Freezer Meals 101
When it comes to creating meals that will be stored in the
freezer, it might feel a little overwhelming—especially if you’ve heard of the
once-a-month freezer meals where you spend an entire Saturday making meals that
last an entire month. Although the idea is great, finding one Saturday a month
to devote to cooking and only cooking sounds a bit daunting for most
(especially if you have things like soccer games and dance rehearsals and
cleaning to do).
Luckily, there’s no rule that says you have to follow one
prescribed method for freezer cooking. Here are some tips I’ve found that might
help if you’re a beginner.
To prevent being completely overwhelmed, start slow. Pick
a couple meals that you know your family will like and try them out as freezer
meals.
One great way to do this is when you’re cooking dinner,
just cook twice as much and freeze one. If you’re not sure of
what things freeze well, start with recipes that are recommended for freezing.
Another great way to ease into freezer cooking is just
freezing individual ingredients. So many things can be frozen including browned
meat, raw hamburger patties, marinated and grilled chicken, many fruits and
vegetables, cooked beans, rice, and more. By freezing individual ingredients,
you can add them to many recipes quickly and easily.
For example, if you were to brown ground beef and freeze,
it can then be quickly and easily added to many recipes including tacos, pizza,
soups/stews, spaghetti sauce and more. By browning a few pounds of ground beef
all at once, you can freeze the meat in individual portions and then quickly
add it to recipes to save a step.
Freezing ingredients also saves you money. If your bananas
are getting a little brown, flash freeze the bananas in slices and they can be
stored for months till you use them in anything from smoothies to banana bread.
To flash freeze food, just stick on a cookie sheet lined with foil (so each
piece is not touching any other piece) and freeze for 30 to 60 minutes till
hard. Then put in freezer bags.
Freeze extra muffins, breads, waffles, cinnamon rolls,
etc. to be warmed & eaten as individual servings.
Make-ahead freezer meals are great for people:
* Who have busy lives and don’t always have time
to cook a nice meal.
* People who eat at fast food a lot but want
better healthy meals quick.
* Brand new mothers who just had a baby and need
to rest or enjoy every precious minute of a new one.
* Folks who are sick, elderly or injured and
cannot cook.
* Service:
It's nice to have an extra meal in the freezer if you want to help
someone out who is in need of a meal that day. Sometimes making a meal that day
isn't possible, but pulling it out of your freezer is do-able!
Some Items you will need
l Disposable
foil baking pans
l Heavy
Duty Freezer Aluminum Foil
l Gallon
freezer bags
l Quart
freezer bags
l Permanent
Marker
l wide
masking tape (if you want to make labels)
l A
really big funnel
l 2
sets of measuring cups—(one metal and one plastic so you can tell them apart,
one for wet measuring and one for dry)
l 2
sets of measuring spoons--(one metal and one plastic so you can tell them
apart, one for wet measuring and one for dry)
l Large
Mixing bowls and large pans
l Really
large spoons
l Kitchen
scissors to cut up chicken, bacon, green onions, etc.
l non-stick
cooking spray—Spray every baking dish
l Trash
cans
l Timers
l Food
Processor—to chop onions and grate cheese
l Crock
Pot
l A
rice cooker
Tips on Preparing Freezer Meals
l Whatever
you make, make 2. It takes the same
effort to make 2 as to just making 1. It
takes a lot less time to make doubles of 15 recipes than it does to make 30
different recipes. Plus, if you just put them in the freezer, you can have it
again in a couple of weeks to months.
l Freeze
Meal-sized portions, not recipe size. In
other words, freeze in a container that will work for your family.
l Keep
foil baking tins & gallon-sized freezer bags on hand so you can make a
freezer meal anytime you have extra ingredients.
l Use
casserole tins for meals that can be put straight into the oven after it’s
frozen. Use freezer Ziploc bags for
meals like soups that will be re-heated in a pot after it has been frozen.
l If
you have recipes that call for cooked chicken cook it the day before
l Chop
onions and other vegetables the day before
l Shred
your cheese the day before or buy shredded cheese (I shred all of my cheese and
store it in a freezer bag so I always have shredded cheese for any meal—and its
quick!)
l Make
your labels for the meals the day before.
