Tag: <span>freezer</span>

[ad_1]

Once a Month Cooking sounds like such a wonderful idea, but I was never able to get my act together enough to make it happen. Another thing that bothered me was that it didn’t make sense to spend the time preparing a meal and then only having one of those meals to put in the freezer. Here’s how I got over 50 meals in the freezer when I was over 7 months pregnant with 2 toddlers.

Getting these meals in the freezer happened without any conscious planning on my part and with very little extra effort. I just cooked a quadruple meal once a week for the last few months of the pregnancy. This was after 12 weeks of bedrest during the middle of my pregnancy.

Imagine my surprise when I counted the meals in my freezer one day and found such a quantity of meals available.

The beauty of this system is that you can do it as little or as much as you want to. You can cook two or three quadruple meals a week for a while and not cook at all during a time when you are not feeling well. You can also go without cooking any quadruple meals for several months if you so choose. This system is so adaptable to your needs.

I had been using this system early in my pregnancy but then had to rely on other people to bring meals when I was on bedrest. When I was able to get up and get around again, I was able to pick up where I left off.

So if you’re looking for a more simplified approach to Once a Month Cooking and want to multiply your meals quickly by using the time you are already in the kitchen, then I encourage you to try your hand at a few quadruple meals.

[ad_2]

Source by Heidi Johnson

[ad_1]

Some people might think that the work of freezer cooking outweighs the benefits, but the truth is that there are some very good reasons to use freezer cooking. If you use the time you are already in the kitchen to prepare your freezer meals, you will wonder why you haven’t done more freezer cooking.

Here are some benefits of freezer cooking:

1. Less dishes – the day that you make the frozen meal you just have bigger pots to wash, not any more dishes in number. Then the day that you eat the freezer meal, the only dishes you have are the serving dish, plates and silverware. How easy is that?

2. Less stress – Being able to come home and know that a meal is almost prepared for you can really reduce mealtime stress. If you are having guests, you are able to enjoy your guests more because you are not spending a bunch of time and stress in the kitchen preparing the meal.

3. Save money – Buying food in bulk has always been cheaper than buying it in individual quantities. You can even bargain with your meat manager if they know you will be buying in larger quantities. Freezer cooking also causes you to be less tempted to eat fast food because you are more likely to have a meal prepared at home and don’t need to stop and get something quick to eat.

4. Eat better – Not only will you be eating better home cooked meals, but you will have more time to make a salad or prepare a vegetable while you are waiting for your meal to cook on the stove or bake in the oven. Many times we spend so much time getting the main course done, we don’t have time to focus on vegetables that can make our meal more interesting and healthy.

[ad_2]

Source by Heidi Johnson

[ad_1]

Some people call this once-a-month cooking, once-a-week cooking, or freezer cooking.  The names may be different but the concept is the same.  You block out one day and do the bulk of your cooking for the designated time period.  

This can really be a great money saver for those families who don’t feel like they have enough time to cook on weeknights and consequently eat out frequently. This is also great because you can build your weekly cooking around the sales, buying in bulk, or those items you are able to use coupons to buy for pennies. 

If this is the first time you’ve ever done this, I suggest planning on cooking for one week.  Carve out a day where you know you can cook with minimal interruptions. 

Make a list of what you are going to cook for the week.  Try to build some meals that are different but have similar ingredients – perhaps a chicken stir fry that includes onions and bell peppers for one meal and chicken fajitas that also include onions and bell peppers for another meal.  They will taste different enough that it doesn’t seem like you are eating the same things over and over, yet they are built around the same ingredients.  This saves you preparation time and money. 

