I prepped eight “no-cook” freezer meals in 90 minutes. Wahoo! All I had to do was combine the ingredients and freeze. Here’s my grocery list and recipes so you can do the same.
First, here’s what I made…
- Garden Veggie Soup with Meatballs
- Greens & Beans
- Red Pepper Chicken
- Turkey Black Bean Chili
- Chicken Curry
- Honey Dijon Chicken (I’ve used the same sauce with beef, ribs, and pork. Yum.)
- Apricot-Ginger Chicken with Green Beans
- Brown Sugar Meatloaf (from my No Cook Freezer Meals cookbook and shared for free below)
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE RECIPES AND GROCERY LIST
I’ve made all of these recipes before, and they’re delicious. Since they’re frozen without any cooking ahead of time, they cook the first time out of the freezer and don’t taste like leftovers at all. Yay!
Overall, it took me 90 minutes to prep all eight meals (including clean-up!) I bought all of the ingredients at a local grocery stores for $69. Not bad for eight dinners with tons of fresh veggies.
Here’s how I prepped the meals so quickly…
- I wrote out my freezer meal labels ahead of time.
- I used peeled garlic (which is awesome, by the way).
- I only made meals that could be frozen without any cooking ahead of time.
I shared a bunch of my favorite freezer meal prep sessions in a previous blog post, but this session was different because I prepped all of the meals for my parents. My mom has tried almost all of my recipes so I let her pick her favorites and I took care of the shopping and prepping. (She insisted on paying for the groceries, but I think this would be a really nice thing to do for someone as a gift.)
If you’ve never prepped “no-cook” freezer meals before, here’s how I do it…
- I fill out my freezer meal labels the day before to save time.
- I print my recipes so I don’t have to search for them on my iPhone or iPad.
- I start by washing, peeling, and chopping all of the fresh vegetables.
- Then, I focus on one bag at a time and add its sauces, spices, beans, etc.
- I add the meat to all of the bags last so it will be the first ingredient dumped into the crockpot later.
Since I also made a “no-cook” meatloaf this time, I prepped it after all of the crockpot meals were done.
The printer-friendly recipes above will walk you through the process step-by-step. If you’re interested in more recipes or info about how to prepare, package, and cook freezer meals safely and efficiently, check out my crockpot and freezer cookbooks.
Thoughts or questions? I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment below and I’ll respond as soon as I can!
Hi Kelly- These recipes look great! So, I have always cooked my ground turkey before putting it in the freezer bags. But I will try this. Could I use ground turkey for the meatloaf instead of ground beef?
Yes, definitely!
How many does the freezer meals prepare for? I looked at your recipes but couldn’t find a serving size for them. I’m cooking for 6-8 people and need to know if I need to double the recipes. Thank you for sharing these awesome tips. I am new to this and have always wanted to learn how to do meal prep.
The serving sizes are listed in the printer-friendly pdf. They vary from 3-6, so you’ll definitely need to double some of them. For the recipes that only feed 3, I think you’ll be fine doubling the meat (or even x1.5). Be careful with the soups and chili because they can really fill up a 6-qt crockpot. You might be fine adding some extra meat or beans to the dish to make it more hearty. Or add more side dishes.
Hi Kelly, I am a subscriber of your newsletter and I love the idea behind this. My issue is I have a 2 year old who just hit the picky stage. I want her to eat good food, but I’m having trouble coming up with good toddler friendly recipes that can be made quickly with little night of work (as a single mom who works food needs to be on the table shortly after we get home.) any ides? Or maybe a few recipes that I can move into my rotation? She has no allergies and used to eat everything,… Read more »
I have just the answer for you, Kayla. I’m prepping a bunch of “kid-friendly” freezer meals tomorrow. Stay tuned! 🙂
i would like to know where you get the bag holders.
They’re from Amazon: Jokari Baggy Clips. I LOVE them.
The meatloaf was amazing. We didn’t have any ketchup so I made the glaze with 1/4 cup maple syrup and 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard. Good Work.
Great idea, Cindy. Thanks for sharing.
Kelly crockpot meat always looks gross. Does cooking it with the veggies make it look better? Does your site give any tips for making it look good?
Haha. I appreciate your honesty, Ralenda. I don’t think they look “gross”, but if you feel that way then I’d probably pick recipes that include more fresh side dishes. For example, roasts that can be served with vegetables and brown rice. Soups might be a good way to go too.