly overweight recording artist either. The ground meat dish is one of the most versatile foods ever created as it can really be used for anything, even when it’s gone cold. Chuck it in a sandwich, put a slice in the kid’s lunchboxes or even just have it as your cold meats with a salad or baked potato. Originating in Europe, the American counterpart is now a staple of the diet of many living in the U.S. and is quite the legendary dish.

#4: Pop-Tarts

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With its popularity increasing ever since the product’s launch in the 1960s, the state in which the pastry-based snack should be eaten has divided the opinion of people all over the USA. Although they’re designed to be toasted or microwaved, Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts are incredibly easy to pick up and have as a quick breakfast before work or a lazy snack. They are actually quite flammable, as a few high profile toaster fire incidents in the ‘90s proved, so perhaps it is best to eat them cold.

#3: Spring Roll

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Similar to other pastry-like snacks like Jamaican patties and the samosa, the Asian spring roll keeps all of the goodness locked up inside, which means that you can keep them stored in Tupperware for a few days and they’ll still be just as good. These rolled appetizers can be filled with a combination of anything from pork to shrimp to chicken and all sorts of vegetables that work perfectly with trademark Chinese sauces to really develop overnight.

The sauciest dishes tend to fare the best when left in the fridge overnight and any sort of curry certainly flourishes given a night’s stay in the refrigerator. Made even easier to just pick up and eat by often already being in a convenient container, every spice and ingredient of a curry dish works together to give you a morning, afternoon or late night treat. If you have a bit of naan bread left over after having an Indian feast, throw that in so it soaks up the sauce as well, adding even more longevity to your meal. Before we dig into our top pick, let’s have a taste of some honorable mentions. - Quiche - Hot Dogs - Frittata

#1: Pizza

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Was it ever in doubt? One of the most popular takeout meals ever is also one of the most varied and experimented with, but it still seems that any of these variations is just as good the morning after the night before. Whether you’re hung-over, hungry or just have nothing else left in the house, you can always rely on last night’s pizza to evolve into something rather different than what you had last night. A regular at buffets and on assorted platters, it really is the go-to food when your oven is just too far away. Do you agree with our list? What foods do you buy hot but then put them straight in the fridge? There are so many tastes and preferences out there that we couldn’t possibly include them all. For more delectable top 10s published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.