Foods That Freeze Well

[abjcooking]

I just got this idea while watching one of Rachel Ray's shows. What recipes do you have that freeze well? I just love the idea of cooking all day Sat or Sunday and then freezing the meals so all you have to do during the week is defrost and minimal preparations for a great meal.

Chili is an obvious one, but here is one of mine that is a little different. I love cooking this when my boyfriend goes out of town because you can freeze single portions in zip lock bags. It is also great for big crowds and parties because it makes so much.

Easy Brisket

1 3-4 lbs. beef brisket
2 T. liquid smoke
1 t. garlic salt or 1 clove garlic minced
1 t. dry onion or 2 T. fresh onion, chopped
2 t. celery seed
2 t. worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 t. salt
2 t. seasoned pepper
1/2 cup oil
1/3 cup catsup
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 cup barbecue sauce

Place all ingredients, except barbecue sauce into a jar and shake well to mix. Pour over meat, cover, and marinate overnight. Drain. Bake covered at 300 for 4-5 hours. Drain off most of the fat; add barbecue sauce and cook 1 more hour. Great served on buns as barbecue or as a main dish. Flavor improves over time.

 

[cats]

I usually cook a large batch of spaghetti sauce, have it for dinner that night, and freeze the rest in meal size portions. Since I make the sauce from scratch and it takes quite some time, all subsequent meals with the frozen premade sauce are a cinch.

During the summer, when eggplants were in abundance in our garden, I would spend the better part of a day making eggplant parm and bake in a large pan. We would have what amount of that we wanted for dinner that night and then I would divide the remainder into meal size portions to freeze. When thawed, it reheats well in the microwave and only have to cook the pasta for the next meal to go with it.

I don't like freezing dinners with the pasta already in them. I think the reheated pasta turns out too mushy.

Seems to me that just about any meal I cook in the crock pot will freeze well, from chicken to beef, etc.

We use many of these premade frozen dishes when we go off in the motor home, thus, feels like home cooking away from home.

 

[kitchenelf]

What a way to start your day on here - click on the forum Miscellaneous, click on the thread "Foods that freeze well", see that the last post was made by "cats".

 

[SizzlininIN]

I froze some left over Beef Stew I fixed about 3 weeks ago. I ended up thawing it out this week and reheated it earlier this week. I did find that the potatoes didn't have the same texture as when it was freshly made but otherwise it was delicious.

 

[Claire]

Since there are only two of us, I do this often. Fix some kind of meat for a weekend meal. Then chop it up and you can make any of the following:

chili
stroganof (freeze it without sour cream, add that when you thaw and re-heat)
stew
barbecue sandwiches (put chopped, frozen meat in your crock pot along with a sauteed onion and some garlic and your favorite barbecue sauce. Turn the pot on, when you get home from work, voila. Dinner. Kids love it, good as a dish for a party).

One thing I can get here, albeit not cheap, is venison tenderloins. I buy and prepare them for an all-out fancy dinner, then make stroganof later after freezing the leftover meat. Once a freind had tons of leftover grilled hamburgers after a restaurant freebie of some sort. He asked if I wanted them, and I tossed them in the freezer. They made the best chili, which I served as a tree-trimming party meal.

I always have a big baggie sitting in the freezer, awaiting odds and ends of meat, bones and veggies for soup. No soup is ever the same twice, but it is always loved.

 

[Andy M.]

I freeze soups, chili and casseroles all the time. Like cats, I make and freeze tomato sauce - several types. Also pot roast lef overs, mashed potatoes and gravy. It pays to label your containers well!

Just about any type of meat and fish is a candidate as well. I buy larger cuts, cut them up and double wrap them. Also raw and cooked chicken bones until I have enough for a batch of broth. Then I freeze the broth.

 

[Coco]

Since I work full-time, have a 2 year-old, and a puppy, .....freezing meals or "parts" of meals is a huge timesaver for me. Like cats, spaghetti sauce is a great thing to freeze. I also freeze:

homemade pizza dough
marinara sauce
uncooked lasagnas
quesadillas, (just tried this recently and it worked out really well!)

I am always looking for more ideas so please keep posting if you have any!

 

[Otter]

It was so cold last week that my toes froze.

 

[subfuscpersona]

Gosh - it's almost easier to say what doesn't freeze well than what does since so many things can be successfully frozen. An ample freezer is a cook's best friend (I sure wish mine was bigger!).

Any dish that improves over time (sauces, soups, stews etc) are candidates except don't include cooked potatos or cooked pasta in them as they do get mushy from being frozen and then defrosted. (Re potatoes, if they are mashed they do freeze fine). Sauces (besides totmato sauce, I also freeze cheese sauce).

Dough - bread/pasta/pastry - freezes well. Other posters have said they freeze home-made pasta - both noodles and filled pastry like ravioli).

The only problem with freezing food that I have is forgetting to defrost it - nothing like coming home from a hard day's work expecting to reheat some wonderful dish you've made only to discover it's still in the freezer :?