Freezer Meal Combinations To Make

[Jeepers]

I've been making a list of some Freezer Meals to stock up my freezer for some hard times ahead. And especially for convenience. Mostly for convenience. I don't like to cook. I have some reuseable trays I got that are nice and heavy but generic ones would work well too. Or even freezer bags. I protect mine with Food Saver bags to help with freezer burn and help prolong their life. I have the single tray portion, the three sectioned one and some bowls. 

 

I searched out the freezer sections in the grocery store and online to get ideas. Change things up to suit your own taste! Covid has damaged my taste buds so I'm not the most reliable example. I have typical mid-western taste so south-west and Asian cooking etc. pretty much eludes me. I'm going to try with the enchilada and chow mein though. I'm not a big meat eater except when it's shredded or chunked so I have a number of casseroles. A fried chicken dinner would be nice too or chicken fingers. I don't care for fish but fish and chips would be good. I added some fish sticks for G-son. PLEASE, if you can think of some more combinations post them. I can't actually start making them until I get moved but I'm trying to plan ahead. 

 

I know this is a LOT of meals! I really do. And I do not expect to have them all at one time. But wouldn't that be nice. I do lots of big batch cooking so it is very likely that I could fill one bowl or tray of 10-12 at one time. Especially with a big pot of beef and noodles or chicken and noodles or chili. Plus I will share them with son's family. 

 

 

I just took a screen shot from my Word Document. Some are a little blurry. If you have trouble reading it, let me know. 

 

 

 

 

 

My containers. I ordered a couple of times and sometimes they were on the 'lightning deal' thing for half off!  They are very sturdy and I figure I can use one at least 5-6 times. I fill the tray, cover with plastic wrap, put the lid on, use a Food Saver bag. Over-kill I suspect. But I plan on them being in the freezer for awhile and food is expensive. 

Amazon.com: Freshware: Meal Prep Containers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Mother]

Great list, Jeepers. I make a lot of those as well but a word of warning….measure your space in the freezer first.  Those containers are great for convenience but take up LOTS of space.  If you add a Food saver bag it’s even more.   I use food saver bags to freeze foods directly.  I vacuum seal the food then lay the bags flat on a cookie sheet to freeze. I am careful to smooth them out. When frozen I store them like books upright side by side. You can even use inexpensive book ends to hold them.  I have also used flat plastic baskets to hold them upright, putting like things together. The baskets allow more air circulation around them. Depending on your space you can get a second row of ‘books’ above the first.  Another advantage to doing them this way is that you can boil the bags in a pan of hot water to heat them.  
 

Another thing I do is make ‘dump meals’.  These are more like fresh cooked and make a nice change.  I gather all the raw ingredients, prepare if needed like peeling and chopping, but put them directly into the bags uncooked along with seasonings, sauces, etc. I often use frozen veggies and meats directly from their bags unthawed to do this and it really makes the process fast and easy. I try to mix the seasoning or sauces in just by squishing the bag around some and then it also acts like a marinade . I most often use this method for crock pot meals but if the pieces are bite size those bags of meals can also be boiled in a pot of water.  Or I do all the ingredients for a ‘sheet pan’ meal and then just dump them on the pan and roast in the oven. Most of the time I get these type meals out the night before to thaw a bit, especially if they are for the crock pot. I especially like this for pot roast meals. I put a small roast in the bag, add some already peeled baby carrots, some quartered onions, some washed small red potatoes and whatever seasonings I want, seal and freeze.  

 

I have even done dump meal breakfasts by putting the raw eggs in the bags, adding onions, peppers, mushrooms, meat, and even cheese and freezing them to cook later. I used to take these along in the cooler when camping.  They were great for first or second day when they were thawed some.  Just get a big pan of water boiling, put the bags into cook in the water, eat right from the bags, then use the water afterwards for what little cleanup there was.  I also make breakfast sandwiches and wrap individually in plastic wrap. I freeze these stacked in bigger zip lock bags so I can take out what I want that day.  I often bake my egg mixture on a rimmed sheet and then cut them in squares to portion them on the bun or English muffin.  I do the same thing if using ground meat.  I will put a piece of cheese with each but put it aside until the sandwich is hot, then add it back or it gets too melted. Try making the sandwich using waffles.  They are great and you can even drizzle some syrup over the top if you want.  
 

