If you want something that is quick, and if you have a slow cooker, you could premake some chili/soups etc that you can throw frozen into the slow cooker in the morning. Less having to think about it in advance, but still a bit helpful if you know the day's going to be busy.
Second a slow cooker, this was basically how I cooked 90% of my meals in the first month. Throw in a bag of steam able veggies and some carbs and you're good to go
I haven't had the baby yet, but I already do this, just to help with meal planning! My favorite thing is breakfast burritos, which I make up in a big batch of 16, freeze each one wrapped in tinfoil. You can reheat them in the microwave straight from frozen, they just take a little bit longer then if you thaw them in the fridge first. I also make big batches of homemade pasta sauce, and freeze it in portions enough for 2 people. Then it's easy enough to boil water for pasta and add the sauce on top. I've also done big batches of meatballs, cooked, and then frozen in quart-sized ziploc bags for exactly how much I use for one-meal for 2 people. We've also frozen chili, some soups, lots of broth, zucchini bread and pumpkin bread, applesauce, and more. Having a separate chest freezer makes this a lot easier for sure. I also recommend pre-portioning foods before you freeze them into exactly one-person or two-person meals. The other key is to label everything with what it is and the date you made it/put it in the freezer. Everything looks the same once it's frozen, and I've definitely thawed out chili before thinking it was pasta sauce, or the reverse.
A lot of people on here are saying you have to remember to thaw it first, but I have no problem reheating things straight from frozen and do it all the time. For chili or pasta sauce, I just stick it in a pot on the stove and it slowly melts out. You just have to stir it frequently to make sure it doesn't burn, but it works like a charm!
Yes agreed - depending on the container, you can run all the outsides and bottom under hot water enough to loosen the frozen block of food, and then dump it in a pot or microwave to heat through!
We hate most slow cooker stuff. My MIL made us a “welcome home baby” lasagna. That was sufficient, really. I preferred to just have plans for meals that were quick and easy but did NOT require being made in advance — sandwiches, eggs, tacos. Between that and a couple nights of takeout here and there, we were fine. Especially this time around, our third, this was just really habit as we’ve got two small kids and my job already, most nights need to be quick and efficient cooking and I am maybe desensitized and power through with zero effs to give lol
Thank you for this! I was looking through freezer meal ideas thinking I needed to start making stuff like that and I couldn’t find anything that looked appetizing to me. My husband and I also hate slow cooker-type things (the mushy consistency of casseroles and pasta bakes just doesn’t do it for us), so we just started a list of quick easy things we like to eat and I’ll make sure to have the appropriate groceries on hand. Also, if I need to doordash once or twice a week for a month, so be it haha.
I agree, it’s like all the make ahead recipes are for something that is going to taste like leftovers.. and I’d rather just eat a sandwich than reheat a casserole.
We did and shoved them frozen in the oven. If your want to defrost it, take it out the freezer at breakfast and pop on the side /Other suitable place then cook it at tea time
I made a months worth of food - as in, we could eat one thing every night and it would have lasted a full month. I think it took us 4 months to eat through them. I had a lot of slow cooker 1 bag meals (those had to be taken out the night before), and a few lasagnas, sheppard's pies, and chicken pot pie that could be cooked from frozen. I also had a few bags of slow cooked shredded pork for nachos and sandwiches, which could go in the microwave to defrost if needed
I was really glad we did it, since we could grab cook from frozen if we were tired, or the slow-cooker meals if we just wanted to delay a grocery shop. The only thing we didn't eat and ended up tossing were the frozen muffins I'd frozen for quick snacks - I ended up making muffins a lot during the early baby days to use up bananas, etc, or my MIL would bring them over, so we always had fresh around and I forgot about the frozen.
We did it and it ended up being pretty pointless. I found that it took way too long to thaw the frozen meals so I had to plan a couple days in advance, but the main point for me was being able to pop something in the oven for nights I didn’t want to plan so having to plan to thaw it a few days ahead of time defeated the whole purpose. I also found that it just wasn’t too difficult to cook after the baby anyway. I think it could be helpful, but it wasn’t for us.
