Crocktober2025//FreezerMeals101
Zippy Shredded Chicken Tacos
- 2 lbs. chicken breasts boneless, skinless
- 4 Tbsp. taco seasoning
- 2 Tbsp. dry ranch seasoning
- 14 oz. fire roasted diced tomatoes
- desired nacho or taco fixings
- Place the chicken breasts in a large resealable freezer bag.
- Add the taco seasoning, ranch seasoning, and fire roasted tomatoes. Squeeze the bag to mix all the ingredients together.
Remove excess air from the bag, seal it, and freeze.
Thaw.
Dump into slow cooker and cook on low for 4 to 5 hours.
When the chicken is cooked through, use a fork to shred the meat and serve on tacos or nachos with your favorite fixings.
Salisbury “Steak” Meatball Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb. meatballs, frozen, pre-cooked
- 2 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 1 gravy packet
- 4 Tbsp. dry onion soup mix
- 2 Tbsp. ketchup
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
For the Day of cooking:
- 2 Tbsp. corn starch
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
Assembly instructions:
- Add all ingredients to a large resealable freezer bag.
- Squish ingredients to combine, remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
Cooking instructions:
- Thaw (or can be cooked from frozen).
- Cook in slow cooker on low for 5-6 hours.
- Mix together the cornstarch and water in a small bowl.
- Add the cornstarch slurry to the crockpot, allowing it to cook for an additional 10 minutes to thicken the gravy.
Variations for Salisbury Steak Meatballs:
For vegetarians, simply substitute the meatballs for a plant-based option of meatball. Many freezer sections in the grocery store will have vegetarian meatballs where other vegetarian foods are located. You can also use vegetable broth instead of beef broth and add a “beef” flavored seasoning packet to achieve the beef taste.
Garlic Mayo Recipe:
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp. lemon juice
- dash of salt and pepper
Instructions:
- Mix together all the ingredients and serve on buns before topping with the shredded BBQ chicken. If there’s any leftover, you can store it in the fridge in an airtight container. We never have any leftovers though because it is lick-the-bowl good (or so I’ve heard)!
- 3 - 5 pound beef chuck roast
- 6 oz pepperoncini peppers and juice
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 packet au jus gravy mix
- 1 packet dry Ranch seasoning mix
- salt and pepper to taste
- Place the chuck roast in a large resealable freezer bag.
- Add the pepperoncini peppers, butter, gravy mix, ranch seasoning, salt, and pepper to the bag.
Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
Thaw.
Transfer the contents of the bag to the bowl of the slow cooker. Cook on low for 8 hours.
Or, cook in the instant pot. Add bag contents to the instant pot. Lock the lid and seal. Cook on high pressure fo 60 minutes and then do a natural release for 15 minutes, then a quick release.
Shred the meat before serving.
- 1 1/2 lb. meatballs frozen, pre-cooked
- 1 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
- 2/3 cup beer
- 1 jalapeño pepper thinly sliced, optional
- Place all ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag.
- Squish to combine, remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
- Thaw or cook from frozen.
- Cook in a slow cooker on low for 3-4 hours.
- 2 lb. ground beef browned and cooled
- 2 onion minced
- 5 oz. tomato paste
- 8 oz. tomato sauce
- 2 Tbsp. chili powder
- 2 tsp. oregano
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 3/4 tsp. allspice
- 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 2 tsp. brown sugar
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 oz. unsweetened chocolate
- Dump all ingredients in large resealable freezer bag.
- Thaw.
- Add 4 cups of water.
- Simmer in large stovetop pot for 1-2 hours.
- Instant Pot: Add 3 cups water. High pressure 30 minutes. Natural release.
- Slow cooker: Add 4 cups of water. High 4 hours or low for 8 hours.
Serve over cooked spaghetti topped with finely shredded cheddar cheese, minced raw onion, and oyster crackers. If desired, add a can of kidney beans on top as well.
- 2 lbs. beef stew meat
- 1 onion sliced
- 2 clove garlic minced
- 1 cup mushrooms sliced
- 1 gravy packet
- 4 Tbsp. dry onion soup mix
- 10 oz. cream of mushroom soup
- 14 oz. beef broth
- 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- Add all ingredients to a large, resealable freezer bag.
- Remove excess air, seal and freeze.
- Thaw.
- Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Add contents of freezer bag.
- Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake at 300° for 3 hours. DO NOT PEEK!!
- Thaw.
- Spray the slow cooker with non-stick spray.
- Add contents of freezer bag.
- Cook on low for 6-7 hours and on high for 3-4 hours.
- Thaw.
- Add contents of freezer bag to pot.
- Cover and set to PRESSURE COOK or MANUAL, turn the valve to the SEAL position, and set the time for 35 minutes.
- After 35 minutes, naturally release pressure for 10 minutes. Then, do a quick release.
- Serve over mashed potatoes, rice, or egg noodles.
- 3 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 onion diced
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
- 2 Tbsp. lime juice
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
- crushed peanuts
- fresh cilantro chopped
- Add all ingredients except crushed peanuts and cilantro to a large resealable freezer bag.
- Squish the contents around to combine.
- Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
- Thaw.
