Cooking for the Freezer..

Curry_Queen

rchddap1 wrote:

I'll just go back to sleep then. Goodnight all.

NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! you can't go to sleep on a Friday afternoon!!! Here have a glass of and join the fun (hic!)


I got so many tabs open here I keep losing track ... or am I losing the plot ... no smart !!!!!! answers from you lot at the back

alyth

Right, for the first time this year, I have some time off - a week in fact! Builders are coming to work on the house, so I can't leave the house during the day, and as my partner and I work quite long hours, we tend to live on ready-meals during the week. However, I would like some ideas for meals I can cook and freeze and then just take out as required. I'm not a very adventurous cook, I can do chilli, spag bol and curries, but I'll have some time to experiment. Neither of us is that keen on pasta apart from with the spag bol, so I'd prefer the meals to be meat-based -and quite cheap would be good too! I make soups and freeze them for lunches, but I'm stuck on things for supper-time! Any help would be gratefully received, I'm thinking along the lines of chicken in sauces, something like that - but I'm stuck for ideas at the moment!

squeaky

Hiya

I'm pretty sure we've got a thread on this hidden away somewhere. I'll go look for it and edit back in here, so watch this space...



Cooking for the freezer
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=44355

Cooking for the freezer - vegetarian
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=43019

ladygrey_2

think of any casserole or meat dish you like and cook double and freeze

chillies and curries freeze well and often taste nicer when reheated

alyth

squeaky, that link is just fantastic, thank you so much - there's loads to keep me going all week on that! Ladygrey, you are right in that I really find if I make chicken curry and freeze it, it tastes so much better.

Well that's my week at home with the builders sorted out, I might even make them some cookies are a lure to finish the job!

icklepeach

Hi all.

Over the last 2 years my darling hubby and I have moved from eating rubbish to cooking meals from scratch almost every night. But as of Monday he and I will both be working full time, and rarely getting in before 6. We've got a daughter who'll be at a childminder.

I am more than happy to cook meals ready for freezing (and I'm taking a keen interest in the slow cooker recipes), but at what point can you freeze a shepherds pie or a lasagne? are there any other recipes that freeze very well, or anything I should totally avoid?

Thanks

iPeach

Tenuse

Hi iPeach,

I've successfully frozen fully-made and cooked lasagnes, in fact whenever we cook one now I get some of the aluminium takeaway cartons and make mini-ones as well especially to freeze. You could also just make the bolognaise and freeze that in portions, then you could add it to spaghetti, lasagne etc. and just have to do the pasta/white sauce bits!

Other things that freeze really well are soups (cooked), pasta sauces (cooked - with or without the pasta), apple pies (uncooked). All easy to make double quantities so that you eat one, freeze one.

I also make cookie dough and put it in the freezer (uncooked) so when I fancy a cookie I get a "portion controlled" size out! rather than eating all the cookies at once! I have made fruit cakes and frozen the mixture uncooked and they have come out fine. Made sure I wrote the cooking instructions on the lid, though, so that I knew what to do with it several weeks later

Hope this helps

Ten x

*flutterby*

Great thread as I have the same questions as icklepeach...

Can pastry be frozen cooked? It particular puff pastry?

squeaky

Hiya

We have an older thread filled with top tips for meals for the freezer, so I've added your post to it. Since posts are listed in date order you'll need to read from the beginning to catch up with us all.

Good luck

mags50_2

Not sure about cooked puff pastry freezing as I haven't tried doing it before... someone else is bound to know... they're a very helpful lot on here

But...

I'm always freezing cooked shortcrust pastry pies... apple, meat, coconut etc. and they're definately ok!

HTH