I've recently become a devout convert to freezer meals. It takes roughly the same amount of time to cook and shred eight pounds of chicken as it does two, a negligable amount of additional time to chop three onions instead of one, and it means that some days, your meal prep amounts to pulling something out of the freezer, dropping it in the slow cooker, and coming home to the delicious aroma of dinner. What's not to love?
If you're a newbie to freezer meals, you should know that you can adapt many of your favorite meals into freezer meals--just double the amount you're making and put half of it in the freezer. Southern Living has a great guide to getting started with freezer meals, and Once a Month Mom can tell you what does and doesn't freeze well. While some people prefer to spend a full day prepping dozens of freezer meals all at once, I prefer to just double the recipes I'm making and eat half now and save the other half for later.
Chicken Pot Pie from Freezer Meals for Us.
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole from Money-Saving Mom.
Note: Freezer meals with rice in them usually work best if you slightly undercook the rice before freezing.
Southwestern Stuffed Bell Peppers from Our Best Bites.
Just make twice (or thrice) the amount of stuffing necessary for the stuffed bell peppers, and put the extra in the freezer. The next time you want to make these, pull the filling out the night before to thaw in the fridge, and all you need to do is prep the bell peppers and stick it all in the oven!
Scalloped Potatoes and Ham from 6 Cents.
Raspberry-glazed Pork Chops from Once-a-Month Mom
Zucchini Lasagna from Nerd & Healthnut.
This is one of my all-time favorite recipes. I make this with twice as much sauce for both the cheese and tomato layers and put the extra in the freezer. The next time I want to eat it, all I have to do is pull the sauce out of the freezer to thaw and slice a few zucchini. In my experience, there is too much red sauce in proportion to everything else, but it also works as a fantastic spaghetti sauce--another freezer meal made in one go!
Cilantro-Lime Chicken with Corn and Black Beans from Six Sisters' Stuff.
Zuppa Toscana from There's Always Thyme to Cook.
Basically any soup you make can be frozen and thawed later with great results. This soup recipe is a favorite in our family. (We just leave out the wine the recipe calls for and it works just great without it.)
BBQ Chicken from Freezer Meals 101.
Baked Penne with Sausage and Creamy Ricotta from What's Cookin', Chicago?
Note: Freezer meals with pasta in them usually work best if you slightly undercook the noodles before freezing.
