How do you freeze meals?

Mands

missamoo wrote: »

Seriously tho, I made a shepherds pie the other day, then decided i needed to freeze it but it was in a pyrex dish and I didn't know if I could put it in the freezer. I have plenty of plastic dishes but I would like to be able to put things straight from the freezer into the oven.

For something that gets constructed and needs to go in the oven, like a shepherd's pie or a lasagne, I make them in their dish having lined it first with foil.

It goes in the freezer and once it's solid gets lifted out of the dish and double wrapped. Then the dish isn't taking up freezer room and can be used in the meantime for other stuff.

I've found it's essential for me to label the thing with which dish it fits in; there's no fun in unwrapping a lasagne and then standing there trying to remember if it fits in the medium thing or the big thing. It took a couple of goes to learn that lesson ;-)

There's something satisfying about pulling an entire meal from the freezer, pulling off the foil, dropping it into its own dish and whacking it straight in the oven. Particularly when you can then say ...

"Dinner's all sorted, are you doing the washing up?"

Mands

ubamother

Mands wrote: »

I've found it's essential for me to label the thing with which dish it fits in; there's no fun in unwrapping a lasagne and then standing there trying to remember if it fits in the medium thing or the big thing. It took a couple of goes to learn that lesson ;-)

Ha - I found this out when I had loads of different shapes of frozen soup and couldn't find which container fitted which shape (it was all a bit early in the morning) I had to take the thinnest rectangle of soup in a bag and smash it into chunks on the side of the kitchen bench to fit it in a container - never again!

tryingtoruletheworld

I freeze in pyrex, they usually say on the bottom that they are freezer, oven and dishwasher safe. I have some of the ones with plastic lids too, they definitely make life easy!

rachbc

thinks that need to be baked like shepards pie I do in foil trays, everything else in those plastic takeaway containers so can go in the microwave

missamoo

Mands wrote: »

For something that gets constructed and needs to go in the oven, like a shepherd's pie or a lasagne, I make them in their dish having lined it first with foil.

It goes in the freezer and once it's solid gets lifted out of the dish and double wrapped. Then the dish isn't taking up freezer room and can be used in the meantime for other stuff.

I've found it's essential for me to label the thing with which dish it fits in; there's no fun in unwrapping a lasagne and then standing there trying to remember if it fits in the medium thing or the big thing. It took a couple of goes to learn that lesson ;-)

what a brilliant idea. was wondering how to cook them again if they are bagged as other ppl have suggested. that made me laugh tho - i can just imagine me standing there so proud with my dinner and then not able to remember what i cooked it in!

Actiongirl_2

Do people generally defrost before re-cooking their frozen meals? We are expecting baby #2 and have filled the freezer with pies, lasagne, chilli, bolognaise sauce etc, all in foil containers.

I hadn't given much thought to whether they should be defrosted before cooking or not.

I would love some advice!

Primrose

I think if you're trying to freeze family size meals like shepherds pies and caseroles the best thing is to cook them, freeze them, remove from the dish and wrap in aluminium foil. You can then remove them from the freezer 24 hours beforehand, put them back into the same caserole dish and put in the oven. If they're thawed through they will require less fuel in the oven to reheat them.
If you freeze them in foil containers you can't defrost them in the microwave, which is a pain.

maisiek

Actiongirl wrote: »

Do people generally defrost before re-cooking their frozen meals? We are expecting baby #2 and have filled the freezer with pies, lasagne, chilli, bolognaise sauce etc, all in foil containers.

I hadn't given much thought to whether they should be defrosted before cooking or not.

I would love some advice!

This is something I have been thinking about, I have always had a thing about freezing and then re-cooking food but I know it will be so much more efficient and money saving! Must get over my weird thing!

hotcookie101

I nearly always defrost stuff before reheating.
I freeze things like shepherds pie, potato gratin, moussaka, lasagne in ceramic/pyrex dishes which I allow to cool, then wrap in cling film, then foil. I leave them in the dishes (leave more room in my overflowing cupboards :rotfl:) Most things I don't do the final cook (like with lasagna and shepherds pie, but veg/potato gratins I cook through before freezing. Its great to have HM ready meals in there, especially for those days I get stuck late at work, love not having to cook!
I take them out the night before and thaw in fridge, then reheat in the oven.
I freeze some things in individual foil dishes for oven ready meals for 1-I currently have 4 portions of pork and tallegio lasagne (BEST EVER USE OF LEFTOVER PORK EVER:T:rotfl:) shepherds pie, and lamb stews in there.
I then freeze leftovers in plastic takeaway tubs-so OH can take to work and nuke them when he works weekend shifts, or so I can have a quick meal if he's out.
I freeze things like stews/chilli/pasta sauce/bolognese in heavy duty pour and store bags-I do sometimes cook these from frozen-defrost in pan on hob or nuke in micro, but these are about the only thing I don't defrost first
I LOVE my freezer-it makes life SO much easier lol

agiaga

Actiongirl wrote: »

Do people generally defrost before re-cooking their frozen meals?!

Most meals doesn't have to be defrosted before reheating. The main difference is time needed to make it warm - already defrosted food is hot much quicker.
The best and safest way of defrosting is overnight in the fridge.