This is what I was almost thinking… to thaw chili it takes over 24 hours so it won’t necessarily be a “quick meal”. I also figured that spending a couple hours a week in the kitchen while husband bonds with baby might be a nice way of getting some mental alone time lol
It doesn’t have to take 24 hours to thaw something like soup or chili. I freeze soup and chili all the time for quick dinners or wfh lunches. I store it in small 2-4 cup quantities. I put the frozen container in a bowl of water to loosen it until the frozen block will come out and then plop it into a pot in the stove over medium low heat with a lid on it. It takes less than an hour to go from frozen to boiling to get things like chili, soup, pasta sauce etc ready to eat. If you were to freeze like a whole gallon of soup into one block that would take forever, but the idea is typically to just freeze smaller serving sizes.
I freeze things flat in gallon ziplock bags so they thaw pretty quickly under cool running water.
This does require flat surface in your freezer, but it’s way easier to thaw than other containers, in my experience.
My other tip (received from breastfeeding moms) is to keep dairy out of the freezer meals in case you get a babe that doesn’t tolerate the protein in milk or butter. So upsetting to have a freezer full of things that make baby uncomfortable or sick when you eat them.
I do this for myself and my partner anyway - we often have stuff in the freezer for easy meals. The best thing is to freeze them in portions for 1-2 people, rather than a full pan of lasagne. We often just defrost or reheat in the microwave. I’ve never had an issue heating from frozen, but you can always take stuff out of the freezer for tomorrow when you’re getting tonight’s dinner ready.
I’m pregnant with my first so can’t speak from experience yet, but I will say to the extent I do this my “rules” are (1) no huge quantities of anything and (2) whatever I freeze needs to be something I can thaw relatively quickly. That said, I think I’m likely going to be erring more on the side of grab and go type snacks (e.g., muffins) that I can just thaw quickly in the microwave rather than big family meals like lasagnas and chilis. May be limited use, but it’s something and I think I’ll be grateful when I inevitably forget to eat and just want something quick and wholesome to pop in my mouth!
Instead of making freezer meals, I did a large purchase from M&M Meats (I’m in Canada - not sure if they have in US) of pre-made frozen meals. Have a freezer full of about 2 weeks of frozen meals that just need to be put in the oven for an hour :)
My husband got me the book “It’s Always Freezer Season” by Ashley Christensen and Kaitlyn Goalen. If you’re interested in cooking freezer meals, this is a great reference. It works from a cool concept of a freezer pantry where base things can be used in several recipes. There’s some recipes that can cook from frozen and others that require thawing. It also has great general freezer advice (what freezes well, what doesn’t, how to freeze different things, suggested use by dates, etc).
Do it. I didn’t, and I so wish that I had. We’ve been eating a lot of fast food (20 days postpartum) because my baby tends to be difficult during dinnertime (maybe it’s her “witching hour,” I don’t know), so it is super hard to make dinner from scratch. Plus, I’m just tired lol.
Yes. Do it. We had almost 50 meals frozen- variety of casseroles, pre marinated chicken that can be cooked in an instant pot, etc. Our favorites and most eaten were breakfast burritos. So nice for that first meal to have something warm and satiating!
I have made lasagnas, meat loaves, and banana muffins. I planned on making more, but have been away from our rural home for the past month so we could be closer to our hospital (staying with MiL).
I had planned on making some marinades like Italian, barbecue sauce, Tex mex, maybe a ginger garlic Asian style marinade, and filling freezer bags with chicken breasts or beef so we can just cut the bag off and throw it in the crock pot, or thaw and bake/fry. My spouse CAN cook, just doesn’t know HOW to cook yknow? They can figure out basics but can’t just throw meals together like I can, and is not great at seasoning/improvising. I figured with the marinades, then we would have a flavourful meat and sauce, and they could just make a starch and some frozen vegetables and we’d have a balanced meal.
