QuiltE

Works great with salmon loaf too!

Murphy224

I cook for one so a lot of extra meals, I will freeze most anything for a "second meal or two.
One of my favorite things to do is grill up a bunch of hamburgers and bag and freeze. Then when I need a quick meal, just thaw/heat in microwave for a minute or so and serve on homemade/freezer ready bun or serve alone with sides. The frozen bun will thaw in about 20 seconds in the microwave, so in less than 5 minutes I go from "want to eat"!! I go to Sams Club and buy the big package of 90/10 ground beef, weigh out 4-5 oz patties and cook all at once on the grill. Depending on the weight purchased, I get over a dozen burgers. My motto: If you are going to fire up the grill, cook a lot and make it worthwhile.
Murphy

WMUTeach

A while back I broke my pelvis and had to walk with a walker then a cane. It was had to stand for a long time and carrying things was difficult. I live on my own. My brother came over and he assisted in making many meals that went into the freezer. We started with mashed potatoes, a slice of meatloaf and I would later add a veg. of my choice. I put the "meals" in a single serve freezer container. Perfect! pull out, Microwave and have a portion controlled and homemade meal. Beyond the meat loaf he made lasagna, and a backed chicken and rice dish. Perfect. Easy stacking in the freezer and enough variety to keep meals interesting. Thanks for the reminder of how easy this was. One cooking session and about 20 meals ready for the future.

coopah

Taco soup...there are quite a few recipes online. It's like chili, but add taco seasoning instead.

Barb in Louisiana

Chicken and dumplings freeze well, but you have to keep the dumplings out of the liquid gravy, because they will absorb all the liquid. Plain cooked rotisserie chicken in single servings is good too. I put single servings in zip sandwich baggies and then put them in a freezer bag which has been dated and labeled. Mayo does not freeze well. When I am thinking, can I freeze it? I just walk down the freezer aisle in any grocery store and take notes. That's where I get my ideas from. I have a recipe for Sweet & Spicy Beans, which is similar to baked beans and have found they freeze very well. Now, these beans have onions, red pepper, bacon and brown sugar added to them on the top of the stove and then I add the pork & beans, heat, and serve. I don't know how real baked beans which have been cooked a long time would do. Almost any vegetable that you cook from fresh can be frozen. The sandwich bags are cheap and keep the servings separate. They don't stack as nicely as containers would, but they take up a lot less room. I keep a running inventory as to what's in the freezer and when I put it there. Saves forgetting something and it ruining. Extra cornbread is frozen to make dressing with. It's not as good as fresh, but it's not horrible.

Edited to add: I freeze Gumbo, Shrimp or Crawfish Etoufee and other southern Gulf coast dishes. All have done well. Fried seafood, isn't nearly as good the second time around, so I don't freeze those.

Years ago, I made a soup that had all the non-calorie veggies in it, especially a lot of cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, brussels sprouts and whatever else I thought of. It was a Weight Watchers recipe. There were no carbohydrates like potatoes or corn. I used chicken as the meat and chicken broth as the base. This froze and heated up wonderfully.

AnnieF

I didn't know until fairly recently that homemade macaroni & cheese casserole freezes very well.

deeleigh

I make a crockpot of loosemeats....3lb. then divide into servings to use for taco salad casseroles of course loosemeats(may be taverns to some of you!) you do have to break it up the first couple of hours or you will have meatloaf. Could someone tell me how they freeze pasta? I like to cook but cooking pasta is not one of my favorite things to do.Can it be frozen just cooked without any sauces?

notmorecraft

If I'm making soup I make a huge pot, use what we need and freeze the rest in portion sizes. I still cook like my kids lived at home. I freeze stew, roast beef, mince( for you American gals that's ground beef with onions a cup of red wine, squirt tomato purée, and gravy stock) that Can then be made into cottage pie or mince pie with a pastry topping. Bolognese, chilli, curries, basically most meals can be bulk cooked and then frozen.

maryellen2u

I'm headed to Dollar Store now to get some of their $1 zip lock bags. You've made me hungry with all your excellent ideas!

Pete

Thank you so much for this question! Getting good ideas.
When I make meatloaf i form them in individual loaves, bake and then freeze individually. I also do sloppy joes, pulled pork, pulled chicken, pasta casseroles, blackeyed peas, grilled chicken breasts, poached or rotisserie chicken cuti in cubes so that I can use it in salads or casseroles. Also ground beef cooked...can use in frito salads, tacos, pizza topping, stromboli, etc. all are portioned for one or two.