Don’t forget deserts. I love apples or other fruit cored and chopped and put in the bag with honey (or brown sugar), I add cinnamon, raisins, dates, nuts, shredded coconut, or rolled oats and freeze them to dump and bake.  These are also great to put into one of the sections of the divided container to cook while you are microwaving the meal. I often just stick some frozen fruit pieces in with my freezer meals to have hot desert and it’s so easy when making up the trays. 

 

Don’t get me wrong.  I love the already cooked portioned meals In the trays.  I usually double or triple a recipe I am making for us and then portion the extra into meal sizes and freeze. But you have to think of space for other things too, like ice cream   

[Jeepers]

Good idea about using bags alone. I've seen pictures of them in freezers too. Also a few videos of people putting them together using a stand to hold the bags upright and open. Sometimes, on here, I forget that I'm just cooking for one and the convenience of cooking in one container and eating out of the same container is a major help to me. Less dishes to wash.   But most people have a family to cook for. I'm doing it the senior solo way. 

 

I 'plan' (I use that word a lot theses days) to use a lot of the stuff already in the freezer to make the meals so that will help with the space. About the only thing in my freezer now is meat. Including a couple of pretty big roasts and a giant turkey. Also some butter. I'll have a dedicated shelf or two for the meals. Some of the meals will go in the house freezer as it is a big one too. And I'm sure some will end up at son's house. Maybe I should adjust the amount of containers down to around 8 each. The Food Saver bags really don't take up any more room. My only issue with them is the cost. The ones that will take up a lot of room will be the round bowls. It would be very nice if I could afford a smaller freezer too. Not in my 'plans' though. Not with everything else I need done at that house first. 

 

One word of warning. Label the meals!  DUH.  I have 3 different kinds of meals in there now and two of them look very similar. They looked different when I put them in there. Now I really have pot luck when I go there. Sometimes tuna noodle casserole and sometimes shepherd's pie. Both are white on the top. 

 

One major advantage for me personally will be eating healthier. I can cut way back on the fast food and canned foods and sandwiches simply because I don't know what I want to eat and nothing is cooked up. Having a choice will help...I think. So far the meals I already have take 10-12 minutes from freezer to table. I couldn't drive to town in that amount of time to pick something up. Which reminds me that I need to scale way back on the trips to town when I'm over there! 

[Mother]

I do freezer meals because of my restricted diet.  I sometimes do separate meals for DH so senior solo here too. I always label and date my meals but I also add instructions if needed, like oven temp if baking. 
 

I love my home made freezer meals.  We don’t go anywhere unless someone takes us so no running to town for us.  My energy levels fluctuate so greatly that I make them up and freeze them when I feel reasonably energetic and use them when I am too tired or unable to cook.  I used a whole lot of them the first few weeks after my fall and was sooooo grateful I had them.  They all need to be replaced now so your list was extremely  timely.  Now I can put a few different meals away?  

[Littlesister]

Another one is porkchop, Au gratin potatoes, applesauce and whatever veggie you like with it. I also do beef stew and soups like that. I like to buy the applesauce in those small plastic single containers since it is just me. My GS had started buying those single cups of mashed potatoes and mac and cheese for work. So, I picked some up on sale to use as something quick when not feeling like cooking up anything along with my canned meats and veggies. So, it is just enough for a couple of meals that way.  Still don't have enough freezer room to do up the meals like that. But working on it. 

I canned up some small boneless steak a few days ago. So that is what I will be eating on those days I don't want to cook. Just heat and serve. 

[Jeepers]

Not being able to get out, or having to rely on someone else for help, is my motivation too. I don't have a 'plan' for how long that would be. Never really thought about a timeline. But as long as I can stay put, the more comfortable I'll feel. I've been set back in prepping for over a year and it's starting to concern me. I feel like I have a long way to go and a short time to get there now.  Sheeesh, is that the Smokey and the Bandit song?  

