Four Fab Freezer Meals

Ahh freezer meals. I was introduced to the freezer-meal-making party by a good friend, Steph, back in Minnesota. She is a rep for Wildtree, and hosted a fun afternoon of prepping, slicing, mixing, bagging and chatting for a bunch of us. It was an adventure from beginning to end for me. I have never purchased so much meat in my life! Gotta love Costco for that. Another girlfriend and I went in together and split the cost of the meat. I picked everything up and then began the task of prepping. Boy, I'm glad I'm not a butcher. It took me a good few hours to divide up everything and prep all the bags. 

But it was definitely a good introduction to freezer meal prep! I've since found a plethora of freezer meal recipes and links on Pintrest and other blogs. Now, freezer meals might not be for everyone. I really love to cook fresh, live food, but sometimes we are out and about, or I've just not planned well, or I'm just lazy. I think freezer meals are great for:

• Who have busy lives and don’t always have time to cook a nice meal
• People who eat at fast food a lot but want better healthy meals quick
• Brand new moms who just had a baby and need easy
• Folks who are sick, elderly or injured and cannot cook
• And let’s be honest…pretty much anyone really!

Some things freeze well and some thing don't. I tend to only freeze meats and sauces. I like to chop my veg and prep it, but leave it in the fridge until I'm ready for it rather than freeze it. Most vegetables will get rather mushy when thawed and that ruins it for me. Also, egg-based sauces can sometimes separate and then curdle when thawed, so be mindful of that. I tend not to make a ton of cream or dairy-sauces, but be forewarned those can sometimes get a bit watery when thawed. 

I love to use gallon Ziplock bags for my freezer meals. They are super easy to fill (just put them in a large bowl or container), can more flexibly lay flat in the freezer, and are easy to label. Labeling makes life so much easier! I always write what it is, how to cook it, and what I need to add to it fresh, as well as any sides I like to make with it. I also love to use my essential oils in the kitchen, so I tweaked some of the recipes to utilize them. These are the ones I've liked the most thus far. If you don't have essential oils, you can definitely use dried or fresh herbs, you'll just need to tweak the amounts. If you are interested in trying out the essential oils I use, send me a request and I'll pop some in the mail for ya! 

 Coconut Lemongrass Chicken Soup
​1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces
1/2 cup yellow onion chopped
1/2 each red, yellow and orange bell pepper chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 can coconut milk, unsweetened
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1-2 Tbsp green curry paste
Chopped cilantro - garnish
2 drops Ginger essential oil (or fresh ginger grated)
3 drops Lemongrass essential oil (or fresh lemongrass)
2 drops Cilantro essential oil (or fresh cilantro chopped)
2 drops Lime essential oils (optional)
​Fresh basil for garnish (optional)


Method

• Label your bag: Coconut Lemongrass Chicken Soup. Crockpot low 6 hours or high 4 hours. Add fresh veg and cilantro when cooking
• Prep chicken and add to Ziplock bag. 
• Add all other ingredients EXCEPT onion and bell pepper
• Prep onion and bell pepper and store in the fridge for use within the week, or wait and chop them up fresh when you're ready to make your soup. 
• Push out all the air and seal your Ziplock​. Will thaw in the slow cooker!

You can serve this over rice or simply eat it as a soup with some yummy naan bread.

Mediterranean Grilled Pork Chops
4 pork chops, bone in or out
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
4 drops Lemon essential oil
1 drops Oregano essential oil
Juice of half a fresh lemon

​Method

• Label your bag: Mediterranean Grilled Pork Chops. Grill on medium heat, 3-4 minutes per side
• Prep pork as needed and add to Ziplock bag
• Add all other ingredients and squish it around to marinade all sides
• Push out all the air and seal your Ziplock. Thaw before grilling.

This is great with couscous and some grilled zucchini and yellow squash. Add in some kalamata olives, fresh tomato and feta cheese and you've got yourself a winner! 

Another great side dish with this is a carrot red pepper puree. Roast two red peppers, then peel. Boil carrots until soft. Add carrots, red pepper, handful of cilantro, glug of balsimc vinegar, salt and pepper and blend until smooth. So delish!
​

Lemongrass Beef and Broccoli
1 1/2 lbs flank steak sliced into bitesize pieces
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
3/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
2 drops Lemongrass essential oil
Head of broccoli separated
1 cup grated carrots
Sliced green onion

​Method

• Label your bag: Lemongrass Beef and Broccoli. Crockpot low 6 hours or high 4 (this is better and more tender lower and longer)
• Prep flank steak and add to Ziplock bag
• Add all other ingredients and squish it around to marinade all sides
• Push out all the air and seal your Ziplock
• Prep your veg and store in the fridge or prep it the day you plan to make the dish
• Add the carrots at least 30 minutes before serving. If you like your broccoli on the crunchy side add it 15 minutes before serving, softer 30 minutes. Top with sliced green onion.

Serve over rice, udon noodles, or rice vermicelli!
​

Slow cooker pulled pork sandwiches + Grilled sweet potato wedges
1 pork loin (2-2.5 lbs)
1 sweet onion, sliced
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
One bottle BBQ sauce of choice (We like Annie's Naturals Organic Smokey Maple)

1-2 Large sweet potato
Olive oil
1-2 drops Rosemary essential oil
Salytand Peppper
Sandwich buns

​Method

• Label your bag: BBQ Pulled Pork. Crockpot low 6-8 hours. Extra BBQ sauce as needed
• Prep flpork loin and add to Ziplock bag
• Add all other ingredients and squish it around to marinade all sides
• Push out all the air and seal your Ziplock
• When you're ready to make this, Get fresh buns and prep your sweet potatoes. I slice them into wedges, then toss with olive oil, rosemary essential oil, salt and pepper. Pre-heat grill to medium and grill 5-6 minutes per side, until tender. Some people like to parboil the sweet potatoes, but I like to just cook them directly on the grill. 

Got a favorite slow cooker or Freezer meal recipe? Comment below and add a link if you've got one! I'm always on the lookout for new meals.