Freezing Foods for future use

[Miniefan]

I am hoping there is someone out there who can advise me on this because freezing food is something I don't really know anything about, because the only thing I ever freeze is the meat I buy and ice and ice creams. My question is this, I would like to prepare a few meals to be eaten on our trip, we will be at Ft. Wilderness in Oct, and freeze them, then bring them down on the trip so I can have some good delicious and easy home-cooked meals that won't be as hard or take as much time and effort for me to make while vacationing. I have never done this, even at home so I don't know what will or will not freeze well, If someone out there can help me, please do!
Thanks,
Kim

 

[Rhonda]

Hi! I do this a lot - even when I'm at home! If you do a search on the internet for "once-a-month-cooking" you'll get lots of ideas, recipes, etc!

Basically you can freeze just about everything! I make chicken dishes, casseroles, hamburgers, lasagna, baked potatoes, and vegetable dishes and freeze them all at once.

Use freezer bags (I like Ziploc the best) and be sure to get all the air out of them before freezing. I use a straw. Zip up the bag all the way to the straw, then suck the air out. Then just slip the straw out & zip the rest of the way! Works really good! The food will not get freezer burn as fast this way.

I like to make pastas and casseroles and freeze them, then just dump in a crockpot. When you get home from the parks, your dinner is done!

 

[Miniefan]

Thanks for your prompt reply Rhonda, here is a list of the things I would like to have while we are down there, could you maybe suggest how I would go about freezing these items, and also do you think they would be ok in a cooler heavily iced on the trip down there??

Shredded BBQ Beef (for sandwiches)
Lasagna
Chili
Chicken and Dumplings
Dressing (you may refer to this as stuffing)
Beef Stew

Also, do you know how well a whole chicken would cook in a crock pot, and approx. how long would it take to cook?? I would like to serve chicken alongside of the dressing with potatoes and cranberry, but not have to do a lot of work to make this meal we all love.

Thanks so much for the help!
Kim

 

[newtowdw1]

I'm coming out of lurk-mode to answer.
I plan to freeze and crockpot too! A chicken (thawed) might take 4-6 hours (I think) depending on the size of your chicken and crockpot. I have an enormous one that will do two chickens at once. Be aware that the chicken will probably get kind of tough. I usually do this for one meal and then make soup from the rest.

I suggest that you just roast the chicken at home, take it with you and let it heat up in the oven. It'll heat faster if you cut the chicken up. It'll also be easier to store.
Don't forget chili!

 

[Rhonda]

All of those things will freeze well! Just use the extra large freezer bags and be sure to get all the air out before you freeze them.

I assumed you would be camping, that's why I mentioned the crockpot. If you are staying in a cabin and have an oven, then do what newtowdw1 said about reheating the chicken.

Personally, I would put the frozen stuff in a large cooler, then cover it with dry ice, instead of regular ice. It will stay frozen longer and won't be as messy. (You won't have to dump out water and add more ice).

 

[Miniefan]

I don't want to sound like an idiot, but how do you go about roasting a chicken?? I am not a novice when it comes to cooking but usually when I make any chicken it is with boneless/skinless chicken. Also, how exactly would you go about putting a lasagna or stew in a ziploc bag, would it be ok if I just put them into casseroles and froze them in that?? Thanks a bunch for the info and tips, this is truly going to make my vacation much much easier!
Thanks,
Kim

 

[Miniefan]

I don't know why I didn't think of this is the first place, what about a ham, instead of the roast chicken?? Is ham able to be cooked in the crock pot?? We will be in the cabin so I will have access to a full kitchen. but because we will probably be at the parks until right before we eat, I really didn't want to risk leaving on an oven. I know that a crock pot is a fire hazard as well, but I would feel much more comfortable with it being on low than leaving on an oven for the afternoon. Thanks for all the great help.
Kim

 

[Whosemom]

The stew is easy - you open your ziplock bag and kindof stuff it into a bowl (the bowl then is a "frame" for your bag). fill the bag and close it. Now you can take it out, lay it flat in your freezer. A very easy shape to transport. You can freeze the lasagna in the pan.

Yum yum, I'm coming with you

 

[Rhonda]

I've layered lasagne into an ice cream bucket and froze it that way. Then, when I'm ready to make it I just transfer it to the crockpot! It's the perfect size!

To roast a chicken in the crockpot, just put a whole chicken into the crockpot (take the "insides" out first - it's usually a little paper bag with the liver, etc. stuffed into the cavity). Then, pour a can of a cream soup over it (cream of mushroom, etc.) and a little bit of water. Cover and let it simmer on low all day!

I've never made a ham in the crockpot, but I'm sure it can be done! Just put the ham in the crockpot and pour a little water (or pineapple juice, yum!) over it and let it go all day.

One of my favorites is Cola Pot Roast. Put a beef roast into the crockpot and pour a can of cola over it! Let it cook all day! The sugars from the cola give it a great taste and help to make it tender!

