Basic Batch cooking receipes for dinner

At the moment I do chicken curry, 5% mince in tomatoes for bolognaise and also make lasanga. I cook the rice, spaghetti, chips fresh.

Any other receipes that freeze well and I can portion into bags. Simple receipes really.

I tried stews before but weren’t great and find the defrosted veg and potatoes not nice at all.

I’m not worried about vegetables as have a large salad and four slices of brown bread for lunch and fruit in work throughout the day.

igCorcaigh

Not directly related to your question OP, but I have this large ice cube tray for freezing things like cream or homemade garlic/ginger puree.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01434TXPQ

I also batch cook dried pulses and store them in the freezer. Make sure they are dry first so that they don't stick together when frozen.

igCorcaigh

I find it difficult to avoid food waste, particularly some types of vegetables, when cooking for one, and they don't freeze well, as you point out OP.

The frozen vegetables from the supermarket do keep well though (flash frozen), especially peas, as does pita breads and the like (I use Biona rye bread a lot) but my freezer space is already full!

Pulse based dishes like dahls (dhal?) should be OK though.

Meats like chicken, pork chops etc. can be easily frozen, but label them with the date, as they don't keep forever (a couple of months should be OK).

Dial Hard

Anything mince, pulse or bean based tends to freeze well. Likewise pulled meats/chilli/tinga. Larger veg with a high water content can lose its structure, but I don't mind that so much in the likes of a stew or curry or whatever.

Cassoulets/sausage casseroles are also generally a very successful bet.

trashcan

Stir frys will also keep quite well I find. I agree about cooking for one, I find I usually have to make a larger amount, but I really have a thing about wasting food, so I try to make things where I can get two or three dinners by freezing the leftovers (I use old Ice Cream tubs for storage, which I find are great, and again, less waste.) Curries (Indian and Thai) Stir fry’s, and Sausage meatballs in tomato and red pepper sauce are my go-to dishes. Also means if I’m in work I only have to cook some pasta or rice for a quick dinner when I get home. For curries I alternate between chicken and prawns to have a variety.

igCorcaigh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123427432#Comment_123427432

Stir frys? I thought they would be the one thing that does not at all keep well! But, I haven't really tried. I just cook them from scratch.

StupidLikeAFox

You can expand your curry repertoire- various Thai, chinese, indian curries. Also Mexican chilli's are good, stew, shephards pies, casseroles, and even paella (but before you add the rice, the rice doesn't reheat well from frozen imo)

Dial Hard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123427438#Comment_123427438

Yeah, I wouldn't be freezing a stir fry. Plus, they're one of the easiest things to cook for one because you can literally just cook as much as you need for one portion, unlike, say, a lasagna.

Also, @trashcan, do you not find ice cream tubs far too big for freezing single portions?

HeidiHeidi

Chilli con carne, fish pie, shepherds pie, cottage pie, lasagne, soups and all manner of curries fill my freezer at various times of the year. Beef stroganoff as well, although I haven't made that in ages.

Homemade burgers, but I find it easier to buy fresh ones from my local (excellent) butcher.

I have a selection of good plastic tubs from things like bought soups, or hummus etc - and also a few different glass dishes from ikea which are ideal for freezing stuff like individual portions of Shepherd's pie etc, and you can just lash it straight into the oven.

https://www.ikea.com/ie/en/p/ikea-365-food-container-with-lid-square-glass-plastic-s39269120/

trashcan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123427880#Comment_123427880

Not really. You can put as much or as little in as you need.

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123430813#Comment_123430813

Having lots of air in a container promotes freezer burn and needlessly takes up space in the freezer.

The Nal

Madras, pulled pork, thai curries, shepherd/cottage pie, bourguignon, enchiladas. 

Also freezer bags FTW. Can get most of the air out of them.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123434578#Comment_123434578

freezer bags are great for individual portions and no washing afterwards.

take up little space in my freezer

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123434692#Comment_123434692

You don't wash your freezer bags before reusing them? 😱

Dial Hard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123436495#Comment_123436495

I think he just chucks them rather than reusing them. Which is terribly wasteful, really.