- Empty bag contents to the slow cooker and cook on low for 3-5 hours.
- Cube or shred chicken and serve over rice noodles, rice, or in lettuce leaves.
- Garnish with crushed peanuts and chopped cilantro.
- 1 lb. garlic sausage ring or chorizo or andouille sausage sliced
- 1 onion diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 2 stick celery chopped
- 3 clove garlic minced
- 28 oz. diced tomatoes
- 5 oz. tomato paste
- 2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp. thyme
- 1/2 tsp. oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cup chicken broth
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- hot sauce to taste
- 1 cup frozen okra optional chopped
- 1 lb. large shrimp raw peeled and deveined
- 3 Tbsp. butter optional
- 1/4 cup flour optional
- Add all ingredients except shrimp to a large resealable freezer bag, remove excess air, and seal.
- Place shrimp in medium freezer bag.
- Staple bags together above the seal and freeze.
- Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Place large bag ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low 6-7 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
- Add shrimp in the last 30 minutes.
- If cooking on high, add shrimp along with large bag contents.
- Optional: Make a roux on the stovetop by melting 3 Tbsp. butter and adding 1/4 cup flour, whisking on medium heat until mixture becomes brown, about 4 minutes. Add to slow cooker towards end of cooking to thicken gumbo.
- Serve gumbo over rice.
- 3 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 32 oz. pierogies, frozen
- 3/4 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 lb. garlic sausage ring sliced
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 8 oz. cream cheese softened
- 3/4 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- green onions sliced
Place all of the ingredients in the first section in a freezer quality bag.
Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
Can cook basically from frozen.
Place the ingredients of the bag in a slow cooker on high 3-4 hours or 5 hours on low.
30 minutes before serving, warm chicken broth and cream cheese in a bowl in the microwave or on the stovetop and whisk together.
Pour over pierogies mixture.
Top with shredded cheese.
Cover and cook another 1/2 hour.
Top with green onions when serving.
- 10 chicken thighs boneless, skinless
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp. dry onion soup mix
- Place chicken and all ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag.
- Squish around to mix thoroughly.
- Remove all air from the freezer bag and seal.
- Thaw.
- Place contents of bag in a casserole dish.
- Cover and bake at 350° for 1 hour, uncovering for the last 10 minutes.
- Thaw.
- Place contents of bag in a large skillet.
- Cook on medium for 20-25 minutes, turning occasionally, ensuring chicken is no longer pink in the centre.
- Thaw.
- Reserving liquid, place chicken on pre-heated BBQ at a medium temp.
- Pour reserved liquid into small saucepan and heat on stove until hot and starting to thicken.
- Cook chicken on BBQ for 15-20 minutes, turning occasionally, basting with reserved sauce and ensuring chicken is no longer pink in the centre.
- Leftover sauce can be poured over chicken upon serving.
- Thaw.
- Dump contents into slow cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours.
- 1/2 cup onion chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 red pepper chopped
- 3 cups water
- 3 cups salsa
- 28 oz. pinto beans with liquid for this, I use cans of chili style pinto and kidney beans
- 1-2 bay leaves
- 2 Tbsp. vegetable bouillon powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Add the ingredients to a large resealable freezer bag. Remove the excess air, seal, and freeze.
Thaw.
Simmer in a stovetop pot for one hour. Remove bay leaves.
Serve topped with grated jalapeño jack cheese and tortilla crisps. Other topping suggestions include sour cream and diced avocado.
Thaw.
Cook in the slow cooker on low for 2-4 hours. Remove bay leaves.
Serve topped with grated jalapeño jack cheese and tortilla crisps. Other topping suggestions include sour cream and diced avocado.
- 3-4 lbs chuck roast, cut into 3 inch chunks
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 can chipotle chilies in adobo sauce
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 3 Tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp cumin
- 3 tsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup beef broth
Place all ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag.
Squish gently to combine.
Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
Thaw overnight in the fridge.
Empty contents of bag into the slow cooker.
Cook on low for 8-9 hours or high for 4-5.
Shred the meat with a fork.
Top with cilantro if desired.
- Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Empty contents of bag into the Instant Pot.
- Close the lid and steam valve on the instant pot.
- Cook on high pressure for 35 minutes, then allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes before doing a quick release.
- 2 lbs. meatballs frozen, pre-cooked
- 4 green onion finely chopped
- 4 clove garlic minced
- 2 Tbsp. fresh ginger minced
- 1 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2/3 cup water
- 1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- 2 Tbsp. corn starch
- Mix all ingredients together in a large resealable freezer bag. Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
- Heat through in a skillet over medium-high heat on the stovetop stirring occasionally or heat in slow cooker on low 2-4 hours.
- 10 minutes before serving, stir in a cornstarch slurry of 2 Tbsp. of cornstarch mixed with 1/2 cup of cold water.
- Continue cooking for 10 minutes.
- Garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds. Serve with rice and broccoli.
- 10 chicken thighs boneless, skinless
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 7 oz. chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. oregano
- 5 clove garlic peeled
- 1 bunch cilantro
- Place thighs in a large freezer bag.
- Blend the other ingredients in a blender or with an immersion blender.
