What Do You Make and Freeze

[CanadianMeg]

I had a pack of hamburger enough for two batches of meatballs so I made two and froze one. I've never really frozen much, but I think it would make my life easier to take advantage of that.

So aside from the obvious, like lasagna and chili, what do you like to make and freeze?
Any special instructions or things you watch out for when freezing prepared food?

 

[Andy M.]

I make several kinds of soups and freeze them in individual portion amounts. I make pasta sauces (with or without meats) and freeze them. Pizza sauce, stews, chili, homemade chicken stock.

 

[oldcampcook]

I freeze soups and stews. I also freeze hamburger in one pound portions. I also freeze whole beef roasts. A lot of my home made bread is also frozen.
I wrap the cooled breads in plastic wrap and then foil. After the soups, stews, hamburgers and roasts are frozen, I then vacuum seal them. And don't forget to mark what the packages contain and the date you frozen them.

 

[Maverick2272]

The only time I freeze anything is after I bought it. It gets taken out prior to use to thaw and then gets used up. I do buy ground beef in bulk but divide it by the pound into freezer bags so I only take out the exact amount I need for the meal.
The one except I can remember in the last 6 months is some cranberry sauce we made for a turkey breast. DW used the entire bag of cranberries and so made way too much sauce for us to use. That got frozen until I got another turkey breast.

 

[pacanis]

I freeze anything I can. And if I'm not sure about freezing something, I'll ask here.
A good storage container and/or vaccuum appliance and your all set to make life easier.... if you remember to take it out and let it thaw

 

[babetoo]

i mostly freeze leftover dishes. i live alone so do it is portion sizes. that way i don't have to eat the same thing for four day. soup and chili are the main ones but anything is fair game

babe

 

[LadyCook61]

I usually freeze meat and leftovers .

 

[BreezyCooking]

I freeze anything & everything I can, since I'm not a fan of traditional "canning".

Meatloaf, chili, pasta sauce, fresh tomatoes, fresh sweet peppers, fresh hot peppers, commercial chicken stock, homemade chicken stock, raw & cooked turkey &/or chicken burgers, meatballs.

Frankly, there are very few things that can't be successfully frozen if treated properly.

 

[sattie]

stock and chimichurri's.. is that spelled right?

 

[Bilby]

Bolognaise (meat) sauce, lasagna, canneloni, soups, savoury mince, seafood packets (made with filo), roast ham, fish cakes, leftover pasta dishes, cooked ham bones - all in various sized portions (single or duo serves).

 

[radhuni]

I only freeze raw vegetables, meat, fish, some time leftovers and fruit juices.

 

[Jeff G.]

pork BBQ.. Make up a big batch, it freezes really well.

 

[buckytom]

I make several kinds of soups and freeze them in individual portion amounts. I make pasta sauces (with or without meats) and freeze them. Pizza sauce, stews, chili, homemade chicken stock.

ditto. except i don't make pizza sauce.

the two things that i freeze most are individual portions of meatballs and sausages in sauce, and individual pea soups.

the only caveat that i can offer is to not over fill the containers. a lot of stuff expands when frozen, so you don't want the lid to pop off and the food get freezer burned.

 

[jennyp19]

I freeze just about everything. I always cook more than I need, and freeze in tubs. The last couple of things were some tomatoes that I "roasted" in the oven, sprinkled with a bit of sea salt, pepper and a teaspoon of sugar. I freeze them in bags, quite flat, so that when I want to use them I can give them a wack and break off the amount I need. Last night, I used some uncooked dough (made a couple of months ago) and made pizzas with cheese and passatta which had also been frozen.
One of my favourite things is to buy a large piece of meat, cook it, and let it cool, slice it portion it out and freeze it in gravy/sauce so that I can just defrost the correct amount when I need it. The meat goes further this way, and I don't waste any.
I freeze portions of mashed potatoes, mash them with cauliflower or root veg.
Today I had chance to buy some eggs cheap, far too many for using now. I have whisked them up 4 at a time, and frozen them. They will be useful for baking later.
If I have any wine left, I freeze it as ice cubes, again, useful if you don't want to open a bottle just for a drop to add to cooking sauces.

 

[GotGarlic]

Soups, stock, I divide big packages of meats on sale and freeze 2-4 portions. Last summer we had a bumper crop of basil and tomatillos, so I froze pesto and salsa verde. I freeze leftover rice for making fried rice later; we usually only use 1/3 of a baguette, so I freeze the other 2/3, cut in half so I can thaw 1/3 at a time.

 

[Katie H]

I freeze lots of foods. All my stocks, vegetables, baked goods. Extra meals. For example, tonight I made 4 huge pasties for dinner. Buck and will only be able to eat one each, so the other two went into the freezer. It'll be nice to have them on a busy day or when I really don't want to cook.

It's not unusual for me to make a full recipe for something and freeze half. About every 3 month we "eat down" the freezer, which is wonderful because it's a mini vacation from cooking for me and frees up some of our grocery budget money for some things we wouldn't normally purchase.

 

[archiduc]

Hi Canadian Meg,
What an interesting question!

I freeze bargains gained by shopping in the last hour before my local supermarket closes. so, yesterday I managed to buy 6 x 250gm plus packets of mature cheddar/extra mature cheddar cheese and 1 x 300gm Stilton cheese for £0.09 per packet - yes I was there at the right time, scooped them up and threw them into the freezer as soon as I got home! I also have a couple of kippers, 1 large octopus, tuna steaks, chicken livers for paté, pork chops, lamb chops, sausages bought and repacked in individual amounts and same with bacon and chicken all awaiting use, in the freezer.

I also have packets of puff pastry ready for use at some point.

In so far as cooked items are concerned, I have plain mince, ragout bolognaise, mince curry and chilli mince, a few soups, tomato sauce, béchamel sauce and some stocks in the freezer.

Finally, I have my home-made ice creams and sorbets in the freezer - vanilla, bay leaf, nutmeg, rhubarb, lime sorbet, blackberry sorbet and elderberry sorbet.

No doubt, I`ve missed something out, but can`t think what! I think I use the deep freeze for 2 main reasons: first to take advantage of bargains - I only shop in the last hour of my local supermarket`s opening hours and second to take advantage of bargains and either freeze or cook and freeze.

Regards,
Archiduc