10 Jun
Freeze and Forget: 5 Make-Ahead Crockpot Recipes
a slow cooker Oval Crock Pot (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Jade Cook is a writer. She enjoys giving tips on fashion, relationships, cooking, and shopping. Jade recently wrote about her favorite recipe for salsbury steak.
The crockpot is every chef’s best friend. Whether you’re a great chef or you can’t cook, the crockpot is the best invention ever made. It allows you to simply prepare all the necessary ingredients, toss them all into the crockpot, set the temperature and walk away. Hours later, you will have a tasty dinner ready to go.
Crockpots get even better when they’re accompanied by recipes that can be prepared far in advance and stored in the freezer. These are best for those last-minute meals or busy days where there is no time to cook. The following are a few freeze and forget crockpot dinners.
Note: Whenever you need to add ingredients to the frozen items before placing it into the crockpot, write the necessary ingredients on the freezer bag. This way, you won’t forget to add anything.
Vegetable Beef Soup
When it’s cold outside, nothing can warm you up faster than a nice bowl of vegetable beef soup. What makes it even more cozy is that it can be prepared weeks (or even months) before you actually use it. When it starts to cook in that crockpot, though, the tasty aroma will quickly invade your home.
- onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- potatoes, chopped
- 1 can V8
- 28 oz. can diced tomato
- 1 cup green beans
- ½ tbsp worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup beef broth
- 1 tbsp. parsley
- 2 pounds ground beef
- Cook the ground beef in a pan with the garlic and the onions.
- Once cooked, let it cool.
- Place all items into a freezer bag and label appropriately.
- When ready to cook, simply place the items in your crockpot with 1-1/2 cups water and 15 oz. beef broth. Cook for 8 hours on low.
Tasty Brown Sugar Chicken
This sweet meal will be a hit with the entire family, and you’ll certainly enjoy the fact that you popped it out of the freezer instead of slaving over the kitchen.
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ¼ cup Sprite
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ⅔ cup vinegar
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tbsp. soy sauce
- After chopping the garlic, place all of the items—except the Sprite—into a freezer bag and label appropriately.
- Place in the freezer.
- When you’re ready to cook, add the items from the bag and ¼ cup of Sprite to your crockpot. Cook on high for 3 to 4 hours.
Veggie Chicken
Hearty vegetables plus healthy chicken equals one tasty and easy dinner.
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 cup red pepper, chopped
- 1 cup green pepper, chopped
- 1 cup carrots, chopped
- 2 cups onion, chopped
- 3 cups zucchini, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp. flour
- ¾ cup dijon mustard
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- Place everything, except the dijon mustard and maple syrup, into a freezer bag and label appropriately.
- Freeze.
- When ready to cook, add contents of freezer bag as well as dijon mustard and maple syrup to the crockpot. Cook on high for 3 to 4 hours.
BBQ Chicken
This is by far one of the easiest freeze and forget meals out there.
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- BBQ sauce to taste
- Place all ingredients into a freezer bag and label appropriately.
- Freeze.
- When ready to cook, place content of bag into the crockpot. Cook on high for 3 to 4 hours.
PS – You can even make this recipe with pork instead of chicken.
French Dip
It may not be the traditional french dip, but it’s tasty and easy just the same.
- 2 lb. chuck roast
- 1 packet italian seasoning
- 16 oz. pepperoncinis or giardiniera
- Place all ingredients into a freezer bag and label appropriately.
- Freeze.
- When ready to cook, add all ingredients into the crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours. After the meat is thoroughly cooked, remove it from the crock pot and shred.
What is your favorite crockpot recipe?
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