When you’re a new mom who is tired, sleep-deprived, and have a newborn attached to you 24/7, the last thing you want to do is go to the grocery store and then spend hours in the kitchen making a healthy meal. To make things easier on you, consider stocking up on crockpot freezer meals in the last few weeks of your pregnancy. Having easy freezer meals on hand is a lifesaver!
The following meals are designed to be prepared (but not cooked) and frozen, and then transferred to a crockpot for effortless cooking the day you need your dinner.
Before you get started, here are a few tips:
- Use “freezer” bags, not “storage” bags for storing food in the freezer. Freezer bags are thicker than storage bags and will keep the food fresh longer.
- Speed freezing and hasten thawing by freezing foods in a thin, flattened shape in freezer bags. A rounded shape takes longer to thaw through to the middle. Flatter packages will also stack better in your freezer.
- To avoid mystery meats and other foods of unknown age and possibly origin, label foods using a permanent marker. Be sure to include the name of the meal as well as the date it was made. If you’re bringing this to a new mom, add any additional helpful information on cook time, serving instructions, etc.
Crockpot Chicken Fajitas
Yields: Four servings
Ingredients:
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, fat trimmed
- 1 red pepper, sliced
- 1 yellow pepper, sliced
- 1 small yellow onion, peeled and sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp sugar-free honey substitute
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Directions:
- Label your freezer bag with the name of the recipe, cooking instructions, and “use-by” date.
- Add all ingredients.
- Remove as much air from the bag as possible, seal, and lay flat in your freezer for up to three months.
Cooking Instructions:
- The night before cooking, move the frozen bag to your refrigerator to thaw.
- The morning of cooking, pour contents of freezer bag into your slow cooker and cook on “low” setting for 6 hours or until chicken is tender.
- Shred chicken.
- Serve on tortillas with cooked onions and peppers, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, and guacamole.
Crockpot Easy Beef
Yields: One bag of beef with four servings
Ingredients:
- 1 lb boneless beef chuck roast, fat-trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 celery ribs, chopped
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 2 tbsp and 1 tsp beef bullion granules
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Directions:
- Label your freezer bag with the name of the recipe, cooking instructions, and “use-by” date.
- Add all ingredients to your freezer bag. Add the beef to the bag last, so it’s the first ingredient poured into your slow cooker.
- Remove as much air from the freezer bag as possible, seal, and lay flat in your freezer.
Cooking Instructions:
- The night before cooking, move the frozen bag to your refrigerator to thaw.
- The morning of cooking, pour contents of freezer bag into your slow cooker and cook on “low” setting for 8 hours.
- Remove the bay leaf and enjoy.
Crockpot Easy Pork
Yields: One gallon-sized freezer bag with 3-4 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 lb pork sirloins
- 1/4 cup sugar-free honey substitute
- 2 tbsp dijon mustard (or whole grain mustard)
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground thyme
- 1/2 cup water (not needed until day of cooking)
Directions:
- Label your freezer bag with the name of the recipe, cooking instructions, and “use-by” date.
- Add all ingredients to your freezer bag.
- Remove as much air from the gallon-sized freezer bag as possible, seal, and lay flat in your freezer.
Cooking Directions:
- The night before cooking, move the frozen bag to your refrigerator to thaw.
- The morning of cooking, pour contents of freezer bag into your crockpot and add water.
- Cook on low setting for 6-8 hours or until pork is tender.
- Serve with brown rice.
Need more freezer meals to make before baby?
Reheat + Eat – 10 Soup & Chili Recipes That Can Be Frozen:
Healthy Cheesy Cauliflower Soup
Cabbage Soup
Hearty Winter Minestrone Soup
Mexican Chicken Soup
Santa Fe Chicken Soup
Green Soup
Fat Loss Friendly Chili
Turkey Pumpkin Chili
Buffalo Chicken Chili
Metabolic Effects Quick Chili
How to Freeze Your Soup/Chili:
- Before you can freeze your chili or soup, you need to chill the soup or chili. Never put hot food directly into the freezer; you’ll raise the temperature of the freezer and endanger the safety of the food in it.
- When the soup or chili has reached room temperature, it’s ready to be packed. Be sure to leave at least half an inch of extra space in the container to allow the liquid to expand as it freezes. If you use bags, squeeze out as much air as possible, but don’t overfill the bags. Remember to leave a bit of expansion space.
- To prevent freezer burn, press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the soup or chili before you put the cover on the container.
- Once the soup or chili is chilled and packed, label it with a marker or a paper label. Note the type of soup/chili and the date. Try to use your chili or soups within 3 months (though many non-cream soups will keep as long as 6 months).
- Reheat and eat! The best and safest way to defrost a soup or chili is to let the container sit in the refrigerator overnight. After that, you can transfer the soup to a pot and heat gently on the stovetop.