 

Pork chops is a great idea too! I like chunks of pork dipped in 57 Sauce.  Don't judge. LOL. I only added freezer stuff that will go in the microwave to mine. But I thought of cole slaw etc. on the side. I want to make up some of those individual corn bread slices to freeze and have on hand too. I found a pan that will make the size I want. Looks like the old Boston Market ones. Corn bread muffins would work too. I also buy the small cups of applesauce and fruit cups. Especially the mandarin oranges and peaches and pears. I hope to make my own apple sauce in half pints this fall. I have a lot of canning 'planned' too. A lot. 

 

 

[euphrasyne]

Tips:

Flash freeze pancakes, waffles, cookie dough, etc on a cookie sheet.  Toss into a large zip lock bag and take out as needed.  

Boneless and prechopped meat heat easier.  Go ahead and cut steak, porkchops, chicken breast, etc. into bite sized  pieces.  

Freeze soup in wide cups or ice cube trays and then pop the cubes into a large ziplock bag.  

Bags of cole slaw mix freeze and heat well as the shred veg for most Asian dishes.  I use it as a short cut a lot.  It can also go on tacos for crunch factor.  

 

Things I typically freeze are

soup of all types

beef/mushroom/or chicken stroganoff with rice or noodles

chili

pancakes

breakfast burritos

English muffin sandwiches (breakfast and lunchmeat.)

Whatever I made for dinner I sometimes double it and put a few 'frozen' lunches of leftovers for DH.    

[Jeepers]

Thank you. Awesome ideas.  

 

I have meat issues. I like it but only boned and skinned etc. so chunks or slices work great for me. My meat issues are also the reason I have room in my freezer for the meals. I have meat in there. A lot of steaks for summer and chicken breasts. But I didn't really buy the freezer for long term meat storage. I bought it to eat out of continually. That has worked out for me so far because every time I go over there, I eat a pre-made meal or two from it. 

 

I can most of my soups but I do plan to have some creamy ones frozen. Creams of Broccoli, Potato and Zuppa Toscana. Oh yeah. 

 

I never thought about flash freezing the pancakes and waffles. Will make them easier to separate too. Will also do the corn bread slices. 

[euphrasyne]

Zuppa Toscana freezes very well.  The flavors always sit a bit better after being in the freezer.  Sometimes I make it with kale, other times I use collards or spinach.  

 

French Market Soup (excellent in the freezer)

Dice carrots

white beans cooked

chicken broth

celery

bell peppers diced

sliced smoked sausage.

onions

bay leaf

Make a soup in the usual fashion.  Simmer long.  Season to taste (I usually use cajun, but any works.)  I often start off with dehydrated veg for this and then freeze it when it is done.  It works out well for smaller servings too.   

 

If a loaf of fresh bread is getting old, I'll cut some slices and pre butter it with garlic and flash freeze it and then into the ziploc bag for fast garlic toast to go with soup.

Edited January 5 by euphrasyne

[Mother]

I was gifted a couple silicone “Souper Cubes” I use to freeze things.  They come in different sizes but mine have four one cup sections. They come with a nice lid.  The food comes out as square blocks which fit nicely in zip lock or food saver bags and stack really great. 
 

I freeze all sorts of food on cookie sheets then put them in bags for easy use.  I make up sausage or other meat patties and freeze them that way before stacking them in bags. I can take out just what I need.  Euphrasyne, that’s a great idea about the garlic bread! 
 

This is such a fun thread.  I’m sure we have other similar ones but it’s good to revisit ides.  I’m getting several great suggestions.  Thanks everyone! 

[Jeepers]

I want to have "Texas Toast" in the freezer too. Big slabs of garlic toast ready to heat and eat. Good for the Italian tomato-y meals and soups. 

 

I keep forgetting about hamburger patties too. The last two times I bought hamburger I forgot about making patties.  

 

I'll use kale in the Zuppa Toscana. I love kale. I'll have to check into the soup cubes. I had mixed luck with the silicone cubes when I used them for eggs. They stuck so bad I had to trash the eggs. Only a dozen but still...   BUT after I sprayed them they worked great. 

[Littlesister]

Lots of great ideas on here. I didn't think about Texas toast but that is a great idea. 

