First, before I get into this week’s challenge, I have to tell you about my great shopping trip on Monday. And, yes, I do feel like I’ve graduated to some level of couponing madness since I took a picture of all of my groceries after getting home from the store. What can I say? I was proud. I saved 47%, using over $30 worth of coupons and over $60 worth of sale savings. Plus, I went home with a $10 certificate for a free giftcard from the Safeway giftcard mall, which technically pushes my savings over the 50% mark. In other words, I saved more than I spent on a shopping cart full of food. Not only that, but the milk and the bananas were the only 2 items not on sale.
I am a deal seeker. Always have been. But yesterday, I worked for these deals. I did my research, I did my planning, and it payed off! This couponing thing is getting to be easier for me!
And now on to this week’s challenge…..
The Challenge:
Make an extra meal and freeze it to use when you don’t feel like cooking or are short on time.
This is actually a concept that I have used before (I’ve even taught a class about this before!) so I do know a thing or two about freezer meals.
There are several ways to tackle freezer meals, but the concept is the same: Prepare your food when you have the time so that you will have the food ready when you don’t have the time. Brilliant, isn’t it?
Here are a few of the methods that I have used:
• Spend an entire day cooking a bunch of meals. Years ago, a friend of mine gave me the book Dinner is Ready – 30 Meals in One Day
• Prepare a double recipe when you cook dinner. Eat half, and freeze half for later. This is probably an easier way to build up a stock of freezer meals. You just won’t have all the meals ready at once. Sometimes this is a good thing if your freezer space is limited. I’m lucky and have a full size deep freezer (the old kind that has to be defrosted
• Get together with a group of friends and have a mega cooking day swap! Clair actually wrote a guest post on my blog about Meals Swaps a while back. Go check it out!
• Buy meat in bulk, cook it as soon as you bring it into the kitchen, and freeze it, cooked, for use in future meals. This is a mini-step, but can be a real time-saver. You can also do this with things like onions, peppers, fruits, and other things that are only available seasonally.
In fact, yesterday, I cooked up a family pack of ground beef, added some taco seasoning and onions and froze the meat for use in tacos later. And then, last night before going to bed, I stuck a whole chicken in my crock pot so that it would cook over night. Today, I am going to use that chicken in a few recipes (much cheaper and yummier than cooking single boneless, skinless breasts for a recipe).
Have you ever tried cooking ahead and freezing meals? What methods work best for you?
Psst–click above for some great bulk buying!
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I would love to share some of my freezer meal sucesses! Maybe after we get back into the school routine. :)
Do you mind sharing some freezer friendly meal ideas? Whenever I freezze meals they NEVER seem to work out and heat well! I think that having frozen meals would save me so much $$ and time each month.
I’m a big fan of having an emergency meal in the freezer for those times the day just gets away from you and there isn’t time to cook. I have broken up family packs of meat into smaller portions, but I never thought about cooking it and freezing it. That’s a great idea! I think I’ll do that the next time I go shopping.
I LOVE the slow cooker for making freezer meals. So effortless.
Is there anything you aren’t an expert at? Just kidding!! I am loving the freezer thing. I am going to a meeting tonight with a group of women in my neighborhood we are going to do a freezer meal group. I am very excited!!
I like making double the meal and saving one. I use it for giving meals to people that have had a baby. I don’t have to buy food and cook it on short notice I just open the freezer and pick a frozen meal and let it sit and then cook it and drop it off. I love the quick easiness of it. Great job on the shopping savings!