Dinner in advance or good freezer meals

[Elements]

I am very time poor in the afternoons just due to my routine with Mr3 and have great success making his meals in advance.....I do big cook ups of
Spaghetti
Ravioli
Shepards Pie
and various other carb/vege/protein mixed meals for Mr3
these are all much easier to do durning the day and I seperate them into individual portions so there is never a lack of meals on hand for him even when the afternoon crazies set in.
I was wondering if any of you had similar low fat, low carb meals that were good to make in a big batch and freeze.....for us adults or more for Husband who is fussy with his freshness.
I digress but hes happy to eat pizza and sausage rolls and all the bad stuf but when it comes to fresh meals he gets fussy
I was thinking stir fry type meals or steak or chicken or something of that sort but that are healthy and not to heavy.

[Jess_F]

With winter on its way I often make big batches of soup and freeze portions for later use.
Pea & Ham
Chicken Noodle
Pumpkin
Minestrone
etc

I've actually been googling 'freezer meals' and have built up a bit of a recipe file as I plan on making meals for the family (DH, DD, DS) for the three weeks that I'll be away for in July/August.

This will hopefully also inlcude muffins, slices, etc for the snacks at work/school, etc.

[Lanne]

I do my best tokeep a couple of premade meals (as you have suggested the pasta sauces/lasange/pie) in the freezer.. and a couple of very easy cheat meals (the oven chips and frozen fish etc) ..

I also try and ensure one night a week we have an easy dinner. A cooks pancakes, sausages and toasted sandwhiches. If it comes down to it.. i let one of them slide through for dinner. It wont kill us and lightens the load.

The rest of the time I aim for uber fast/easy healthy dinners. I also am guilty of variations on roasts.. I hear people say roasts are hard.. I dont get it? I think roasts are the nanna's best kept secret. You take the meat. You put it in a foil container..add some oil and herbs.. you put it in the oven. you cut some veges and throw them in and season/spice etc.. in the oven and you come back an hour later and eat it.

Tonight I am doing a 'roast chicken' but it will be cut and split..laid out flat and topped with korma paste and yoghurt mix.. some roasted sweet potato and carrots and some steamed greens. I wont be in the kitchen for more than 20 mins.. and will do it in two 10 mins patches about an hour apart.

Stir frys are lovely an all but all that chopping and cooking to the right crunch/tenderness and the sauce and the heat and the fact I actually have to stand there. LOL

[Beverley]

I agree Lanne roasts are so easy!

I have just gotten my slow cooker (crockpot) out again now that the weather is turning cooler. I start with stock and onions, then throw in chicken or beef and later some veggies and let it cook slowly all day. It's great to come home to if you have been out all day, the house smells devine.

I also do big hearty vegetable soups in it the slow cooker too.

[Eli]

I rediscovered one of my mums freezer staples recently - chow mein. I either cook it on the stove or in the slow cooker, using either beef mince or chicken mince. We eat it that night and I freeze leftovers for soccer training nights.

I used to also cook egg and bacon pie (no pastry) and freeze that for a trusted standby dinner.

[rosierose]

I buy lamb strips and marinate in morning with garlic, oregano, lemon juice and olive oil.....When hubby I & Mr 3 ready to eat I warm up some souvlaki bread in the oven (in foil) and get wok out.....I stir fry the strips and make souvlaki.....top the lamb strips with cos lettuce, grated cu***ber and natural yoghurt.....

If I am doing low carb for me I just put a few pieces of lamb in a cos leave instead of bread.......& sometimes I add fried mushrooms to bulk it up with natural yoghurt & cu***ber......

Mr RR has more lamb and bread & Mr 3 picks at lettuce, lamb and bread. He actually eats all day....heaps of fruit, raw veg, nuts, cheese so dinner is the less stressful time for me getting him to eat....as long as he tries what we eat I don't mind if he eats much or not but it is more of a practice at sitting at the dinner table as a family........Mr 5 will have a tube feed at same time..

[Julie-Ann]

Great topic and great ideas.
My 2 men are very fussy foodies. And freshness is a huge thing to them. But even they except that some meals are just fine frozen. I always have a stack of home made meals in the freezer.
I do spaghetti bolognaise.
Italian rissoles with pasta and bolognaise sauce. I make up my own sauce with lots of chopped and grated veges in it and freeze that with these pasta dishes.
Curries are even better the day after. So I freeze them.
Satay for DH.
Burrito mix with chicken, corn and onion. I wrap in to individual serves so they are handy for lunch or dinner.
I might have to grab some of these ideas.

The only negative with a roast Lanne - is they taste so good I find portion control more difficult

[Marcia]

[QUOTE=Eli;34951]I rediscovered one of my mums freezer staples recently - chow mein. I either cook it on the stove or in the slow cooker, using either beef mince or chicken mince. We eat it that night and I freeze leftovers for soccer training nights.
[QUOTE]

Thats what we had for dinner tonight .... and with hubby away, there was enough for A & myself for dinner, a freezer dinner and her lunch tomorrow.

Given hubby is away alot, I find it hard to cook for 1 1/2 .. so I am always using my slow cooker and making stews, currys and more. They freeze up well also.

One of my faves is using a can of Cream of Chicken and Corn soup, diced chicken and whatever veges take my fancy and putting it all in the slow cooker, with some water to cover ... and simmer away. Sometimes I'll add some curry powder, coriander and tumeric.

Soups are another great freeze item. And spaghetti (well any pasta really), and tuna bake.

But if Mr 3 is a handful in the afternoon and the thought of cooking dinner with him hanging around is enough for you to reach for the next bottle of wine - maybe consider a slow cooker. You can set everything up in the morning (even the steamed veges cut and in the steamer on the stove ready to go, and the rice etc) ... so all you have to do is turn it on. Turn the veges on 1/2 hour before dinner time and done.

[NewHome]

Oh seems like I should go and scan the breville slow cooker for my kitchen tea....never used a slow cooker before though! All of the above posts are very informative :-)

[rosierose]

Make sure its a small one though (3.5).... I find the big ones are for huge families and need loads of stuff to fill..so as a young married couple you would do better to go 3.5L...... That's just my opinion....