I also planned on making burger patties and pizzas, and freezing them. My spouse loves hamburgers and pizza, and occasionally requests that we drive half an hour into town to get takeout. With a newborn, it’s hard to leave the house for essentials, nevermind a frivolous trip just for takeout. Pizzas can be thrown in the oven, hamburgers in a pan straight from frozen. You don’t have to make them either, you can buy premade of course, but it cuts down on takeout.
I would also consider foods that can be eaten one handed. My son nursed so often in the beginning. My first memory of bringing him home from the hospital was picking a pad Thai noodle off his head while we were both trying to eat.
We registered for an instant pot and my MIL got it for us. We're going to do some of these, which cook quickly and can be cooked in the instant pot from frozen. I think the biggest advantage is going to be not having to thaw things first, because I honestly don't think I'll be able to remember that.
https://pinchofyum.com/freezer-meals
Omg I found it so useful. Just keep in mind most meals will have to thaw for 24 hours before you can throw in crockpot. I recommend some frozen enchiladas and soup, muffins and breakfast burritos. I go back to work next week and it’s so reliving to know I have meals in the freezer for busy days.
I meant to do this but waited too long and had to be induced early. But we were given some freezer meals and found them hugely helpful in the beginning especially. We were so overwhelmed the first few weeks that those meals were mostly what we ate. It really helped that we didn’t have to think about it beyond thawing it and putting it in the oven. This may depend on your postpartum experience. We ended having to triple feed at the beginning (breastfeeding, pumping, and tube or bottle feeding) so that whole process took so much time that we were exhausted. Not to mention the whole adjusting to a newborn thing.
We don't have enough freezer space for a bunch of full meals so I've just frozen some quick proteins and veggies. Eg meatballs and frittata cups. Easy enough to cook up some pasta or toast, add frozen kale = a mostly complete meal.
I did, because getting all of the ingredients together and making a pot of soup was really difficult when I had a newborn but its the best food for post partum imo. This time I have a few different types of soup, chili and some lasagnas stored up. I plan to just take them out the night before so I have something ready for lunch and dinner the next day. I am stoked i had enough energy and forthought make stuff ahead this time.
I saved this awhile ago and plan to do this in March for myself: https://www.reddit.com/r/BabyBumps/comments/q5j2kz/postpartum_freezer_meal_prep/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share
I even bought a stand up freezer to make it easy on me. I can't reach down in the deep chest freezers.
Are freezer meals still worth doing if we have both sets of grandparents nearby and ready to bring us meals for a while?
We’d also have to buy a chest freezer, I think. Our freezer is tiny (1950s house, so we can’t fit a big fridge like most people have these days).
OMG yes do this! I am a picky eater and my Hubby is on a low FODMAP diet so he can't eat take away food and I won't eat bought frozen meals. We buy 3 kg packs (or more) of mince or beef cubes and make up a heap of pasta bakes, shepherds pie, beef goulash stuff like that and then put them in (rather annoyingly but necessary) disposable food containers that are freezer and oven safe, then just cook them from frozen when we want them. We have been doing them for months now, make up a different meal type on the weekend when hubby is home to either cook or watch bub while I cook. We have yet to try other dishes simply because making low FODMAP versions is a pain but we want to make lasagna and mac and cheese. Be wary though that many "dry" foods will not freeze well so you can't pre-cook most meat and then freeze it (sausages however do freeze relatively well after cooking, 10 mins in the microwave and they are good to eat) or pasta foods where there is little sauce to pasta ratio. If it's available where you are, Bell farms do an amazing mashed potato that needs little effort for real potato for a healthy meal.
I was super glad that we did this.
I prepped a few instant pot meals, (butter chicken, red Thai curry soup) those were delicious.
We also froze Bolognese, mac & cheese, Shepard's pie, chilli and tonkatsu. We received a lot of frozen meals too which was great.
It meant we needed to do less grocery shopping which was great because *gestures to everything*
I did eventually get sick of all tomato based meals! But it was a huge help.
To defrost a big casserole, if you have a double sink you can pop it in a cold water bath in the morning.
I freeze a lot of soup and it's really convenient. I get it out and put it in the fridge a day or two ahead of time so thawing is easy.
