Some Tips and Tricks from Mama And Baby Love's Blog
Does the meat need to be cooked before freezing?
There are differing opinions on the safety of mixing raw meat with other ingredients before freezing. A slow cooker will reach temperatures high enough to destroy bacteria. If you’re uncomfortable with mixing then you can simply freeze the meat portions separately. I have been doing this for over a year now and have never had a problem. I do not recommend precooking the meat. I talked more about it here.
How much liquid do you add to your recipes?
If the recipe does not include liquid, then no liquid is added. The meats and vegetables will release liquids as they cook, especially since they are frozen and the ice crystals give off even more liquid. Some of my recipes do call for liquid. I know I am prone to typo’s but if it doesn’t call for liquid, you don’t need it!
Do you add the sour cream to the freezer bag or as a garnish for the Goulash recipe?
The sour cream is meant as a garnish. Same with the noodles. You cook them separately and add them in once everything is finished.
Do you need to blanch the vegetables before freezing?
Blanching is only recommended if you’re intending to preserve vegetables for storage, such as over winter, but it still is not necessary.
My vegetables turned out mushy, did I do something wrong?
No! They are supposed to be mushy. I realize not everyone likes mushy vegetables, but my family and I love them that way. It is actually easier for your body to digest and absorb nutrients that way. All my recipes are stew-like, so veggies are going to be very, very soft. We do always serve the meals with cous-cous to add a bit of texture.
How many bouillon cubes do you use per bag?
1 bouillon cube is used per bag. The recipes listed are already doubled. So you split everything between two bags.
Are the recipes doubled?
Honestly I don’t know if I would say they are doubled, but the are extra large. :) Each recipe as listed will fill two, one gallon bags. Split the ingredients between two bags. Depending on your size of family is how far they will go. For us, our perfect little family of three, we get dinner and lots of leftovers from each bag.
Does the BBQ chicken recipe divide the sauces or put one can in each bag?
I split the sauce up between the two bags. The recipes listed are already doubled. So you split everything between two bags.
Are the recipes split into two bags or one whole recipe in a single bag?
Each recipe is split between two, 1 gallon bags. Sorry for the redundancy here people, but I get this question a lot!
What capacity slow cooker will accommodate these recipes?
I use All Clad’s 6 quart slow cooker. A 4 or 6 quart cooker will work just fine. If you are cooking for one, you could split the ingredients into 4 smaller portions and cooker in a smaller slow cooker as well.
How many meals will these recipes produce?
3 recipes will give you six bags of food. Each bag gives us dinner and leftovers. So 6 bags, should give you 12 meals, for a small family, 6 meals for a large family.
How long would these recipes stay good in the freezer?
I would think about 6 months. I usually use mine up before then, but that sounds about right!
Couldn’t you just use the special slow cooker bags for these?
Other random tips from me to make the process quicker:
Chop all your ingredients first. Then assemble spices and sauces. Then group everything by recipe and then start dumping. Make yourself a little assembly line on your counter and go to town!
Several people had concerns about mixing raw meat and the veggies in one bag. I am no expert, but I think because you are putting the ingredients in the bag and immediately putting it in the freezer and then the day you cook it, straight from freezer to slow cooker, that it is not a problem. I prep all my veggies the night before and make labels. Then the day of, I assemble all my dry ingredients into sections, then put all veggies, sauces, dry ingredients into the bags. The very last thing I do is put the meat in. So there is very little time that the meat is out, before I put it in the freezer.
Texture. Several people said the texture was soupy. Pretty much all my recipes are a form of a stew. I always serve my recipes with rice or cous-cous, or make a sandwich with it (usually for lunch). I like it that way, but I realize that is not for everyone.
Adding in last minute ingredients. If a recipe calls for broth, I add it the day of and do not put it in the bag with the other ingredients. I will do a better job of describing which items go in the bag to freeze and what items you toss in the day of cooking.
Doubling. The recipes below have already been doubled, but if you have a large family, you might want to double them again. Each recipe below, yields me two bags of food. So if it says 2 cans of pitted cherries, that would be one can per bag. Each bag, usually yields us two dinners and a lunch. We are a small family of two adults and one toddler.
I use gallon size bags. I hand write a label with name of recipe, date I freeze it and any thing I need to add the day of like, broth. Then I double bag it. I am working on getting some super cute labels made so you can print out your own labels (my gift to you!) to go along with each recipe, so stay tuned for those!
After I assemble the ingredients, I lay the bags flat and get all the air out. As I am getting the air out, I mix everything up in the bag, so all the veggies and meat are coated in the sauce/spice mix. Then I place them in my freezer flat, so they freeze like bricks, just like I do with breast milk storage bags.
