Okay “Dudes” this may not be a real glamorous topic but it’s one that fits well with this new feature of ours. I’ve discovered a great way to not only save some pennies but also save time and some notches on your belt. The trick is to cook large batches of a particular dish and then freeze portions for later use. For instance I like to buy chicken breasts in the large economy sized flats; these normally contain from 6 – 10 breasts. Now that is a lot more than I can eat at a sitting of course but I go ahead and season them to taste (BBQ rub is great!), bake them all up and have one for dinner along with some frozen veggies. After I’ve eaten and the rest are cooled I pull out the zip lock baggies and put one breast per bag, push out the air and pop ‘em in the freezer. I’ll also divide up a bag of frozen veggies into four or five baggies. In the morning when I’m getting ready for work I just pop a breast and a bag of veggies into my insulated lunch “box”; a bottle of water (I refill from my tap but then I have well water) and I’m ready to go! The cost is MUCH less than even a cheap fast food lunch, MUCH better for me and the time investment is minimal. You can do the same thing with any recipe from chili to roast to sloppy joes! Even if you grill a hamburger for dinner – throw a few more on and freeze them just like I did the breasts above. Not only do you tend to pay less for larger quantities of meat but you use up less energy and time preparing them!
Naturally they won’t last forever – a couple weeks in the freezer is about the max I try to aim at otherwise they get a bit freezer burnt. And if you REALLY want to be a skin flint save the baggies that the veggies are in . . . wash ‘em out and dry them and they are good to go again. Those holding meat tend to get too greasy to get clean enough but not so with the veggies or a salad if you decide on that. Another good idea there by the way – make up a big salad and then divide into individual baggies! The Tupperware angle is also good but they do tend to get lost and the initial cost is pretty high – but you be the judge.
Hope this helps! If anyone has a recipe that works good for this kind of batch cooking I’d love to hear about it!
Until next time . . . Be Well!
Bill
Recent Comments