Whether it be written on your aluminum foil with a permanent marker or
on a peel and stick label. Write the name of the recipe, date made,
instructions. Remember to put an oven
temperature if applicable. Do this BEFORE you put ingredients in the bag.
l Buy
meat when it is on sale and store it in the freezer in preparation for cooking
day. Thaw all meat before beginning.
l Layer
tortillas in enchiladas instead of rolling them. Tastes the same and is easier to serve
l Make
Lasagna with uncooked noodles. They will
soften up during the freezing, thawing, and baking process. Manicotti does not have to be cooked first
either! (I prefer it this way because
they are easier to stuff and you also save a step! Just add a little thicker layer of sauce
above and below when freezing. If you are making recipes such as Manicotti use
a Ziploc bag and snip the bottom corner to fill them. No need for a fancy
pastry bag.
l Put
a trash can near all of your main work stations.
l Don't
shop and cook on the same day. Shop on
one day, and cook the next. Bring the
food home and leave the non-perishable stuff out. Stack all the cans next to the can
opener. Arrange the other stuff near
where it will be used. Review your
recipes and get out the other ingredients. Arrange all the spices to the
closest station where they will be used.
Some will be by the stove, and others on the counter. Put all the freezer bags, pans, foil, labels
on the table.
l When
filling a freezer bag, fold the top down so you don't get anything on the
zipper part. This will save you a lot of
mess and frustration.
l As
packages are ready for the freezer, stack them on a cookie sheet. When cookie sheet is full, transport them to
the freezer. Be sure they are completely
cool before putting in the freezer. Put them in a single layer (if possible) in
the freezer until they are frozen, then stack them.
l Make
a list of what you have in your freezer and put it on the door so you can mark
them off when you pull one out. This will always let you know what you have.
You can also use a dry erase marker on your freezer door.
l How
long will your meals last?
**Raw Meats – Chicken: 10
months, Fish: 2-3 months, Ground Beef: 3 months, Pork Roast: 4-6 months, Beef
Roast: 7-9 months, and Pork Chops or Ribs: 2-3 months, Steaks: 7-9 months,
Whole Chicken or Turkeys: 6 months
**Cooked Meals – Meat and
Poultry in Sauces: 5-6 months, Pasta Dishes: 2-3 Months, Sauces, Soups and
Stews: 5-6 Months, Side dishes: 2-3 months, Quiche or Egg dishes: 3 months
Foods Not to Freeze
Foods not to Freeze: Why: Comments:
Mayonnaise separates use
whipped salad dressing instead
Cooked egg whites becomes
tough & rubbery uncooked
egg white freezes well
Custard, cream fillings becomes
soggy; separates
Egg white frosting becomes
foamy substitute
butter icing
Sour cream becomes
thin; watery may
be stirred into dips & spreads
Potato in soups, stews may
discolor, become mushy add to
recipe after thawing
Fried food loses
crispness
Bread crumb toppings become
soggy reheat,
uncovered, to crisp
Crisp vegetables & loses
crispness use in
cooked dishes, where
Fruit w/ a high water texture
is less
content like celery, melons, important
lettuce, & tomatoes
Tips that make
bringing a meal to someone easier:
·
Have your
meal frozen beforehand when delivering a freezer meal. (unless you know they will be eating it
within 1-2 days after you have delivered it)
·
Freeze
soups in freezer bags and double-bag them so they don’t leak. Also, freeze them laying flat, so it is easy
to store in their freezer.
·
Always
label all your meals with a magic marker.
Include name of the meal and baking or re-heating instructions
·
Deliver
the meal during the day, or anytime that isn’t a mealtime—(when you deliver
during dinnertime, it can be a busy time.
It is nice for the recipient to have the meal so they can decide when
they want to cook it, and not have to wait on you if they will be eating it
that night.
