I’ve had several requests lately for freezer-friendly meal ideas. It must be that time of year! With our little bambino on the way in a couple months, I’ve been making a list of meals I’m going to try to make in advance to stash away in the freezer. It will be a miracle if I can even get through a third of this list below (considering I have no working oven until late August…minor detail, hah), but I included plenty of options so you have some variety to choose from! The recipes at the top of my “must-make” list are: My Favourite Vegan Chili; Spiced Red Lentil, Tomato, and Kale Soup; Pumpkin Gingerbread Snack Bars; Summer Harvest Tortilla Soup (from OSG cookbook); Crowd-Pleasing Tex Mex Casserole (OSG cookbook); Feel Good Hearty Granola Bars; veggie burgers/balls; Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ‘Larabars’; and my Indian-Lentil Cauliflower Soup (also from OSG cookbook). That should be a good start!
First a few Q + A’s…
What to freeze in? I switched to glass, BPA-free freezer + oven-safe containers last year, so I always use those for freezing (I use these Pyrex containers). The added bonus is that you can bake thawed casseroles/enchiladas right in the very dish! Yay, for less dishes. I also use Glasslock containers, but those are not oven-safe, fyi. Lastly, I use freezer-safe zip bags for foods like granola bars, granola, and cookies. I always rinse and reuse the bags when I’m done with them to cut down on waste and save money (those things are expensive). Mason jars (for canning/freezing) also work well. Tip: We also use freezer bags for freezing bananas for smoothies. At any given moment you can find about 2 bags stuffed with peeled bananas in the freezer!
How to freeze? As for the method I use to freeze things, it’s pretty basic. I’m a big fan of what I call the wrap + seal technique (totally just made that up), meaning that I wrap the cooled food first (usually in tin foil or other freezer-safe bag) and then place the wrapped food in the glass container and lock/seal the lid. I like that it has two layers of protection from freezer burn. This method works great for single-serving foods like veggie burgers/balls, burritos, or snack bars. If it’s a liquid-based dish like soup, pesto, sauce, casserole, or chili, I will pour it into the dish and then sometimes put a layer of wrap on top of it. Press the foil/wrap down to prevent freezer burn from forming and then secure the lid as usual. It helps to leave an inch of so of space at the top to allow for any expansion. For those who don’t want to use foil or wrap, you can try wrapping with parchment paper and securing with baking twine or something similar.
How long to freeze for? Ah, the million dollar question! I find this depends on the type of food and your freezer. I’m pretty sensitive to the dreaded freezer-burn taste, so I try not to freeze things for longer than a month or two in my regular (fridge) freezer. It’s really just trial and error though. You can get more mileage out of certain dishes and less with others.
For the recipes that don’t make a very large serving, I like to double or triple the recipe whenever possible. I haven’t tried freezing every single one of the recipes below, but I’ve tried a lot of them. Generally speaking, these categories tend to freeze quite well.
I encourage you to share your freezing methods in the comments! I’m certainly not a freezing pro and welcome all your tips. Update – there are now a ton of great freezing tips in the comment section! Be sure to check them out.
Veggie Burgers + Balls
When it comes to veggie burgers and bean balls, I now prefer to cook them first, cool completely, and then use the wrap + seal freezing technique I mentioned above (wrap individually in tin foil and then place them all in a glass container). When ready to eat, thaw on the countertop or in the fridge and reheat on the skillet with some oil or in the oven on a baking sheet. I find cooking the burgers/balls first and then freezing helps the patties stay together better.
Thai Sweet Potato Veggie Burgers
Soup + Chili
Liquids like soup and chili are freezer-friendly superstars! Most will do just fine. After cooking the soup, let it cool completely, and then place in a freezer-friendly glass container leaving a bit of space at the top for any expansion that might occur. Sometimes I add a layer of tin foil on top of the soup to prevent freezer burn.
