Please help me batch cook for my freezer!

acl2009

We are due our first baby in 3 weeks time and in preparation I want to cook up a load of meals that I can then portion up and chuck in the freezer. I don't want to really worry about cooking for the first few weeks, so want to be able just to take something out of freezer and throw in microwave and only need to cook some extra veg/pasta/boil some potatoes etc... My problem is I just don't know what I can freeze!

I've already thought about doing some bolognese and cottage pie but other then that I'm completely stuck for ideas. I was really hoping some of you could suggest some reasonably easy and low cost to make meals that I can prepare now and freeze. As I'm already going to make up a couple of things with mince I'd really appreciate non mince based meal ideas.

I've got a slow cooker so am more then happy if the meals involve chucking a load of ingredients in that and then ignoring it all day too!

Thank you in advance.

Pink.

Hi acl2009,

These existing threads should give you plenty of ideas:

Cooking for the Freezer..

Batch cooking ideas please

I'll add your thread to the first link later to keep the suggestions together.

Pink

Butterfly_Brain

Curries
Beef Stew
Sausage Stew
Lasagne
Bolognaise
Chilli
HM Tuna fishcakes
Sausage Toad
Sausage plait
HM pizza
Meatloaf
Meatballs in tomato sauce
Mince Cobbler
Meat and potato pie
Somerset Pork
Goulash
Cornish pasties
Chicken in white wine sauce
Chicken in tomato and basil sauce
Chicken in a tomato and caraway sauce
Tuna and sweetcorn in a cheese sauce to serve with pasta, pancakes or rice or in a fish pie
Carbonara pasta sauce
BBQ chicken
Chicken stew
Chicken crumble
Quiches
Corned Beef and Potato Pie
Most puddings, breads, cakes and desserts freeze well too

debbym

As a general rule of thumb if you can buy it in the freezer section of your supermarket then you can make your own and freeze it!

I tend to freeze leftovers too (always a lot left over in our house with three young kids who liked something last week but not today - drives me nuts!) Leftover lasagne becomes a lunch for me sometime next week, leftover curry (inc rice) becomes mulligatawny soup for 2 and so on.

One thing I try and do if cooking specifically for the freezer is to cook my normal planned meal but double the amount - this way I don't end up with 30 portions of spag bol sauce and no space for anything else! Since you have a little time left this could make the most of time you were going to spend in the kitchen anyway. The majority of the recipes in the slowcooker threads should freeze OK (things with cream or egg whites tend to go grainy so avoid those if poss). I would start with a list of your favourites and go from there.

PipneyJane

What debbym said.

If you like Indian food, dhal freezes well. I love this one from Sophie Dahl which I make with ready made garam marsala (also, I don't bother to do her rice. I just do my regular one). It makes at least 8-10 portions so is great for stocking up the freezer.

I also love this kale and chickpea soup from Epicurious, which I make with spinach instead of kale. Here's my verison:

Ingredients

1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 red jalapeno chillies sliced
100g/4oz chorizo, diced
450g cooked chickpeas (drained weight)
1 large bunch of spinach roughly chopped
1 bay leaf
500ml chicken stock
500g potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch dice (preferably use a boiling potato)
2 tablespoons olive oil

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan/stew pot. Fry the onion and chorizo together until the fat starts running from the chorizo (it will be red-ish).
2. Add the garlic and chillies. Fry for two or three more minutes.
3. Add the stock, chickpeas, potato, spinach and bay leaf. Bring to the boil and simmer for at least 20 minutes or until the the potato is cooked and at least half of the liquid has evaporated. The dish should look stew-like not soupy.
4. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve in deep soup plates.

Again, this makes large portions. It's also very easy to double up.