We love making sure our families are eating nutritious, healthy, home-cooked, freshly prepared, perfectly balanced meals for dinner every night… it's just that we're humans, not Stepford Wives, so we just don't always have time to make that happen. Normally, we have at least one tiny human screaming in at least one of our ears and about eleventy-billion tasks to take care of before we can finally crash out — there just isn't always time and energy for making a fresh meal that night.
But that doesn't mean we always have to resort to takeout, either. There's no shame in the takeout game, but it isn't great for our wallets. What we tend to do instead: Go straight for our freezers. We love making double (or triple) batches of these great, freezer-friendly recipes that don't taste frozen well ahead of time, so we can enjoy them on busy weeknights later.
Winter freezer meals that don't taste frozen are warming and hearty, but don't actually have to be enjoyed in the winter (be a warm weather rebel, why not!). And for nights when the freezer is empty, Instant Pot chicken recipes take just minutes and they're delicious. And if extra freezer room is needed to find a place for these to actually go (we know how cramped freezer space can get!), clean out your freezer from all the things that shouldn't be there. Follow these guidelines, and there'll be more than enough room for these healthy, tasty freezer meals (that don't even remotely taste like they've been frozen).
We all know what "tasting like it comes from the freezer" means, right? Kind of mushy, with that freezer-burn flavor? There are a lot of dishes that just don't freeze well, and are clearly not intended to be cooked, frozen, and then reheated. And that's OK. But there are others that nobody would ever know even came from the freezer — and that's what we rounded up here.
Blueberry Oatmeal Yogurt Freezer Pancakes
If only we lived the kind of lives that let us eat pancakes every day for breakfast. Oh, wait, we do: We just have to meal prep these blueberry oatmeal yogurt freezer pancakes ahead of time! They're healthy, tasty, and best of all, just need to be microwaved.
Freezer-Friendly Egg Muffins
This recipe for freezer-friendly egg muffins has completely changed our breakfast game. All we have to do is wake up and microwave these delicious little treats for a big hit of protein, and we're out the door. Great for kids to microwave themselves, too.
Easy Freezer Calzones Recipe
We always want calzones, but we don't always want to make calzones. This easy freezer calzones recipe makes having calzones when we want them considerably easier (and healthier and cheaper than ordering them).
Easy Chicken Satay
Easy chicken satay is one of those meals that's always worth having in the freezer — it's delicious, it's budget-friendly, it freezes gorgeously, and given that it involves a peanut sauce, kids just love it.
Black Bean Quinoa Casserole
We love this black bean quinoa casserole for being so healthy, easy to make, and even easier to reheat. This is a great vegetarian option that is hearty enough for people who typically eat meat, too — most of them won't even notice there's anything "missing."
Easy Creamy Ranch Pork Chops
Um, yes to this incredibly simple recipe packed with that ranch flavor kids (and let's be real, we) love. These easy creamy ranch pork chops are literally designed to be perfect for freezing, and go straight to the slow cooker.
Make Ahead Ravioli Lasagna
Ravioli lasagna is already a way easier, still totally just-as-yummy version compared traditional lasagna (which is incredible but takes forever), but this make ahead ravioli lasagna makes it even easier to provide a lovely, home-cooked meal.
Honey Sesame Chicken
We challenge even the pickiest eaters to turn their little noses up at this delicious honey sesame chicken. It's sweet, it's savory, it's delicious, and it freezes like an absolute dream — what more do we need to fall in love?
Freezer to Crock-Pot Bacon Lentil Soup
We love a freezer-to-slow cooker recipe for the absolutely amazing ease of them, but this freezer to crock-pot bacon lentil soup is a standout for the great flavor and nutrition. Such a good family meal!
DIY Homemade Frozen Pizza
What kid isn't super into pizza night? But takeout can get expensive (and isn't the healthiest thing), and making from scratch is a p-r-o-c-e-s-s. The solution: this absolutely excellent DIY homemade frozen pizza recipe.
Make-Ahead Beef Enchiladas
We love these Make-Ahead Beef Enchiladas because they don't taste at all like they've been made in advance… and yet, they totally have, and are perfect for nights when it's basically impossible to rally but we still want to eat something tasty.
Freezer-Friendly Healthy Orange Chicken
This freezer friendly healthy orange chicken is the absolute answer to cutting back on Chinese takeout orders (for health or financial reasons — or both). It's delicious, it's full of the flavors we love, and we don't feel a shred of guilt about putting it in the heavy rotation.
Mini Freezer Chicken Pot Pies
These mini freezer chicken pot pies are honestly at this point basically a kitchen hack. We have no idea why it took us so long to figure out that chicken pot pie, which is always one of the best freezer recipes of all time, can be served in perfect little individual portions.
Freezer Meal Beef Ragu
This freezer meal beef ragu is a weeknight lifesaver. Just boil pasta and presto — a practically instant home-cooked dinner that kids adore, and is one of those great recipes that they remember their whole lives — Mom's home-cooked beef ragu!
Quick & Easy Freezable Chicken Tacos
Taco night is another classic family favorite, but there's a way to make tacos happen on nights when we get in just before dinner really has to be on the table or everyone in the house is going to get hangry: quick and easy freezable chicken tacos.
Eggplant Parmesan
We love an absolute classic freezer recipe like eggplant Parmesan, and this particular version is a standout for keeping both texture and flavor intact through the freezing process. Gorgeous and traditional, something kids will remember their whole lives.
Almond Butter Freezer Fudge
Hi, how did we not learn about almond butter freezer fudge sooner? It's incredibly easy and a perfect answer to "we want dessert" that's both healthy and simple enough that it can be a regular treat.
Frozen Key Lime Margarita Squares
For warm weather, these frozen key lime margarita squares are basically little cocktail bites. Perfect for having mom friends over for a play date, and also easy to make a virgin batch for the kiddos, too.
Chocolate-Covered Cheesecake Bites
This one pretty much has it all. Chocolate-covered? Check. Rich, creamy, indulgent cheesecake? Check. These chocolate-covered cheesecake bites make going to the Cheesecake Factory look like an absolute waste of money.