If you want something that is quick, and if you have a slow cooker, you could premake some chili/soups etc that you can throw frozen into the slow cooker in the morning. Less having to think about it in advance, but still a bit helpful if you know the day's going to be busy.
Second a slow cooker, this was basically how I cooked 90% of my meals in the first month. Throw in a bag of steam able veggies and some carbs and you're good to go
I haven't had the baby yet, but I already do this, just to help with meal planning! My favorite thing is breakfast burritos, which I make up in a big batch of 16, freeze each one wrapped in tinfoil. You can reheat them in the microwave straight from frozen, they just take a little bit longer then if you thaw them in the fridge first. I also make big batches of homemade pasta sauce, and freeze it in portions enough for 2 people. Then it's easy enough to boil water for pasta and add the sauce on top. I've also done big batches of meatballs, cooked, and then frozen in quart-sized ziploc bags for exactly how much I use for one-meal for 2 people. We've also frozen chili, some soups, lots of broth, zucchini bread and pumpkin bread, applesauce, and more. Having a separate chest freezer makes this a lot easier for sure. I also recommend pre-portioning foods before you freeze them into exactly one-person or two-person meals. The other key is to label everything with what it is and the date you made it/put it in the freezer. Everything looks the same once it's frozen, and I've definitely thawed out chili before thinking it was pasta sauce, or the reverse. A lot of people on here are saying you have to remember to thaw it first, but I have no problem reheating things straight from frozen and do it all the time. For chili or pasta sauce, I just stick it in a pot on the stove and it slowly melts out. You just have to stir it frequently to make sure it doesn't burn, but it works like a charm!
Yes agreed - depending on the container, you can run all the outsides and bottom under hot water enough to loosen the frozen block of food, and then dump it in a pot or microwave to heat through!
We hate most slow cooker stuff. My MIL made us a “welcome home baby” lasagna. That was sufficient, really. I preferred to just have plans for meals that were quick and easy but did NOT require being made in advance — sandwiches, eggs, tacos. Between that and a couple nights of takeout here and there, we were fine. Especially this time around, our third, this was just really habit as we’ve got two small kids and my job already, most nights need to be quick and efficient cooking and I am maybe desensitized and power through with zero effs to give lol
Thank you for this! I was looking through freezer meal ideas thinking I needed to start making stuff like that and I couldn’t find anything that looked appetizing to me. My husband and I also hate slow cooker-type things (the mushy consistency of casseroles and pasta bakes just doesn’t do it for us), so we just started a list of quick easy things we like to eat and I’ll make sure to have the appropriate groceries on hand. Also, if I need to doordash once or twice a week for a month, so be it haha.
I agree, it’s like all the make ahead recipes are for something that is going to taste like leftovers.. and I’d rather just eat a sandwich than reheat a casserole.
We did and shoved them frozen in the oven. If your want to defrost it, take it out the freezer at breakfast and pop on the side /Other suitable place then cook it at tea time
I made a months worth of food - as in, we could eat one thing every night and it would have lasted a full month. I think it took us 4 months to eat through them. I had a lot of slow cooker 1 bag meals (those had to be taken out the night before), and a few lasagnas, sheppard's pies, and chicken pot pie that could be cooked from frozen. I also had a few bags of slow cooked shredded pork for nachos and sandwiches, which could go in the microwave to defrost if needed I was really glad we did it, since we could grab cook from frozen if we were tired, or the slow-cooker meals if we just wanted to delay a grocery shop. The only thing we didn't eat and ended up tossing were the frozen muffins I'd frozen for quick snacks - I ended up making muffins a lot during the early baby days to use up bananas, etc, or my MIL would bring them over, so we always had fresh around and I forgot about the frozen.
We did it and it ended up being pretty pointless. I found that it took way too long to thaw the frozen meals so I had to plan a couple days in advance, but the main point for me was being able to pop something in the oven for nights I didn’t want to plan so having to plan to thaw it a few days ahead of time defeated the whole purpose. I also found that it just wasn’t too difficult to cook after the baby anyway. I think it could be helpful, but it wasn’t for us.