Luxurious 7-Vegetable and ‘Cheese’ Soup
Spiced Red Lentil, Tomato, and Kale Soup
Black Bean, Sweet Potato, and Red Quinoa Soup
Pasta Sauce + Pesto
Sauces and pesto’s tend to freeze nicely too. I only freeze the sauce and rarely ever freeze the sauce mixed into cooked pasta or other noodle (it tends to get soggy for many dishes). I use the same freezing method as written above for soup/chili. You can even freeze sauces/pesto’s in smaller portions (for “two” is a popular one around here!), so you don’t need to thaw the entire batch for just one meal. Try freezing pesto in silicone muffin trays for easy removal. Once they are frozen, you can pop them into a reusable freezer-safe zip bags to save freezer space.
I haven’t tried freezing these two below yet, but if you have please leave a comment!
Cauli-power Fettuccine Alfredo Sauce
Enchiladas + Burritos + Casserole
I freeze the Tex Mex Casserole in an extra large oven/freezer-safe glass dish with a layer of tin foil pressed tightly on top of the casserole to prevent freezer burn. Tips: For this specific casserole, I skipped the 15-20 minute oven cooking because I knew I would be cooking it after thawing. I let the skillet mixture cool before adding it into the container. I also waited to add the corn chip garnish until just before baking so they didn’t get soggy. When you are ready to eat it, thaw it completely (this takes well over 24 hours in the fridge – FYI), remove the tin foil, sprinkle on the corn chips, and pop it in the oven at 350F for about 30 minutes. Easy! Serve it with sliced avocado, cashew sour cream, sliced green onion, salsa, etc. As for enchiladas, people have told me they had success freezing the entire lot all at once, thawing, and baking as instructed. I would wait to make + add the cilantro avocado sauce until just before serving since it’s avocado based. For burritos, you can wrap them up individually in tin foil or freezer bags and freeze for quick grab and go meals.
Crowd-Pleasing Tex Mex Casserole (from The Oh She Glows Cookbook, page 149)
Black Bean and Sweet Potato Enchiladas (for an updated version with a 5-minute homemade enchilada sauce (this freezes well too!), see pages 147 and 300 in the OSG cookbook)
Black Bean and Butternut Squash Burritos
Snacks/Breakfast
For cookies, I bake them as directed, cool completely, and then freeze in freezer-safe zip bags. Some people also have success freezing the portioned cookie dough on a baking sheet and then popping the frozen dough balls into freezer baggies. Then you can thaw on the counter and bake as usual. I’ve also included a link to my recent granola bar recipe – I tested freezing these and they lasted for over a month in the freezer which I was very happy about! They make a great snack and I love that I can thaw one bar at a time as I need them. Lastly, granola always freezes well. My favourite granola is on page 31 of my cookbook.
Raspberry Almond Thumbprint Cookies
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ‘Larabars’
Ultimate Nutty granola Clusters (from The Oh She Glows Cookbook, page 31)
Blissful Blueberry Banana Spelt Muffins
Heavenly Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal
Pumpkin Gingerbread Snack Bars
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This list is by no means inclusive of all the freezer-friendly recipes on the blog over the past 6 years. If I’ve forgotten any good blog recipes that you’ve had freezing success with, be sure to let us know in the comments! The more the merrier.
Happy freezing!
I have found that vacuum-packing anything I freeze prevents freezer burn for far longer than anything I have ever used. I use something called a Food Saver, but you could more easily and cheaply do what one commenter suggested and suck the air out of the bag best you can. There are devices for that also, though I haven’t tried them. Love all these suggestions. Thank you so much everyone! Best wishes for wonderful times with your new babies, all you who are pregnant or new moms. Time passes so quickly and life changes come all the time. It’s good to feel prepared, as even our best friends and families have such differing ideas about what we should be eating! Make your own and freeze or can it, and you’ll thank yourself!
these are great i wish i this was posted while i was pregnant! it is super easy to pull something out and make a salad after a day of being with baby. enjoy your little one and get used to one handed typing :)
Hi Angela – just bought your cookbook and OMG it is incredible ! Fabulous recipes and wonderful photos of what the dish should look like once completed (always a must ). Will be kept busy this long weekend trying lots of them. Thanks so much…Sue
Thank you Sue! I’m so happy you enjoy it so far :)
These are great tips for freezing! I also switched to glass containers 4 years ago, and have run into a few issues along the way that I wanted to share with you.
The biggest issue to note on the Pyrex glass containers is that they lack the amounts of borosilicate glass they once had in the 50’s and 60’s when our parents used them.
