Freezer Meals

I have been super busy lately, and have not been cooking as much as I'd like to.  Traveling for work has really put a damper on my ability to stay organized in the kitchen.  I had some time this week and I managed a massive meal prep day.  It took two separate shopping trips (Costco for the meat) and Kroger (for the rest of the ingredients).  I had a lot of the pantry items on hand, but I ended up using them up so I will have to replace them next time I go to the store.  I don't know what happened to my receipt, so I can't really tell you how much money I spent per meal, but I do know that it was less than $250 for everything I bought (and I bought a lot of breakfast and lunch items that I am not including in this prep).  It would have been better if I had planned further in advance and combined coupons with sale items, but I am not that great at planning...yet.  I did pick up a few sale items that I plan on using next time I prep.  

Everything I made is meant to be frozen and eaten at a later date.  Ideally, I would defrost the bag in the fridge over night and then put it in the crock pot the next morning, but you can dump everything in frozen.  However, you may need to increase the cooking time depending on the size of your chicken breasts if they are not defrosted. Most of the meat is uncooked, with the excepting of the ground beef and meat balls.  Those are meant to be added last minute to other dishes like soups and stews.  Because I wanted to make my enchiladas last night, I made one batch of pulled pork for dinner, and then used the leftovers for the enchiladas.  It made for a late night and some dishes this morning (I highly recommend taking breaks to do dishes as you go), but it will be awhile before the kitchen is that dirty again.  

A word about serving sizes.  If you aren't used to weighing and measuring your food like I am or you have a big appetite, you may look at these meals and wonder in what world do I think they will feed 3-4 people.  I promise you, they will.  We had a little adjustment period when we started really looking at how much we eat.  It never seemed like enough food (especially on king size dinner plates) but it totally is. Keep in mind, I am not making food for a body builder, and I am not making food for a 15 yr old boy.  I am making food for an average family of 3 with an average activity level.  Sometimes we get 4 servings out of a meal (which usually means my husband eats leftovers in the middle of the night), other nights we each eat a serving and a half.  However, when I plan meals, I plan for 1 serving per person.  You may have a bigger appetite, and there for want more servings, but the serving sizes are correct.  How many servings you eat is between you and your fork.  Just remember, a serving size and what you serve yourself may not always be the same thing.

As I take pictures of these meals I will update this post.  I should have taken pictures of all the bags of food, but since I was trying to get it in the freezer relatively quickly, and the whole process took a few hours, I just forgot.  

Hamburger Patties

3 pounds ground beef

1 TBSP season salt

1/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix gently. Divide into 6-12 patties (depending on the size of burgers you want).  Place on a wax paper lined baking sheet.  Freeze over night and then transfer to a zip top bag.  Serves 6 (1/2 pound burgers) or 12 (1/4 pound burgers)

Chicken Burrito Bowls

4-6 large Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts 
2 TBSP Olive Oil
1 lime, zested and juiced
2 cups of Frozen Corn
2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 finely Chopped Red Onion
1 cans of Black Beans, drained and rinsed
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 cup cilantro

Combine all the ingredients, except cilantro, in 2 gallon sized zip top bags.  Cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4.  Add the cilantro 30 min before serving.  Serve over rice with sautéed bell peppers and onions.  Garnish with sour cream (or plain greek yogurt), pico de gallo and additional cilantro.  Makes 2 meals, each meal serves 3-4.  

Pulled Pork

1 package large pork tenderloins (2 loins per package)
1 red onion
1 hard cider
2 TBSP pork rub or cajun seasoning.  

Combine all the ingredients in 2 gallon sized zip top bags.  Cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4.  Top with BBQ sauce if desired.  Makes 2 meals, plus leftovers for other recipes (see below).  Each meal serves 3-4.  

Pork, Black Bean and Sweet Potato Enchiladas

This is not the prettiest meal, but it tastes great!

Leftover Pulled Pork (roughly half 1 pork loin)
2 baked sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 can black beans, drained
1 8 oz block pepper jack cheese, grated
1/4 cup taco seasoning (1 packet)
2 cans red enchilada sauce
16 extra thin corn tortillas

Combine the pork, sweet potatoes, and black bean with the taco seasoning and mix well.  Spread 1/4 enchilada sauce in 2 baking dishes.  Rinse 2 corn tortillas with water and microwave between 2 paper towels for 15 seconds on high. Place a small amount of cheese and pork mixture in each tortilla, and place seam side down on the enchilada sauce.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas.  Top the enchiladas with the remaining sauce, and cover with the remaining cheese.  Cover, and bake at 350 for 30 min.  Remove the foil and bake an additional 10-15 minutes until bubble.  Garnish with sour cream or plain greek yogurt and cilantro.  Makes 2 meals, each meal serves 4. 

Sweet and Sour Chicken

4-6 large Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

1/2 Brown Sugar
1/4  cup. Soy sauce
1/2 cup Ketchup
1/8 cup Red Wine Vinegar
1 TBSP yellow mustard (Chinese mustard if you have any)
1 16 oz. can Pineapple with juice

Combine all the ingredients in 2 gallon sized zip top bags.  Cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4.  Add the cilantro 30 min before serving.  Serve over rice with sautéed bell peppers.  Make 2 meals, each meal serves 3-4.

*update: I thought this needed more of a sauce, so I ended up adding a little more soy sauce and a little more (about 4 ounces) pineapple juice.  If you didn't use Chinese Mustard, and you like spicy food, you may also want to add some hot sauce or Sriracha   

Bell Peppers (and Onions)

Chop 4 bell peppers and divide between 4 zip top bags.  Add half of 1 sliced red onion to 2 of the bags.  Freeze until needed.  Sauté the peppers and onions in a small amount of olive oil.  Before serving. Serve the Peppers and Onions along side the Chicken Burrito Bowls, and the plain bell peppers with the Sweet and Sour Chicken.  Makes 4 side dishes. 

Meatballs

3 pounds ground beef

2 eggs

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/4 milk

1 TBSP Italian seasoning

1 TBSP season salt

1/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix gently.  In a large skillet over medium low heat, add 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter.  Working in batches, roll the meat mixture into small meatballs and place in the skillet.  Brown in the skillet and then remove from the pan to cool.  The meatballs may not be fully cooked.  Divide among 3 zip top bags and freeze.  To serve, add to sauces or soups and cook until heated through and fully cooked.  Makes 3 meals, each meal serves 3-4.  

Honey Dijon Chicken 

4-6 large Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
1/4 cup Dijon Mustard
1/4 cup Honey or Maple Syrup
1 Tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
1 tsp chili flake
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Combine all the ingredients in 2 gallon sized zip top bags.  Cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4.  Shredded and serve on buns as sandwiches.  You can also grill this chicken, but make sure it is fully defrosted. Optional- top with bacon and cheddar cheese.  Broil until the cheese is melted.  Make 2 meals, each meal serves 3-4.  

Ground Beef

In a large skillet brown 3 pounds ground beef.  Drain, and divide between 3 zip top bags.  Freeze until needed.  Add to salads, chili, tacos, potatoes as needed.  Season as desired.  Makes 3 meals, 3-4 servings per meal.