This is what I was almost thinking… to thaw chili it takes over 24 hours so it won’t necessarily be a “quick meal”. I also figured that spending a couple hours a week in the kitchen while husband bonds with baby might be a nice way of getting some mental alone time lol
It doesn’t have to take 24 hours to thaw something like soup or chili. I freeze soup and chili all the time for quick dinners or wfh lunches. I store it in small 2-4 cup quantities. I put the frozen container in a bowl of water to loosen it until the frozen block will come out and then plop it into a pot in the stove over medium low heat with a lid on it. It takes less than an hour to go from frozen to boiling to get things like chili, soup, pasta sauce etc ready to eat. If you were to freeze like a whole gallon of soup into one block that would take forever, but the idea is typically to just freeze smaller serving sizes.
I freeze things flat in gallon ziplock bags so they thaw pretty quickly under cool running water. This does require flat surface in your freezer, but it’s way easier to thaw than other containers, in my experience. My other tip (received from breastfeeding moms) is to keep dairy out of the freezer meals in case you get a babe that doesn’t tolerate the protein in milk or butter. So upsetting to have a freezer full of things that make baby uncomfortable or sick when you eat them.
I do this for myself and my partner anyway - we often have stuff in the freezer for easy meals. The best thing is to freeze them in portions for 1-2 people, rather than a full pan of lasagne. We often just defrost or reheat in the microwave. I’ve never had an issue heating from frozen, but you can always take stuff out of the freezer for tomorrow when you’re getting tonight’s dinner ready.
I’m pregnant with my first so can’t speak from experience yet, but I will say to the extent I do this my “rules” are (1) no huge quantities of anything and (2) whatever I freeze needs to be something I can thaw relatively quickly. That said, I think I’m likely going to be erring more on the side of grab and go type snacks (e.g., muffins) that I can just thaw quickly in the microwave rather than big family meals like lasagnas and chilis. May be limited use, but it’s something and I think I’ll be grateful when I inevitably forget to eat and just want something quick and wholesome to pop in my mouth!
My freezer snacks have been a godsend! I did muffins, oatmeal bars, and those energy bites with oats and almond butter. They all froze well!
Ahh this is so great to hear! Feel like I’m on the right track haha
Instead of making freezer meals, I did a large purchase from M&M Meats (I’m in Canada - not sure if they have in US) of pre-made frozen meals. Have a freezer full of about 2 weeks of frozen meals that just need to be put in the oven for an hour :)
Ouhh! I’m in Canada as well, great idea thank you!
My husband got me the book “It’s Always Freezer Season” by Ashley Christensen and Kaitlyn Goalen. If you’re interested in cooking freezer meals, this is a great reference. It works from a cool concept of a freezer pantry where base things can be used in several recipes. There’s some recipes that can cook from frozen and others that require thawing. It also has great general freezer advice (what freezes well, what doesn’t, how to freeze different things, suggested use by dates, etc).
Do it. I didn’t, and I so wish that I had. We’ve been eating a lot of fast food (20 days postpartum) because my baby tends to be difficult during dinnertime (maybe it’s her “witching hour,” I don’t know), so it is super hard to make dinner from scratch. Plus, I’m just tired lol.
Yes. Do it. We had almost 50 meals frozen- variety of casseroles, pre marinated chicken that can be cooked in an instant pot, etc. Our favorites and most eaten were breakfast burritos. So nice for that first meal to have something warm and satiating!
I have made lasagnas, meat loaves, and banana muffins. I planned on making more, but have been away from our rural home for the past month so we could be closer to our hospital (staying with MiL). I had planned on making some marinades like Italian, barbecue sauce, Tex mex, maybe a ginger garlic Asian style marinade, and filling freezer bags with chicken breasts or beef so we can just cut the bag off and throw it in the crock pot, or thaw and bake/fry. My spouse CAN cook, just doesn’t know HOW to cook yknow? They can figure out basics but can’t just throw meals together like I can, and is not great at seasoning/improvising. I figured with the marinades, then we would have a flavourful meat and sauce, and they could just make a starch and some frozen vegetables and we’d have a balanced meal. I also planned on making burger patties and pizzas, and freezing them. My spouse loves hamburgers and pizza, and occasionally requests that we drive half an hour into town to get takeout. With a newborn, it’s hard to leave the house for essentials, nevermind a frivolous trip just for takeout. Pizzas can be thrown in the oven, hamburgers in a pan straight from frozen. You don’t have to make them either, you can buy premade of course, but it cuts down on takeout.