Source: http://mamaandbabylove.com
There are differing opinions on the safety of mixing raw meat with other ingredients before freezing. A slow cooker will reach temperatures high enough to destroy bacteria. If you’re uncomfortable with mixing then you can simply freeze the meat portions separately. I have been doing this for over a year now and have never had a problem. I do not recommend precooking the meat. I talked more about it here.
How much liquid do you add to your recipes?
If the recipe does not include liquid, then no liquid is added. The meats and vegetables will release liquids as they cook, especially since they are frozen and the ice crystals give off even more liquid. Some of my recipes do call for liquid. I know I am prone to typo’s but if it doesn’t call for liquid, you don’t need it!
Do you add the sour cream to the freezer bag or as a garnish for the Goulash recipe?
The sour cream is meant as a garnish. Same with the noodles. You cook them separately and add them in once everything is finished.
Do you need to blanch the vegetables before freezing?
Blanching is only recommended if you’re intending to preserve vegetables for storage, such as over winter, but it still is not necessary.
My vegetables turned out mushy, did I do something wrong?
No! They are supposed to be mushy. I realize not everyone likes mushy vegetables, but my family and I love them that way. It is actually easier for your body to digest and absorb nutrients that way. All my recipes are stew-like, so veggies are going to be very, very soft. We do always serve the meals with cous-cous to add a bit of texture.
How many bouillon cubes do you use per bag?
1 bouillon cube is used per bag. The recipes listed are already doubled. So you split everything between two bags.
Are the recipes doubled?
Honestly I don’t know if I would say they are doubled, but the are extra large. :) Each recipe as listed will fill two, one gallon bags. Split the ingredients between two bags. Depending on your size of family is how far they will go. For us, our perfect little family of three, we get dinner and lots of leftovers from each bag.
Does the BBQ chicken recipe divide the sauces or put one can in each bag?
I split the sauce up between the two bags. The recipes listed are already doubled. So you split everything between two bags.
Are the recipes split into two bags or one whole recipe in a single bag?
Each recipe is split between two, 1 gallon bags. Sorry for the redundancy here people, but I get this question a lot!
What capacity slow cooker will accommodate these recipes?
I use All Clad’s 6 quart slow cooker. A 4 or 6 quart cooker will work just fine. If you are cooking for one, you could split the ingredients into 4 smaller portions and cooker in a smaller slow cooker as well.
How many meals will these recipes produce?
3 recipes will give you six bags of food. Each bag gives us dinner and leftovers. So 6 bags, should give you 12 meals, for a small family, 6 meals for a large family.
How long would these recipes stay good in the freezer?
I would think about 6 months. I usually use mine up before then, but that sounds about right!
Couldn’t you just use the special slow cooker bags for these?
Other random tips from me to make the process quicker:
Chop all your ingredients first. Then assemble spices and sauces. Then group everything by recipe and then start dumping. Make yourself a little assembly line on your counter and go to town!
Several people had concerns about mixing raw meat and the veggies in one bag. I am no expert, but I think because you are putting the ingredients in the bag and immediately putting it in the freezer and then the day you cook it, straight from freezer to slow cooker, that it is not a problem. I prep all my veggies the night before and make labels. Then the day of, I assemble all my dry ingredients into sections, then put all veggies, sauces, dry ingredients into the bags. The very last thing I do is put the meat in. So there is very little time that the meat is out, before I put it in the freezer.
Texture. Several people said the texture was soupy. Pretty much all my recipes are a form of a stew. I always serve my recipes with rice or cous-cous, or make a sandwich with it (usually for lunch). I like it that way, but I realize that is not for everyone.
Adding in last minute ingredients. If a recipe calls for broth, I add it the day of and do not put it in the bag with the other ingredients. I will do a better job of describing which items go in the bag to freeze and what items you toss in the day of cooking.
Doubling. The recipes below have already been doubled, but if you have a large family, you might want to double them again. Each recipe below, yields me two bags of food. So if it says 2 cans of pitted cherries, that would be one can per bag. Each bag, usually yields us two dinners and a lunch. We are a small family of two adults and one toddler.
I use gallon size bags. I hand write a label with name of recipe, date I freeze it and any thing I need to add the day of like, broth. Then I double bag it. I am working on getting some super cute labels made so you can print out your own labels (my gift to you!) to go along with each recipe, so stay tuned for those!
After I assemble the ingredients, I lay the bags flat and get all the air out. As I am getting the air out, I mix everything up in the bag, so all the veggies and meat are coated in the sauce/spice mix. Then I place them in my freezer flat, so they freeze like bricks, just like I do with breast milk storage bags.
Source: http://mamaandbabylove.com