World Kitchen bought Pyrex a few years back and decided to change the chemical make up of the glass, which resulted in the glass cracking either in the freezer or in the oven, especially at high temperatures. There are oodles of stories about this issue on the net, which you can research, too, however, now I only use Frigoverre, an Italian glass company that does not skimp on the borosilicate compound used, or other brands that guarantee they use full borosilicate. I buy my Frigoverre on amazon.
Thanks Angela!
Melanie
Hi, so I recently went vegan but ive been experiencing fatigue memory loss, loss of hair lack of concentration. Any advice? Does it mean I cant be vegan now without reaching my max potential?
What’s the third picture down on the right?
Hello, mama!
I love your website and have been a fan of your recipes for some time!
The freezer ideas are great. I am expecting my 4th baby and so maybe,
just maybe I will prepare food ahead of time (since I do love my husband) :)
I wanted to mention, and you may already be aware…
Don’t let aluminum foil touch the food so it will not absorb. I normally will do and in-between
layer of parchment paper and then foil. Just like you would use aluminum free baking powder, you don’t want the aluminum to absorb because it is toxic. My uncle is a master herbalist and has helped LOTS of people with cancer recover with natural health and no treatment. He shared this with me and so I am passing it on :)
Hello Sally,
This is a great idea! I will be using this tip for sure. Thanks!
great site!
I’m new to freezing foods as I live in a small condo and there’s not too much space. All of you seem like experts in this field. What sort of containers should I use to freeze food items? Are glass containers safe? or plastic is a better choice?
Such fun reading your recipes and certainly a joy to experiment with and a “Pleasure” to eat !!
Brigitte Gaudreault
Sherbrooke Québec
My oh my Angela! I just received my oh she glows cookbook, and have worked through a few recipes that were sooo good. Tonight I decided to make the Tex-Mex casserole to take to my daughters this week. I portioned it off into two casseroles so my husband and I could enjoy one right away. Wow! I don’t think I’ve tried a vegan recipe yet that is so satisfying to meat lovers as well. I used a gluten free mix of quinoa/amaranth/millet that provided a texture of ground meat instead of the rice, but otherwise was faithful to the recipe. It was outstanding, thank you! I think I will make another batch for the freezer soon in preparation for the busy holiday season. I am freezing this unbaked and adding the corn chip topping later, unless you would advise otherwise.
Hi Angela, re-visiting this great post as the second trimester recipe tryouts are here–kwim for stocking the freezer in the third?–and thanks to you I am now slowly building up a stock of Pyrex freezer/oven storage containers.
Here’s a tip: undercook veggies & pasta that are destined for the freezer. I undercook pasta by the al dente time minus 2 minutes since -1 min and it’s still cooked by the time the pasta cools off for the fridge then freezer.
Hi, thanks for posting! Isn’t foil pretty bad in terms of the environment for being produced and difficult to recycle? It has to be mined from ore which is huge in waste and then refined, transported and produced. It also takes over 400 years to break down in land fills and if burnt releases toxic gases. I have been avoiding using it like the plague and reuse plastic wrap instead.
Hi there,
Regarding the wrap and freeze method, are you concerned about the link between
alzheimers and aluminum foil? How about Press’nSeal?
Thank you,
Lynn
Just saw a link to your blog on facebook. Absolutely love the recipes and the time couldn’t be better. I am off to visit my adult daughter and would love to cook for her. So thankful.
I’ve just glanced at a couple of your posts. Aren’t infants a joy? Welcome to the world of tired. You will experience such love.
Blessings and thanks
I love your recipes! I’ve made the sweet potato, black bean and red quinoa soup before and it was very good! I am now attempting to meal plan/prep and am having difficulty figuring out how to prepare and store things. For example, for the soup: do you cook the whole recipe and then freeze or would you freeze everything except the quinoa until the day you are eating it? Thank you for all your advice and recipes! :)
Wondering if anyone has done these recipes for a cook once for a month type of plan?
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Hey- i’m a 17 year old vegan and my meals are mostly pretty quick dash! i love your creativity but could you recommend some of your more basic, simple recipes to get me started? love the look of them all though!