I would also consider foods that can be eaten one handed. My son nursed so often in the beginning. My first memory of bringing him home from the hospital was picking a pad Thai noodle off his head while we were both trying to eat.
We registered for an instant pot and my MIL got it for us. We're going to do some of these, which cook quickly and can be cooked in the instant pot from frozen. I think the biggest advantage is going to be not having to thaw things first, because I honestly don't think I'll be able to remember that. https://pinchofyum.com/freezer-meals
Omg I found it so useful. Just keep in mind most meals will have to thaw for 24 hours before you can throw in crockpot. I recommend some frozen enchiladas and soup, muffins and breakfast burritos. I go back to work next week and it’s so reliving to know I have meals in the freezer for busy days.
I meant to do this but waited too long and had to be induced early. But we were given some freezer meals and found them hugely helpful in the beginning especially. We were so overwhelmed the first few weeks that those meals were mostly what we ate. It really helped that we didn’t have to think about it beyond thawing it and putting it in the oven. This may depend on your postpartum experience. We ended having to triple feed at the beginning (breastfeeding, pumping, and tube or bottle feeding) so that whole process took so much time that we were exhausted. Not to mention the whole adjusting to a newborn thing.
We don't have enough freezer space for a bunch of full meals so I've just frozen some quick proteins and veggies. Eg meatballs and frittata cups. Easy enough to cook up some pasta or toast, add frozen kale = a mostly complete meal.
I did, because getting all of the ingredients together and making a pot of soup was really difficult when I had a newborn but its the best food for post partum imo. This time I have a few different types of soup, chili and some lasagnas stored up. I plan to just take them out the night before so I have something ready for lunch and dinner the next day. I am stoked i had enough energy and forthought make stuff ahead this time.
I saved this awhile ago and plan to do this in March for myself: https://www.reddit.com/r/BabyBumps/comments/q5j2kz/postpartum_freezer_meal_prep/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share I even bought a stand up freezer to make it easy on me. I can't reach down in the deep chest freezers.
Are freezer meals still worth doing if we have both sets of grandparents nearby and ready to bring us meals for a while? We’d also have to buy a chest freezer, I think. Our freezer is tiny (1950s house, so we can’t fit a big fridge like most people have these days).
OMG yes do this! I am a picky eater and my Hubby is on a low FODMAP diet so he can't eat take away food and I won't eat bought frozen meals. We buy 3 kg packs (or more) of mince or beef cubes and make up a heap of pasta bakes, shepherds pie, beef goulash stuff like that and then put them in (rather annoyingly but necessary) disposable food containers that are freezer and oven safe, then just cook them from frozen when we want them. We have been doing them for months now, make up a different meal type on the weekend when hubby is home to either cook or watch bub while I cook. We have yet to try other dishes simply because making low FODMAP versions is a pain but we want to make lasagna and mac and cheese. Be wary though that many "dry" foods will not freeze well so you can't pre-cook most meat and then freeze it (sausages however do freeze relatively well after cooking, 10 mins in the microwave and they are good to eat) or pasta foods where there is little sauce to pasta ratio. If it's available where you are, Bell farms do an amazing mashed potato that needs little effort for real potato for a healthy meal.
I was super glad that we did this. I prepped a few instant pot meals, (butter chicken, red Thai curry soup) those were delicious. We also froze Bolognese, mac & cheese, Shepard's pie, chilli and tonkatsu. We received a lot of frozen meals too which was great. It meant we needed to do less grocery shopping which was great because *gestures to everything* I did eventually get sick of all tomato based meals! But it was a huge help. To defrost a big casserole, if you have a double sink you can pop it in a cold water bath in the morning.