The absolute best way to make quick and easy freezer meals without spending all day prepping!
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A freezer meal almost ruined my vacation.
Let me back up.
Every year, we go to this remote little island in New England and it’s kinda…well… old-fashioned.
There aren’t any hotels.
There aren’t any stores.
Wellllll… there is a general store that’s also the post office, that’s also the travel office, that’s also the dock master.
And it’s the size of Target’s bathroom.
So we have to bring our own everything. Especially food.
One year I decided I was going to be ahead of the game and bring freezer meals I had already made and my crockpot. Ya know, so I could sit on the beach all day and not think about feeding the kids. Haha.
I was so excited.
I brought a few meals but one stands out, and not in a good way.
It was seemingly simple. Orange chicken. Yumm-o, right?
Wrong. It was disgusting. Like spit-it-out, dump-the-rest-in-the-garbage, my-dad-wouldn’t-even-eat-it, kind of disgusting.
Needless to say, my teenage son and his friend did not let me live it down (my son was an only child at the time so I always let him bring a friend to make vacation more fun – cool mom, right?? Yeah, cool mom that can’t make dinner.).
They still badger me about it.
Anyhoo.
Even though that ONE freezer meal will forever be ingrained in our memory, I’ve made many, many freezer meals that were delicious.
And trust me, I want them to be as simple as possible!
QUICK + EASY FREEZER MEALS IN 4 SIMPLE STEPS
Planning is key!
- Set a goal
- Find your recipes
- Schedule time
- Have the right supplies
SET A GOAL
Decide how many freezer meals you have time and/or money in the budget for. Are you trying to throw together a few freezer meals in an hour on Sunday or trying to create some yummy meals with the extra $20 you have in your budget? That will determine what direction you take when you’re choosing your recipes.
This is also where you’ll decide what kind of freezer meals you’re going to make – crockpot dump meals (gosh, I hate that name!), pre-baked casseroles, complete meals, etc. (For a more in-depth explanation of the different types, check out the beginning of this post)
FIND YOUR RECIPES
As much as I have an addiction to love Pinterest, I would NOT recommend going to Pinterest for this, there’s just too many options and you’ll find things like “101 Best Freezer Meals”.
Ain’t nobody got time for that.
If you must, though, I suggest finding a few Pinterest boards specifically for freezer meals, or going to a blog that does like The Family Freezer.
SCHEDULE TIME
Honestly, the easiest time is as soon as you get home from grocery shopping. Everything is already out and you can just start prepping and putting things together.
No matter when you decide to create your freezer meals, put it on your calendar! If it’s your first time doing this, I suggest you double the amount of time you think it will take. Just until you get a feel for how long it takes you.
HAVE THE RIGHT SUPPLIES
This will go back to what you decided in Step 1. What kind of freezer meals are you making?
If you’re doing crockpot dump meals you’ll need good quality freezer bags, sharpies, and labels. (Hands-free bag holders are also tremendously helpful at this step!).
If you’re making casseroles or complete meals then maybe you want to pick up some disposable aluminum pans or glass food storage containers.
Creating quick and easy freezer meals for your family doesn’t have to be hard, you can make it as simple as you need it to be! But I guarantee the time you spend making them in advance, you’ll save much more than that during the week!
Find out your next steps and how to make it go smoothly with this Freezer Meals Success Kit.