Raichų

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123431196#Comment_123431196

can just put a piece of cling film or baking paper onto the food and that cuts that problem out.

Sizing containers to the portion isn’t always feasible.

Raichų

Life is too short to wash freezer bags lads. 😂

Calahonda52

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123436741#Comment_123436741

perhaps you meant life is too short to give a b… about plastic waste

Raichų

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123436754#Comment_123436754

don’t use it then if it’s that much of a worry!

you’re either wasting plastic or water 🤷

Calahonda52

vegetarian stuff works well as well

I batch cook c 20-25 by 300 grm portions at a time, have 30 Ikea tubs that 300 fills and have had them for 7 years now

garlic and onion blended in the nutribullet and then cooked in hot casserole pot

2 by 400 grams kidney beans /chopped tomatoes/ chick peas

diced butternut squash(s)

2 by red and yellow peppers diced

tomatoes puree

veg stock

smoked paprika

pepper: no salt

simmer till squash is tender or how ever you want it

ps, the peppers go in last

the most time goes into the pepper and squash prep

Sometimes I will prep this and freeze it, if doing a big cook

Raichų

Chicken A La King

Stroganoff should freeze ok

Savoury mince

Chilli is a solid shout

Could make your chicken kievs or similar and freeze them raw just pop into your air fryer etc while you prepare sides? Not sure if that’s too much cooking midweek though!

Veg you could prep in fridge and cook while you reheat/defrost your dish (say for curry, freeze the sauce with the protein and quickly stir fry the veg while you bring it to temp, pop curry into veg and let them cook 5-10 mins

Raichų

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123436771#Comment_123436771

yoink

That goes in the book. It sounds amazing!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123436495#Comment_123436495

there like a euro for 20 so no. I just buy new ones

HeidiHeidi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437093#Comment_123437093

A selection of tubs in suitable sizes would be far better long- term value, and a lot better for the environment, assuming all those bags go into landfill

Raichų

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437101#Comment_123437101

they’ll also occupy a lot more space than a pack of zip lock bags, cost significantly more per unit and use more space in the freezer.

I’m all for reducing waste where I can but trading one type of waste for another is redundant. You’re wasting god knows how much water to wash some single use plastic. It’s not safe to reuse them either.

HeidiHeidi

Well I've been using the same ones for years and I haven't killed myself or got food poisoning yet. I fill the ones i have so no wasted space. And I personally just could not bear to throw that much plastic into the bin on a regular and ongoing basis.

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437169#Comment_123437169

Fair enough if you don't want to reuse freezer bags or use reusable containers but please don't try to justify it with, "it's not safe", bs.

Reminds me of my friend's wife who claimed that clothes don't dry on the washing line in their garden so she "had" to use the tumble dryer.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437200#Comment_123437200

I really don’t care, there a euro a month

Raichų

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437267#Comment_123437267

it is not safe to reuse a single use plastic bag for food storage, do not be ridiculous. Besides the microplastics which will leech into your food I don’t for one second believe you can safely and efficiently clean it entirely either.

If you think it’s no prob, god bless you, but don’t accuse me of “bs” either. I don’t need to justify myself to you or anyone else here either.

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437409#Comment_123437409

Wouldn't microplastics be just as much of an issue on first use? If not, why not?

Raichų

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123437447#Comment_123437447

I am sure they would, however the heat required to defrost the food (if you do in bag) as well as the heat from the water to properly wash them would cause more to leech.

There’s a reason single use plastic is single use. If you want to look more into yourself please do, I’m sorry, but I have not slept for a week and I’m not in the mood to explain myself or teach you about microplastic.

I am also sorry if I came across as rude earlier I just do not appreciate being told I’m full of “bs” when what I’ve said is clearly not and hardly comparable to an idiot who thinks clothes won’t dry outside.