Freezer friendly food prepping recipes
What’s for dinner tonight? Is this a question you frequently ask yourself or maybe you constantly get asked? Let’s get that question answered.
All you need is a free afternoon, some freezer friendly recipes and a list of ingredients.
This guide will help you get on track, save money and eat well. Go on …it’ll be worth it, we bet.
When it comes to freezer-friendly meals, you’ve got to make sure you pick a suitable recipe. As a rule of thumb, go for stews, mince recipes, soups, casseroles and pies over stir-fries, salads and roasts.
Here are some of our recipe recommendations:
Secondly, here are some top tips for freezing meals:
- Let the food cool to room temperature before you package it for freezing.
- Divide the meal into portions based on how many people you would usually feed. If you’re feeding a family, some meals can be frozen whole but if you’re after a meal for one then divide the dish up into separate portions and freeze each separately.
- Seal your food in air tight containers with as little air as possible.
- If you’re freezing liquid or semi-liquid foods that will expand when frozen leave a 5cm space below to rim to allow for expansion.
- Avoid using aluminium baking pans or foil when freezing.
- Cooked meals will last up to four months in the freezer.
And, some top tips for defrosting:
- Defrost cooked meals overnight in the fridge.
- If you’re in more of a rush, you can thaw things faster by placing your frozen packages in a watertight, sealed bag and cover it with cold water.
- To defrost in the microwave, remove the food from any plastic wrapping and place on a low heat for 6 – 8 minutes per 500g.
And finally, the fun part … eating! Here are some top tips for reheating:
- To reheat a defrosted meal in the microwave, cover with microwave-safe wrap and place in the microwave until the food is steaming hot, stir once to ensure even heating.
- To reheat a frozen meal without defrosting it first, bake at 150°C - 200°C for just under double the cooking time. This time will vary depending on your portion sizes.