[Jeepers]

Ya know, I just remembered that I have quite a few of those older plastic freezer boxes stored away. Remember those with the green lids? I know I have pints and quarts but not sure how many. I could use them for soups. Plus they are square so will stack better than round bowls. Its hard to tell what all I'll find in the mysterious second garage in Indiana. Those boxes will be an exciting find though. 

[Mother]

I DO remember those freezer boxes and still have some somewhere.  I even have Tupperware ones.  I bet they would work for stacking garlic bread and etc too. Freezing the bread flat first would make it easy to remove one slice at a time…. 👍

[Jeepers]

Yes, freezing all sorts of things in them. I even remember freezing ham salad in some of the pints. I don't think they make them any more. I'm sure I still have some.  

 

BTW. don't freeze anything like ham/bologna salad with hard boiled eggs in it. The eggs come out very hard and rubbery! If I were to do it again I'd mix the ground meat, pickle relish and onions together and add the mayo and eggs after it thawed. The mayo turned the whole mixture white. Edible but not pleasant. Same thing with egg salad...leave out the hard boiled eggs when freezing. 

[Mother]

1 hour ago, Jeepers said:

Same thing with egg salad...leave out the hard boiled eggs when freezing. 

Ummmm, what would be left to freeze if not the eggs in egg salad? 
 

 

[Jeepers]

Well h3ll I don't know Mother! I was just thinking of my bologna salad debacle and egg salad also popped in my mind and I wanted to give out the warning.

Just don't do it.   

[Mother]

I won’t.  I swear I won’t….

[Dee]

I have tons of stuff in my freezer in single servings.  DH loves meat.  Now that I'm older I don't eat much of it.  Just last week I cooked 5 lbs. Italian sausage and 5 dozen eggs, making sausage and scrambled eggs.  I put 1 cup of the mix in sandwich bags, flattened them out and froze.  I used to make burritos, but he now just wants the sausage/eggs.  I ended up with 23 bags, plus what he ate for breakfast.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

I also made a 9x13 pan of lasagna.  I fed him two meals from it before cutting the rest in nice sized pieces and putting them in sandwich bags in the freezer.

                                                                                                

Later this week I'll make a couple dozen enchiladas to freeze 2 to a package.

 

I also found a box of pancake/waffle mix that was dated 8/23.  Whoops!  I cooked up the whole box making waffles.  We ate some for breakfast and the rest went into the freezer with 2 waffles per bag.                         

                                                                                                                                                                          

It took some time and work but it's awfully nice to have in the freezer and ready to just warm up.  I also have a lot of things I've done earlier.  Chili, Tator Tot casserole, escalloped potatoes/ham, chunks of leftover cooked chicken and roast beef to make into soups, and I can't think right off the bat what else.  

 

It makes life easy to cook one whole day and have individual meals for weeks.  I have 3 freezers and they are all full.

[Littlesister]

Dee, as soon as I can finish cleaning out garage and getting the garage sink replaced, I am going to buy an upright freezer. Then I can make up meals like that. I also want to freeze eggs as well. So, working on that later in the year. Need to make a place for the new freezer. Lots to do around here. And never a dull moment. 

[Mother]

Dee, do you find the scrambled eggs get tough in the freezer as hard boiled do? I haven’t the scrambled but plain fried eggs sometimes do.  Perhaps it is the air mixed into the scrambled eggs that keep them tender.  

[Dee]

I don't know if they do or not Mother.  DH eats them, not me, but he never complains and gobbles them up.

[Littlesister]

I heard today that the price of eggs will be going up again. There may be a shortage also. I am clearing out a little space so I can freeze some in my kitchen freezer.

[Jeepers]

Cooked scrambled eggs freeze well. But the 'boiled' egg white is what becomes hard and rubbery. I had chopped up boiled eggs in my ham salad and that is what didn't freeze well at all. I think I even ran them through a food chopper (don't really remember but that's the way I always make it) like I did the meat and onions and there were still tough pieces of rubbery egg white in the salad. 

[Littlesister]

Rubbery eggs sound disgusting.  I haven't tried freezing eggs yet but need to get started on some as with the culling of chickens, eggs will be going up again and get scarce as well. Still working on emptying the kitchen freezer as I make room in the chest freezer to put it. Then I will freeze a few raw eggs. And try out the scrambled eggs as well.