- Pour over the chicken.
- Squish to combine it, remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
- Thaw.
- Add chicken and marinade. Low 3-4 hours.
- Add chicken, marinade, and 1/2 cup water or orange juice.
- High pressure for 15 minutes. Natural release.
- 400° on parchment paper lined cookie sheet for 20-25 minutes.
- Remove from marinade.
- Grill 5-6 minutes per side until internal temp is 165°
- 375°. Spray basket.
- Add chicken, leaving space in between pieces.
- Cook 10 minutes, flip, cook 10 more minutes until internal temperature reaches 165° when checked with a meat thermometer.
- 4 lbs pork shoulder or butt, trim fat
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 12 oz beer
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1 Tbsp chipotle hot sauce
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper, optional
Put all ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag.
Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
Thaw in the fridge overnight.
Cook in slow cooker on low for 7 hours.
Shred. Put the meat on a foil lined tray.
Spoon some of the juices over top.
Broil 5-10 minutes until the edges of the meat start to brown.
Thaw in the fridge overnight.
Remove roast from bag and cut into 3 or 4 even sized chunks.
Add bag contents and roast into the instant pot.
Lock cover and seal steam nozzle.
Choose the meat setting for 50 minutes.
When pressure releases, shred pork.
Broil for 5-10 minutes until the edges crisp up and start to brown.
Serve in flour tortillas.
Topping suggestions include guacamole, salsa, tomatoes, cilantro, avocados, cabbage slaw.
- 4 chicken breasts cubed
- 1 cup teriyaki sauce
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups carrots peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 can pineapple chunks drained
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1 green pepper chopped
- can water chestnuts drained
Combine the cubed chicken breast, teriyaki sauce, water, brown sugar, garlic, carrots, pineapple chunks, red pepper, green pepper, and water chestnuts in a large resealable freezer bag.
Squish to combine.
- Remove excess air from the bag, seal the top, and place it in the freezer until you’re ready to start cooking.
- Thaw.
- Pour the bag contents into crockpot. Cook on low for three to four hours.
Thaw.
Transfer the contents of the bag to a large baking dish. Preheat the oven to 350° and bake uncovered for 50 minutes.
Serve over rice.
- 5 cup hash browns frozen, shredded
- 2 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 12 fl. oz. evaporated milk
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 2 tsp. onion powder
- 1 Tbsp. chives chopped
- 8 oz. smoked ham boneless cubed
- 1 tsp. pepper
- Place all ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag.
- Remove excess air, seal, and freeze.
- Thaw or partially thaw.
- Simmer for 15 minutes on the stovetop. Or cook on low in the slow cooker for 2-3 hours.
If desired, top with shredded cheddar cheese and sliced green onions or chives.
- 1 lb ground Italian sausage I prefer the spicy variety to give it a bit of a kick
- 24 oz pasta sauce or Red Sauce
- 19 oz white kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup zucchini diced
- 4 carrots peeled and chopped
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup small pasta shells
Place the dry small pasta shells into a medium resealable bag
Brown the ground sausage in a skillet. Blot it with a paper towel to get rid of excess grease or drain it.
Once the sausage has cooled, put it in a large resealable freezer bag.
Pour in the pasta sauce, the white kidney beans, diced zucchini, chopped carrots, diced onion, minced garlic, and chicken broth. Remove any excess air from the bag and seal.
Staple the bags together above the seals and freeze.
Thaw. Separate the bags and add the contents of the large bag to a crockpot®.
Cook on low for 4-6 hours. Add the pasta in the last 20 minutes.
Thaw. Simmer the soup in a large stovetop pot for about an hour and add the pasta for the last ten or fifteen minutes.
As with most freezer meals, it's just as quick and easy once you've browned the beef and chopped the onions for this to make four of these recipes at once than it is to make one. When you open your freezer and see four meals made, you will feel so accomplished and glad that you quadrupled this recipe!
- 1 lb. ground beef browned
- 1/2 cup onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 3/4 cup mushrooms sliced
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 10 oz. can cream of mushroom soup
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 tsp. parsley
- dash pepper
To assemble this meal, add the ground beef to a large resealable bag.
Add all the other ingredients to the bag and squish them around to combine.
- Remove excess air and seal.
- Lay flat and freeze.
On the day of cooking, thaw and then cook in the slow cooker on low for 2-5 hours. If you prefer, you can instead heat the beef stroganoff in a skillet on medium until heated through.
Before serving, stir in another 1/4-1/2 cup of sour cream. This adds a bit of zip and freshness and livens the recipe up.
I want to mention something about the mushrooms in this recipe. You can substitute a can of mushrooms for the fresh mushrooms, particularly if you're making this as a freezer meal, but please don't. Fresh mushrooms taste so much better in this recipe than canned does. Trust me on this!
Whenever I make this, I cook up a package of egg noodles and stir the stroganoff through the drained noodles. If I'm heating this in a skillet on the stovetop, I add the noodles into the skillet towards the end of cooking the mixture.
If I'm making this in the Crock-Pot, I stir the cooked egg noodles right into the Crock-Pot towards the end of the Beef Stroganoff cooking time.
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