39 Freezer Meals That Are Ready Before You Need Them
Sometimes, the spirit of meal-planning motivation finds us. When that happens, we embrace it and prepare ourselves some freezer meals—big batches of recipes that freeze well, leftovers stowed away—to make future weeknights easier.
For whatever reason, freezer meals and frozen meals have come to mean different things to us. Frozen meals, such as these instant noodles and pizzas, are store-bought; freezer meal recipes are ones you cook yourself. (Dunno; just works for us.) Some of the latter, like this classic cilantro-heavy sofrito, will help future you cut down on cooking time when making sauces, stews, and dips, and some, like this lasagna, take care of 100% of your meal prep. All are blessings on those busy nights when you need the assist.
Now, before we get off our soapbox, four more statements: Your freezer should never be without tortillas or Parmesan rinds. How you defrost does matter. While it will affect the taste of your food, freezer burn is safe to eat, as long as the food item hasn’t been frozen for longer than the FDA-recommended time period. Sometimes, frozen produce is better.
Okay, speech over. Here are our 39 favorite freezer meals.
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Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca1/39Make-Ahead Egg and Cheese Sandwiches
Yes, freezer meals include breakfast! Mornings on the go just got so much better, because when hunger strikes, you have multiple ways to cook these sandwiches from frozen: You can either bake them, microwave them, or heat them in a skillet.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca2/39Roasted Carrot Soup With Crispy Shallots
3/39Pull-Apart Sour Cream and Chive Rolls
You need something to sop up all that soup from your bowl, right? We learned from one of our readers that these rolls freeze well after being baked.
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Micah Morton, prop styling by Stephanie Yeh4/39Fennel Potlikker
This nourishing, nutrient-dense broth freezes for up to three months. Use it as a base for shrimp and grits, a vegetable grain bowl, or any dish that would benefit from an intensely aromatic broth.
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Photograph by Isa Zapata6/39Spicy Rigatoni With Pork Sugo
Traditional sugo, which means sauce in Italian, is a pork-based ragù. This version is lighter-bodied and leans on atypical flavor enhancers such as fish sauce and chicken liver. If you want something porky that isn’t pasta sauce but still freezes well, go the BBQ route with these braised pork shoulder sandwiches.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Sean Dooley, prop styling by Tim Ferro7/39Salmon Teriyaki Onigiri
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Spencer Richards8/39BA’s Best Breakfast Sausage
Save time when you prepare breakfast for overnight guests in a couple of weeks. Shape these sausage patties now and freeze them in an airtight container for up to a month.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Kat Boytsova, Prop Styling by Gerri K. Williams11/39Meatball Soup With Beef Stew Vibes
Alex Lau12/39Moussaka
Greek moussaka like this one, with lamb, eggplant, and a pillowy top of creamy béchamel sauce, goes well with—what else?—Greek salad. Its crunchy green peppers and cucumbers balance out the meal.
Photo by Alex Lau, Food Styling by Andy Baraghani, Prop Styling by Emily Eisen13/39Grain-Free Tahini Granola
It sounds unexpected, but you can absolutely freeze granola. (You can also freeze puréed avocado, mashed potatoes, taco filling, and applesauce. Who knew?)
Photographs by Laura Murray, food styling by Susie Theodorou14/39Frijoles de la Olla
These Mexican-style beans are a key to easy freezer meals: They can become a filling for burritos or enchiladas, they’re good on rice, and if the beans overcook or break apart when reheating, it’s a great excuse to refry them—no one will know.
ALEX LAU16/39Classic Chicken Pot Pie
Thaw the puff pastry (in the fridge) the night before you make this dish. Then just wrap, store, and save for a day that requires comfort food.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Dayna Seman17/39BA’s Best Mac and Cheese
Photo by Alex Lau, Food Styling by Sue Li, Prop Styling by Kalen Kaminski19/39Quite Possibly the Best Chickpeas
Just toast some crusty bread (which you also have in the freezer, right?) and you’ve got yourself a meal. Speaking of which, here’s a tip for freezing bread: The day you buy a loaf, slice whatever you won’t eat immediately and freeze it in a resealable bag. You can toast slices directly from the freezer.
Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott21/39Turkey and Chicken Stock
Freeze this in different-size containers for versatility: A couple of frozen stock cubes from an ice tray can help you make a pan sauce; a pint can be added to a braise; and a quart container is helpful for making risotto.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Spencer Richards, Prop Styling by Dayna Seman22/39BA’s Best Baked Ziti
Photograph by Victoria Jane, Prop Styling by Alexandra Massillon, Food Styling by Mallory Lance23/39Halftime Chili
You can make this ground beef chili on the stovetop, but if you have a hankering to dust off that Crockpot (and benefit from its “keep warm” setting while guests are over), then here’s one to file under Slow Cooker Freezer Meals.
24/39Falafel Fritters Bowl with Cucumbers and Yogurt Sauce
Treat these chickpea patties like meatballs: Form them, freeze them, and you’ll have them on hand to cook when falafel cravings strike (or when you forgot to plan dinner).
26/39Slice-and-Bake Jammy Pinwheel Cookies
You don’t have to stick to the old-school black-and-white pinwheels made with sugar cookie dough and a version with cocoa powder. Try this version with raspberry preserves instead.
Alex Lau28/39Bacon, Mushroom, and Spinach Pierogies
Want to make it a freezer pierogi party? Here are some more filling options: Kielbasa, Sauerkrat, and Potato Pierogies; Beef, Onion, and Cheddar Pierogies; and Cottage Cheese and Blueberry Pierogies.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Spencer Richards, Prop Styling by Marina Bevilacqua29/39Cozy and Quick White Chicken Chili
When it’s time to dig into that white bean and chicken chili you’ve been saving for a rainy day, make sure you have some avocado, sour cream, cilantro, and corn chips on hand.
Photograph by Elizabeth Coetzee, prop styling by Emma Ringness, Food Styling by Emilie Fosnocht32/39BA’s Best Lasagna
Photo by Stephen Kent Johnson, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski36/39Lamb Meatballs with Raisin Pesto
The best way to freeze meatballs is first on a sheet pan until firm, then in freezer bags for storing. And it’s also worth saying: If you want to make a little extra pesto, we bet it would taste good on some cheese tortellini. (And yes, you can freeze pesto.)
Photo by Laura Murray, food styling by Judy Mancini.37/39Cuban-Style Black Beans
Beans are the ultimate freezer meal prep move. You can double, triple, or quadruple this recipe and freeze for taco nights, burritos, or simple rice-and-beans suppers down the road.
Alex Lau38/39Argentinian Beef Empanadas
You can make these delicious snacks three months ahead—choosing either beef, chicken, or ham and cheese—and then store the empanadas in airtight resealable plastic bags in the freezer.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne39/39Actually Perfect Pie Crust
Apple pie, blueberry pie, pecan pie, strawberry-rhubarb pie—whatever kind of pie you want, whatever the season, you’ll have crust waiting for you in the freezer.
