Storage for monthly batch cooking

TwoUpTwoDown

Hi all

My partner and I are very keen on starting up some monthly batch cooking as life is getting busier with two young kids and work, nursery, school etc..

We have a 50/50 fridge freezer but with planning on cooking up meals for a month ahead, we are looking at getting an additional freezer. I've looked into chest and upright and can see the positives and negatives on both - better storage for size on chest freezers but less organised vs more organisation and frost free although space lost with shelves and drawers for uprights.
  
We could fit either option in the space we have kept aside. Just curious as to how much space people find they need and what size appliance to be thinking about? Budget wise not sure yet but could maybe go up to 600/700 pounds if we have to as uprights seem more expensive. 

Also, what storage do people use? Food bags or tubs? Are there better tubs than others for regular freezing/defrosting/microwaving?

Many thanks

Happy_Sloth

I use Ziplock bags, sandwich bags (Gallon ones for entire meals)  for storing most of my batch cooking,  as you can get far more food in the same space when your not dealing with a bulky container,  you can make them into little flat stackable blocks. When i take it out of the freezer i just put the bag into a clean container to defrost incase i get leakage. 

Heres a picture of some of mine,  these have mashed potato, carrot and swead, red cabbage and a single portion of leftover chilli.  Excuse the mess i grant they could be neater haha

 

I also use ovenproof pyrex dishes for things like cottage pie, lasagna, pasta bakes etc you can buy them with lids, you just pop the lid on to go in the freezer and then take the lid off when it goes into the oven or microwave. Just be sure to take it out of the freezer in the morning so you arn't going from freezing into a hot oven.  They can be quite expensive but you can pick them up in charity shops and they last forever so they are worth the investment. 

I hate waste.. i freeze everything that's spare... including the tiny bit of leftover mash in the picture above, only enough for 1 person but someone will eat it. 

Today i've made burritos out of leftover rice/beans from last nights tea. There wasn't enough for a full meal but i've added cheese and made 3. Thats 3 easy lunches for someone, they just need microwaving and while it's not truly "Free Food"  ... i figure anything i use rather than throw away is a win.  

bouicca21

I re-use lidded glass or plastic jars/tubs plus ziplock and freezer bags.  I’ve found that the sort of cheap freezable containers you can get from shops like Wilko often don’t last too long.  

joedenise

I've currently got a fridge/freezer in the kitchen plus a chest freezer in an outside cupboard.  You can get loads into the chest freezer but it is very difficult to keep organised.  I'm trying to run it down at the moment so that I can turn it off, defrost and then sell it on.  

I will be replacing it with an upright freezer, mainly because it is so much easier to organise.  If necessary I can add an additional upright into the cupboard.

I mainly use vacuum bags and freezer bags and freeze flat as it makes it easier to store and as @Happy_Sloth says they take up less space.  I have got a few more fragile things in plastic boxes (takeaway ones are quite useful if you have them); things like HM samosas.

RAS

Do check the energy efficiency rating and consumption, given the cost of electricity

-taff

I spent 30 quid on a secondhand chest freezer about 4 years ago. It's been kept in the lean to which freezes and gets hot depending on the time of year, it's been an excelent investment.

I have just now emptied it to defrost it for the first time in those 4 years.

Doom_and_Gloom

RAS said:

Do check the energy efficiency rating and consumption, given the cost of electricity

Our tall freezer, that we got around 9 years ago now, even with the price increases probably works out at £5~6 a month for electricity (we are on a E7 tariff, much cheaper for night costs) but for sake of argument lets say it reaches £8 a month. I know we didn't pay over £300 for it so it has worked out at less than £3 a month over its purchase so far and gets cheaper every month it runs that way. That comes to purchase and running to less than £12 a month for definite. The reductions and ready home made meals in there save us on buying much more expensive convenience foods or a takeaway. I can guarantee we would easily spend more than double, if not triple or more even, the cost of those freezer costs on such items a month without the freezer.

RAS

I'm suggesting that if the cost of two freezers is similar and the energy efficiency of one is better, then go for the more efficient one. Alternatively if one uses a lot of power and has a similar efficiency rating, think about the one that uses least.

Not least as none of us know what energy cots will be in ten years time.

goldfinches

I agree with those who find the upright type of freezer easier to use because of ease of access and being able to glance at everything in one pulled out basket. Whichever type you decide to buy I can recommend the Argos own brand ones which go by the Bush name as being both well made and very good value for money.
It's worth your letting people on here know the volume that the standard portions for your family come to IYSWIM so that you can get specific suggestions for the best type of container for that volume.
I find M*rks and Sp*nc*r yoghurt containers, lock'n'lock boxes and pyrex heat and serve all work well for me. 

Something I keep meaning to do is to keep a list stuck to the front of mine so that I don't have to keep turning on my laptop to check whether I've got enough unsalted butter or whatever it is so you might find a magnetic clipboard or similar would be worth having. It occurs to me that a fridge freezer with a front panel that was a chalkboard would be a very useful piece of kit and I might see if I can find some paint that I could use on mine.

Nathalia

We have an upright freezer because DH has back issues.  I use Chinese takeaway boxes for batch cooking, which last several years, and stack perfectly in the freezer drawers.  We switched house insurance one year and saved the cost of the freezer (and more) and then the freezer has paid for itself over and over again as a place to stash YS items or batch cooking. 

elsien

I’d second the keeping a list thing. And labelling the items going in, including the date. Otherwise I find I’m using the first items I come to when I go rummaging, and the older identical ones sit at the back slowly getting freezer burn.
I just have a clipboard on a nearby shelf which I add to and cross off as things go in and out.