Purchase or assemble the ingredients you will need for your cooking marathon.  To organize yourself, first look at all of your recipes that you will be making for the week.  A prep list is a great tool when you are cooking this way. Sit down with your recipes and write down everything that needs to be done for your cooking marathon. If one recipe calls for you to chop garlic, write the amount of garlic down that you need. Then if a second recipe also calls for chopped garlic, add the amount to the previous “chop garlic.” This will keep you organized and working on things in the fastest way possible. Or let’s say you are going to have tacos and spaghetti this week.  You will need ground beef for both of these.  Instead of browning beef once for tacos and then a second time later that day for spaghetti, you’ll want to do it all at once in one big batch.  The same is true for cutting up vegetables.  If three of your recipes call for chopped onion, cut the onion you need for all three recipes rather than cutting it three times. 

Once the items are cooked, you want to let them cool and then either freeze the whole dish or cut them into individual servings and freeze those.  The nice thing about the individual servings is you can use these for dinners for one or to take your lunch with you. This can be a tremendous money-saver.  Instead of eating out or buying convenience items in the store you have a healthy and home-cooked frozen entree to reheat at work.

Make sure you wrap things very well that are going in the freezer. First wrap the dish with plastic wrap and then cover that with foil. If you are freezing something in a plastic bag, try to get as much of the air out of the bag as possible. Also, label everything with the name of the dish and the reheating instructions. 

To streamline this process for the future, keep the recipes and the prep list all together in a binder. Once you get four or five of these weeks worth of meals built up in your binder, you can start cycling through them. This will save you even more time. You won’t have to gather recipes and make a prep list each time you do this. Just pull out a week’s worth out of your binder and make those for the week.

With a little bit of ingenuity and planning, you can make home cooking a huge time and money saver for your family!

[ad_2]

Source by Lindsay Landis

[ad_1]

Freezer ownership is both convenient and time saving, but freezer management should be dealt with carefully in order to achieve the best results as economically as possible. It is important to take care of a freezer so that it works efficiently and gives value for money. Here’s the Advantages and disadvantages of owning a freezer.

Advantages of owning a freezer are discussed in the following lines.

• Freezing is a simple and effective way of preserving food, and, providing the basic rules are followed, it is safe. There is very little effect on the flavor, color, appearance, and nutritive value of most foods.
• Whole meals, snacks, and parts of meals can be stored in a freezer to use at any time.
• It is usually cheaper to buy foods such as meat in bulk, and store them in the freezer for long-term use.
• Home-grown or ‘pick-your-own’ produce can be frozen at home, which saves money.
• Foods can be eaten out of season.
• Parties and other special occasions can be catered for in advance and the foods stored until they are needed.
• ‘Emergency’ foods can be stored for unexpected guests or for when the larder is depleted
• Freezers are inexpensive to run, if used wisely; on average they use one unit of electricity per 15 liters per week.
• Various sizes and types of freezer are available to cater for varying needs and family size.
• Time can be saved on shopping if food is bought in bulk for the freezer.
• Left-over foods and items such as stock or fruit juice can be frozen for later use, to avoid wastage.

Now the disadvantages of owning a freezer for cooking are discussed below.

• The initial cost of a freezer is high, but by sensible use, this cost can gradually be retrieved.
• In order to work and run efficiently, a freezer should be well stocked, which means that plans should be made to buy or freeze more food as stocks run down.
• To prepare a bulk buy or harvest of foods may entail a good deal of work in a short space of time.
• There may be a tendency to fill the freezer with uneconomic commercially frozen food.
• A family may find that it is eating more foods such as meat, shellfish, etc., just because they are in the freezer, and this may be unnecessary and expensive.
• If storage space is limited, the freezer may have to be housed outside the kitchen and this may be inconvenient.

[ad_2]

Source by Muhd Asif Raza

[ad_1]

Ever wondered how freezer mugs work? What is it in these mugs that make them function the way they do, like keeping your beverage cool and refreshing long after removing them from the refrigerator? Basically, these mugs are containers with a double-side wall, filled with a certain type of gel-a mixture of propylene glycol and water-at the core, which serves as an antifreeze. The antifreeze works by keeping the mugs’ freezing point lower than what it usually is, so in effect, the liquid contained in it is kept cold for a longer time. While it is similar in many aspects to the freeze preventive used in automobiles (ethylene glycol), propylene glycol is considerably less toxic, so the freezer mugs are still kept safe even in cases of accidental leakage.