You can put casseroles or beef stew directly into a freezer bag and zip it up! Then, just flatten the bag with your hands to make it like a "book" and freeze! Those "books" will stack nicely in your cooler!

 

[Miniefan]

Thanks so much for all the great suggestions and ideas, I am totally psyched and my trip is stil about 3 months away. I am just loving the idea of having great meals while we are there without slaving in the kitchen. I will definitely be doing this next Jan when I go back to school. Thanks guys, you really do come through.
Kim

 

[LMC]

EASY BBQ: Get a pork tenderloin (usually in the air sealed bags) and put it into the crock pot in the a.m. with a jar of bbq sauce. When you get home in the p.m. your bbq will be ready for sandwiches.

Chili: Brown the meat ahead of time then freeze. Throw everything in the crock the morning you will need to use it.

Spaghetti Sauce: Same as chili.

Stew: I've not done this one but beef tips cook in the crock in one day (I do this for beef tips) so I am sure you can throw those in there w/ your veggies and be set for that night.

Beef tips: Use beef stew meat and put in the crock in the a.m. with one can of beef consume and one can of cream of mushroom or golden mushroom. Ready in the p.m. to put over cooked rice (boil in a bag of course!!!)

 

[house_of_princesses]

My mother bought me a FoodSaver for Christmas. I have yet to use it (I'm not cooking much right now, but that's another story), but supposedly, you put raw or cooked food in the bag, it removes air and heat seals the freezer bag. The food is supposed to last for months.

Mom bought it at Kohl's, and I can't imagine it cost too much. I haven't used it, so I can't say how it compares to the straw extraction method Rhonda mentioned above, but thought I'd throw my $.02 in.

A crock pot recipe that we enjoy: Pork roast w/ cranberry sauce and sugar. Excellent!

Ribs and sauer kraut.

Since you're in the cabins, something quick and easy would be chicken nachos. Canned chicken, canned/sliced olives, frozen cheddar cheese, jalepeno slices, tall bag of chips, jarred salsa. Foil the cookie sheet, assemple the nachos, heat for 5 - 10 minutes....my dd's love this for dinner. All I have to do is roll up the foil and toss (just like the ladies on TV!).

Have fun!

 

[girlsma]

Here is what we did on our way down to Disney... We left on Thanksgiving morning in an RV and wanted to have Thanksgiving dinner without having to find a restaurant. So this is what I did...

Butterball Boneless Turkey Breast - thawed
1 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper
rosemary (fresh or dried)

Put it all in the crock pot and let it cook on the way down. (we put the crock pot in the sink so it would not move around) It smelled delicious! We stopped and ate in a bank parking lot. We also had canned green beans and boxed stuffing!

I have made this several times after our trip and it is delicious every time!

 

[beatnik]

My personal freezer tips:

1. Potatoes disintegrate when frozen. So if you usually put them in your stew, I'd leave them out and instead serve the stew over freshly cooked potatoes.

2. I have found that some sauces thickened with flour separate when thawed. You might try freezing then thawing some of your chicken and dumplings before you go to make sure it will come out ok. (That said, I've frozen beef stew thickened with flour and its been fine.) Supposedly, sauces thickened with cornstarch do not separate with freezing.

3. I have frozen and thawed lasagna and it came out perfect. But even thawed lasagna takes a long time to cook... I expect the beef BBQ, chili, and stuffing would be perfectly fine frozen.

4. I personally find that chicken in the crockpot comes out too dry for my tastes. I have come across a chicken and stuffing crockpot recipe on the internet which I made once and it was pretty good. It was something along the lines of cooked shredded chicken (you could cook and freeze at home) mixed with canned condensed chicken or mushroom soup, and vegetables. The mixture was layered in the crockpot with prepared stuffing, with the top and final layer stuffing. Cover and cook about 4 hrs on low or 8 on high. If you are interested but can't find the exact recipe, I probably have is somewhere and can post.

5. Believe it or not, cooked quesadillas freeze perfectly and only take 10-15 minutes in an oven to reheat (once thawed). I will mix a bag of preshredded cheese with chopped tomatoes, cilantro, pickled jalepenos, and onion and then scoop the filling out to tortillas on a griddle. Fold over and cook like a grilled cheese. Then cook on wire racks, wrap in foil, and freeze.

6. Rice and other grains freeze perfectly and small frozen bags (enough rice for 2) reheat in about 2 minutes in the microwave. If you'd want some rice or pilaf, cook and freeze that before you go.


Beatnik

 

[Miniefan]

Thanks for the tips, however now we are not going to be able to stay at the Ft.Wilderness Cabins, and we will be at the Pop Century, I am a little disappointed by this and we will be visiting to attend the campfire. I have thought that maybe I could still freeze a few things that I could unthaw in the fridge we will be using and reheat them in the microwave, I thought about bringing in... I am not sure about this though. What do you guys think??

Kim