Freezer cooking, or the concept of cooking freezer meals in bulk (sometimes referred to as once-a-month-cooking), is a timeworn tradition passed down by generations. It provides sanity for frugal foodies across the globe!
Why cook in bulk & get good at freezer cooking
The idea of cooking in bulk is that you stand in your kitchen for a day once a month or half a day once a week.
Whipping up meals in bulk saves slaving away each chopping onions and washing pots and pans. Instead you can spend the time with family and helping the kids write their homework stories completed. You can get Missy into the bath earlier and plan to sit on the couch earlier watching your favourite TV show.
Ideally take an entire day once a month and cook enough up Tupperware containers of Spag Bol, Beef Stew, Lasagna, Chicken Carbonara and Beef Stroganoff to last the month. Label the meals and stack them neatly in the freezer to induce a warm and fuzzy feeling of organisation, happiness and sanity!
Resources for cook-ahead dinners
There are plenty of websites and resources related to cooking in bulk. And I’d be silly not to plug my own book Table Tucker! My book takes the bulk cooking concept further by helping readers to cook in bulk three nights each week. The concept involves cooking two meals at once and delivers grocery lists for the entire year. You can use the book to cook for the month by purchasing the grocery lists for the entire month. All the meals called Combo Meals are suitable for bulk cooking.
Cooking in bulk is extremely effective in helping busy people feel a greater sense of clarity, sanity and happiness. If you can picture coming home to beautiful meal sitting labeled in the freezer every night, then you are on the road to achieving this goal. People cook in bulk because it greatly reduces stress during a busy week of fighting traffic and long work hours. Since I’m not a fan of stress I cook freezer meals regularly. Usually my Sunday cook-ups are enough to keep our freezer well stocked but if time permits, I’ll be moving to once-a-month-cooking soon!
Save money by cooking in bulk
The other purpose of cooking freezer meals is to save money by buying ingredients in bulk. Time is also saved at the supermarket, as is the petrol getting there. If you get milk, bread, fresh vegetables, dairy products and toiletries delivered to your home via sites like Aussie Farmers Direct you can avoid shopping weekly altogether!
Finally – freezer meals are a healthier option. Cooking meals from scratch because meals avoids purchasing convenience supermarket meals. You will also know what goes into every dish. You won’t have to read labels to figure out what you are actually eating.
Whether you are a lover of Apricot chicken, a good Bacon and Egg Pie or a Bacon and Mushroom Penne, you will find many great ideas using this cheat sheet.
Use it in conjunction with my Supermarket Chicken, Beef Mince and Sausages tips and you’ll be ready for some quick bulk-cooking adventures!
130+ easy cook-ahead dinners
- Apricot chicken
- Bacon and egg pie
- Bacon and leek soup
- Bacon and mushroom pasta
- Bacon and mushroom penne
- Bacon fritters
- Baked fish
- Baked honey ginger chicken
- Bean and barley soup
- Beef and cheese pie
- Beef and mushroom pie
- Beef and veggie pie
- Beef calzone
- Beef cannelloni
- Beef chow mein
- Beef crepes
- Beef crumble
- Beef curries
- Beef curry
- Beef in black bean sauce
- Beef lasagne
- Beef pasta bakes
- Beef pasties
- Beef patties
- Beef stews
- Beef stir-fries
- Beef stroganoff
- Beef wellington
- Butter chicken curry
- Chicken and BBQ pizza
- Chicken and corn soup
- Chicken mushroom casserole
- Chicken mushroom pasta
- Chicken tomato casserole
- Chicken vegetable casserole
- Chicken vegetable pie
- Chicken vegetable soup
- Chicken cacciatore
- Chicken chow mein
- Chicken curry soup
- Chicken fettuccine
- Chicken filo’s
- Chicken lasagne
- Chicken loaf
- Chicken parmigiana
- Chicken pie
- Chicken risotto
- Chicken soup
- Chicken spinach risotto
- Chicken stews
- Chicken strudel
- Chilli con carne
- Coq au vin
- Corn chowder
- Cornish pasties
- Cottage pie
- Creamy onion soup
- Creamy sausage pasta
- Curried sausages
- Devilled sausages
- Egg, bacon and potato bake
- Fish cakes
- Fish fingers
- Fish nuggets
- Fish pie
- Fish stew
- Hamburger patties
- Honey mustard casserole
- Lamb curry
- Lamb cutlets
- Lamb filo’s
- Lamb hot pot
- Lamb stew
- Lamb veggie casserole
- Lasagne
- Meat lover’s pizza
- Meat sauce variations
- Meatballs
- Meatloaf
- Mexican chicken
- Mince and cheese pie
- Mince filo recipes
- Minestrone soup
- Moussaka
- Mushroom soup
- Osso bucco
- Pea and ham soup
- Pork stew
- Pork stir-fry
- Potato and leek soup
- Potato chowder
- Pumpkin ravioli
- Pumpkin soup
- Quiche Lorraine
- Ratatouille
- Rissoles
- Roast beef dinner
- Rogan josh
- Salmon and dill linguine
- Samosas
- Satay beef on rice
- Satay chicken
- Sausage and veggie pasta
- Sausage cannelloni
- Sausage rolls
- Sausage tomato bake
- Sausage, egg and veggie slice
- Seafood pizza
- Spaghetti bolognese
- Spinach and ricotta cannelloni
- Spinach and ricotta ravioli
- Spring rolls
- Steak and cheese pie
- Sun-dried tomato chicken pasta
- Sweet and sour pork
- Taco beef
- Thai green chicken curry
- Thai red chicken curry
- Tomato soup
- Tuna Mornay
- Tuna pasta bake
- Tuscan casserole
- Veal casserole
- Veal cordon bleu
- Veal ragout
- Vegetable casserole
- Vegetable lasagne
- Vegetable soups
- Vegetarian filo’s
- Vegetarian pizza