[1]I am the world’s worst at throwing leftovers into my freezer and forgetting about them. Every few months, while I am re-organizing my freezer (because I’ve thrown so many leftovers in there), I am amazed at how much food has amassed.
Since foods begin to lose their freshness factor after 4 months of freezing, it’s time to get them out of the freezer. That’s when my creative juices start flowing and I start turning them into make-ahead meals for the crock pot. A busy mom can always use a few of these freezer meals ready to go.
All of these recipes use leftovers from my freezer and a couple of pantry items I have stored away. A majority of the meals reflect the leftovers that I had in my freezer from the holidays.
There are pros and cons [2] to this method of food storage, but the greatest aspect of this is the time efficiency of it. Knowing that I have a week’s worth of food ready to go in my freezer, takes a bit of pressure off of me.
Tips for Creating Make-Ahead Meals
- Label your zip-loc bags
- Frozen meals are good in the freezer for 3-4 months. After that, they begin losing their freshness.
- Write down all of your recipes.
- Chop vegetables and meat ahead of time. This makes for a seamless process.
- For future freezing of leftovers, freeze single ingredients in a zip-loc bag. Popular food ingredients such as chicken, ground beef, broth can always be used for freezer meals. Store these up, add some spices and a few vegetables and voila – instant meal.
8 Easy Make-Ahead Meals
Chicken Tacos
- 3 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3-4 cups shredded chicken
- 1 can black beans, drained
- 1 onion
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- Add all ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag and store in freezer for up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours.
Chicken Tortilla Soup
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 jalapeno, seeds removed
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup masa harina
- 1(14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can black beans
- 1 can enchilada sauce
- 2 cups chopped bell pepper
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 2-3 cups shredded chicken
- 1 lemon, juiced
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- tortilla chips
- cheddar cheese
- 1 avocado
- Add all ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag and store in freezer for up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours. Ladle soup into a bowl and top with sliced avocado, cheddar cheese and tortilla chips.
Spicy Peanut Chicken
- 1 package of boneless chicken breasts
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2-3 tablespoons chunky peanut butter
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cilantro flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Add all ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag and store in freezer for up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours. Serve with white rice.
Peach Glazed Pork Tenderloin
- 1 pork tenderloin
- 2 cups carrots, chopped
- 1 onion, sliced
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup peach preserves (I used spicy jalapeno peach preserves leftover from the holidays)
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon thyme
- salt and pepper
- Add all ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag and store in freezer for up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours. Serve with white rice.
Balsamic Roast Pork Tenderloin
- 3 potatoes, sliced
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 1 pork tenderloin, fat trimmed off, sliced in 2 inch slices
- 4 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasonings
- Salt and pepper
- Add first three ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag.
- In a mixing bowl, add remaining ingredients and stir briskly until combined. Pour over contents of zip-loc bag. Store up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours. Serve with white rice.
Ham and Beans
- 1 meaty ham bone
- 1 bag white cannellini beans, cooked
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 2 medium carrots, chopped
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- Add all ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag and store in freezer for up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours.
Pesto Turkey Soup
- 1/2 bag cannellini beans, cooked
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 cups shredded turkey meat
- 1 1/2 teaspoons all purpose seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup pesto sauce
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 handfuls spinach
- Add all ingredients to a gallon size zip-loc bag and store in freezer for up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours.
Sweet and Sour Meatballs
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon season salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 egg
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons corn starch
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 can pineapple chunks, juice reserved
- In a mixing bowl, add ground beef, bread crumbs, spices and egg and mix well. Form meatballs and set in a gallon size zip-loc bag.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add water, reserved pineapple juice and cornstarch and beat until mixture is thickened.
- Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Pour mixture into zip-loc bag. Store up to 4 months.
- To prepare, allow meal to defrost and add to crock pot. Cook on high 4-6 hours. Serve with white rice.