Freezer mugs come in a variety of styles. You can find them in the form of a beer mug, a wine glass, or even a tumbler. You can also find them plain clear or frosted, or even with colored gels inside, depending on your preference. These mugs can also be made from different materials, such as plastic, glass or acrylic. But whatever the material your mugs are made from, it is important that they are well taken care of. Habitual use in environments of very different temperatures can shock the mugs and cause them to crack, so it is important to know how to properly store them.

To care for your mug, wash it in lukewarm water by hand and place it in the refrigerator for an hour to cool it down. Remember not to leave it soaking in the water or to use a dishwasher to clean it. Afterwards, move the mug to the freezer and put it in an upside down position, out of the direct path of the air inlet. By the time you need to use the freezer mug, take it from the freezer and wrap a dry towel around it. You are now ready to use your freezer mug again.

As a whole, users of freezer mugs seem to have a good review on it. For them, the mugs work just great, in terms of keeping their favorite beverages cool and fresh as it does not water the drink down. Also, it saves them from ice and all the hassles that come with it, as it is able to keep the cold temperature longer. Indeed, there are so many benefits from keeping your own freezer mugs.

When shopping for freezer mugs, it is highly recommended to buy them online by bulk because online markets offer the best selection for the best prices. You can even choose your favorite sport team on your mug! Happy drinking!

[ad_2]

Source by Aurelio Gentry

[ad_1]

When meat goes on sale I stock up for the weeks ahead. We have a chest freezer and food items at the bottom can be forgotten. The other day I found a flank steak, (a pricey cut of meat) and saw, to my dismay, that it had freezer burn.

What is freezer burn anyway? It happens after food has been frozen for a long time. Meat develops white spots and the texture and flavor are changed. In fact, red meat may look gray or pale brown. These discolored areas are dry and one of the best ways to cook the meat is with a method that adds moisture — braising or using a slow cooker.

Seeing dry, discolored meat may make you worry about food safety. Don’t worry. According to the USDA, freezer-urned meat is still safe to eat. One edge of the flank steak was burned, but it was such a small area that I left it alone. But the USDA recommends cutting away badly burned sections. “Heavily freezer-burned foods may have to be discarded for quality reasons,” notes the USDA.

Though I had stored the steak i a heavy plastic bag with a zipper closing, over time, it had still developed freezer burn. To add moisture, I decided to cook the steak in seasoned broth. I defrosted the steak in the microwave and cut it in half to fit in my slow cooker. (I have the smallest size.) As it cooks the steak shrinks a bit, so you need to keep this in mind when you plan your meal.

A few hours later, my husband and I were feasting on some of the tastiest steaks we have ever eaten. The slow cooker method will work with balltips, round steak, and other tougher cuts of meat. Usually flank steak is sliced across the grain. With the slow cooking method, however, you cut with the grain or shred the meat. Everyone in the family will enjoy this flavorful recipe.

Ingredients

1 flank steak (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds)

2 cups no-salt beef stock

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 tomato, chopped

3-4 green onions, white and green parts, chopped

4 ounces mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup gravy flour (approximate – you may need more)

Water

Salt and pepper to taste

Prepared mashed potatoes

Method

Place cooking bag in slow cooker. Stir ketchup into beef stock. Lay flank steak in cooker. Pour stock mixture over meat and scatter vegetables on top. Cover and cook on high setting for 3 1/2 hours on low or 5 hours on high setting. Remove meat and set on cutting board. Whisk water into flour to make a slurry, making sure there are no lumps. With cooker in high, stir slurry into liquid, and cook until sauce thickens. Season sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Put lid back on slow cooker to keep sauce hot. Shred meat and lay on top of mashed potatoes. Top each serving with a generous amount of sauce. Serve with a green vegetable or salad. Makes 4 generous servings.

Copyright 2013 by Harriet Hodgson

[ad_2]

Source by Harriet Hodgson