20 Freezer Meals You Can Make Ahead and Reheat

Some days all you wish to do once you get house from an extended day of labor is curl up on the sofa with a binge-worthy TV present and an incredible meal, however even serious about what to prepare dinner looks like an excessive amount of effort. For nights like these, you normally have two choices. You possibly can lastly eat the backup frozen pizza that has been sitting in your freezer for a minimum of six months, otherwise you may give into the temptation of redownloading the DoorDash app after vehemently swearing it off within the identify of saving cash in 2024. We’ve all been there, and everyone knows who wins out on this situation. Fortunate for you, there’s a method to get pleasure from each takeout-level immediate gratification and the satisfaction of a home-cooked meal. The answer is make-ahead freezer meals.

Freezer meals don’t simply prevent cash—they’ll additionally prevent time in the course of the week. When you’re reheating frozen breakfast, you will get an additional hour of valuable sleep. When you’re reheating lunch, you need to use your lunch break to truly take a break as an alternative of spending it cooking. You’ll be thanking your previous self for taking one factor off your metaphorical plate and placing a really tasty one thing onto your literal one.

Maintain studying for recommendations on the right way to get began freezing your meals, plus a number of the finest freezer meal recipes to check out.

Our Greatest Ideas for Make-Forward Freezer Meals

When you already like to meal prep on Sundays, you may simply work freezer meal recipes into your routine. Or you could possibly double up a recipe, eat a part of it for dinner, and freeze the remaining for the long run. To make sure these meals style simply nearly as good after being frozen, correct meals security practices are essential. In keeping with the Meals Security and Inspection Service, most cooked meals are protected to retailer within the freezer for two to three months. Simply make certain to maintain frozen meals hermetic to keep away from freezer burn. For an additional layer of safety, you could wish to wrap meals in plastic wrap or foil earlier than storing inside a freezer-safe meals storage container or zip-top bag.

Some recipes embrace particular freezing and reheating directions, but when not, listed here are a couple of good guidelines of thumb. When you’re reheating soup or stew, your stovetop or sluggish cooker will will let you warmth it evenly with out boiling. You may also reheat frozen meals within the oven when you have additional time to attend for it to preheat. In a pinch, the microwave is nice for reheating meals shortly, however if you wish to crisp one thing up, popping it into the air fryer ought to do the trick. For something raw, you’ll want to let the meals thaw within the fridge, chilly water, or the microwave earlier than cooking.