Meals to freeze
 

I am looking for recipes for meals that can be made and frozen. I would like meals that I can just heat up in microwave or on stove-top or in the oven.
I have made some (mostly soups and homemade breads) but would like more. I live in a very rural area so I would prefer recipes that don't require unusual ingredients.
I found lots of recipes online but it would be nice if YOU have tried the recipe and know it to be a good freezer meal. Your recipes for main courses, lunches, snacks would be appreciated. I have batches of cookies/squares made and frozen but other 'sweetums' recipes are also welcomed.
Thank you. Look forward to reading your favorites.
anne

sloppy joes freeze well...I make sloppy joes for the animal shelter's fundraiser, so I have to make a lot (ten pounds of ground beef). I freeze in the gallon size freezer bags...works out well.

I use canned tomatoes, make spaghetti sauce in bulk and put it in freezer bags. I buy hamburger when it's on sale, bake lots of meatballs and freeze them separately. I make chili, split pea soup, meatloaf, pork BBQ and hot dog chili. You can cook a whole box of spaghetti, divide it out into individual portions and freeze. I nuke it in the microwave with no added water and it tastes like you just cooked it. When the freezer is almost empty I usually spend two or three (long) days in the kitchen cooking and portioning things out to refill. This keeps us from eating out which is to expensive and I don't really like fast food anyway.
I've found if I use freezer bags, fill them, lay them on a cookie sheet to freeze I get more in my freezer. The one thing I had to learn the hard way was to write what's in the bag and date:)
If you want me to scan and send you my recipes just PM me.

I cook the way I did years ago for the family. Then freeze in Small bags, flat on a cookie sheet, then i box them up.

I go to the meat market abut 30 min from me and they have lots of things that they make in single serve sizes. They even wrap them freezer ready and put the instructions on a sticker on the outside of the package. The problem with them is they have changed their recipe or my taste buds have changed and they now taste so incredibly salty I don't want to eat them.
Some of the items offered to give you some idea are lasagna both meat and veggie, stuffed shells,
meatloaf, stuffed pepper. Chicken cordon blue, chicken Kiev, chicken Parmesan, Stuffed pork chops, lots of sea food stuffed with seafood stuffing etc. Lots I am forgetting. Even the regular grocery is starting to carry some but again they are too salty. They were so great to stick in the toaster oven on bake and take the dog out for a run and dinner is almost ready when I got back. I never minded paying more for the convenience since it's only me.
I was there yesterday and thought of making my own. I picked up some boneless chicken breasts and some butterflied pork chops and ground round to experiment.
I'll be watching here for more ideas. If they ever come out with frozen dinners that are low salt and taste good I would be in heaven. It would even be great if the picture looked like the dinner! :D

I try to keep these in the freezer: home made noodles--good with Roast Beef, Chicken, Beef Stroganoff. One of our favorites with any of the meat dishes.
Homemade Biscuits-Fry Sausage and have with the Biscuits and gravy. Biscuits and Sausage--just Sandwiches.
Left over Fried Chicken;another meal!
Let me know if you need the recipes for any of these!
Mariah

No special recipes here.
I make Planned Overs .... and freeze as single serve freezer meals.
(Planned Overs = When cooking, just make extra, ready to freeze.)

Most anything will freeze.
If you are ever hesitant, do one meal, eat it and then you will know for the next time.
I do all sorts of meals with meat/potatoes/veggies.
Likewise, the usual hashes, casseroles, etc. that are often done in this way.

If just rice or pasta, I put it into a snack size ziplock bag.
For meals and soups or mashed potatoes, I have some plastic containers that I freeze them in.
Once frozen, then I pop off the plastic and slide the frozen meal into a sandwich size baggie, and return to the freezer. Before filling, I write with a heavy marker on the plastic baggie what is inside.

With them all the same size, they sit nicely on their edges in rows in the pull out bin in my frig-freezer.
A quick flip through, and I can see what is there and decide on supper!


Makes for some pretty nice meals when I want a good supper ... and no work!

I make enchiladas in small aluminum cake pans. They freeze well and I can pop them out to heat in the microwave or thaw and then heat in the oven.

When I make meatloaf to freeze, I bake it in muffin tins. Pull out one or two, microwave it, and dinner is ready.

For enchiladas, I layer the ingredients like you would with lasagna. I'll even put sour cream in the layers since I don't always have it on hand. Cook, cool, cut into squares, then wrap and freeze in a ziplock bag.

I've stored some of the bigger casserole dishes from my " feeding kids" days and picked up smaller ones. I still cook " too big" but portion it out in these dishes to freeze and it works out for me.

Works great with salmon loaf too!

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

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. :o

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

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.

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

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?

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.

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!

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.

Murphy224 ,
Can you tell me what buns you use for the ,homemade/freezer ready bun Please?
thanks Binkister

I cook my potatoes in the pc foe mashed potatoes, then add butter and can milk salt and pepper.
They are great.
To freeze mashed potatoes I just use butter and sour cream, salt and pepper. This way they do not turn to mush and run all over the plate.

Do you have a small dutch oven or crockpot you can use for meals? Not sure how many you are feeding, but I have a recipe I freeze, and then cook later in a dutch oven or crock pot (I prefer it in the dutch oven).

" Crockpot TangyBBQ Chicken- 1 bag of baby carrots (or 1 lb carrots, cut into chunks)
- 1 chopped red onion
- 20 oz. can undrained pineapple
- 2 chopped garlic cloves
- 4 chicken breasts
- 1 cup teriyaki sauce
Put everything in a zipper bag. When ready to make, cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours in slow cooker.
Before serving, shred chicken and serve on buns."

You can mix it all up and separate into several bags (one or two chicken breasts in each) for smaller meals. I usually cook it in the dutch oven, 325 to 350 for an hour or so. Or you can go lower heat (200 to 250 for a couple hours). It thickens up better in the dutch oven.

I serve it over rice.

For the teriyaki sauce, I've used regular, mango teriyaki, etc, and it's all come out good.

I love having a freezer full of food! I'm a vegetarian so I freeze meatless meals. Besides lots of soups, bean dishes (like split pea soup and chilis) I've had success freezing: cooked frittatas, crustless quiche, various homemade veggie burgers, enchiladas (layered like lasagne), burritoes, stuffed pastas (manicotti, shells), twice baked potatoes, and vegetable risottos.

I also freeze all kinds of muffins, since I'm the only one in the house that eats muffins and I can't eat 12-18 that fast!! I've even frozen cooked biscuits to eat by dunking in thick soups.

Let me know if you are interested in some vegetarian meals and I can dig up a few recipes! :)

I have made these (link below) lots of times but generally do not put seeds on top. The bun itself is great and can be shaped into hot dog or hoagie type buns as well.
Lately though I got on a sourdough bread kick and made sour dough starter and have used it to make the dinner roll recipe just shape them bigger and bake a bit longer. Perfect hamburger buns. Check out the sour dough information here on King Arthur, it will walk you start to finish on how to do it.
Good luck and let me know if I can offer any other information.

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recip...er-buns-recipe

Thank you to all the people that replied. I have dozens and dozens of ideas and I am ready to use some of them. I will save some to do during the fall and they will make for quick meals over the winter. Special thanks to those that offered/sent their recipes to me. It is appreciated. I wish the whole world were as kind and helpful as QB members. What a wonderful place it would be!

This thread inspired! Thank you!