Freezer cooking is great for the cook, but it can be great for kids, too, allowing everyone more free time and less fussing at dinnertime. Check out these great freezer meals kids love.
Not only will this help you stop eating out, but you’ll also enjoy more time at the table together as a family.
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There is making freezer meals and there is making freezer meals your kids love.
Who hasn’t spent precious minutes preparing a meal only to find the kids turn their noses up at it? How much more frustrating would it be to make four batches of something to freeze only to find out no one will eat it! At least not happily.
There’s a trick to making freezer meals kids love.
After 23 years and six kids, I have learned this lesson well. I’ve always found freezer cooking to be a big sanity saver for me. But, there have been times when my kids balked at what I so painstakingly prepared and stored in the freezer. That can really be a letdown — particularly when you’ve spent a lot of time filling the freezer.
Making Freezer Meals Kids Love
Be sure to follow these steps as you contemplate what you can make to freeze:
- Talk to your family and ask them to name a few favorite dishes.
- Consider whether those recipes are freezer-friendly as is or if you will need to adjust their preparation. For instance, Meatballs Subs make a great freezer meal if you make it as a kit. If you assembled the sub hot, it would get soggy before it ever made it to the freezer. However, packaging up the meatballs, sauce, cheese, and rolls separately will give you a freezer meal kit that you can assemble right before serving.
- Plan for time to make double or triple batches of your vetted recipes to freeze. The good thing is that doubling dinner is super easy meaning you can easily work a freezer cooking session into your weekly routine.
How do you know which freezer meals your kids will love?
You don’t. With practice, however, you can better approximate your kids’ preferences while still making meals you like.
It’s always a good habit to check in with the family periodically to see where their tastes lie. This week. Kids’ preferences change over time. What they loved last year may not be a fan favorite today.
That said, be sure to scroll down for some of our top kid-favorite freezer meals.
Can I freeze breakfasts and lunches?
Yes! There are loads of breakfasts and lunch recipes that you can make ahead and freeze.
Breakfasts: egg casseroles, baked oatmeal, oatmeal cups, breakfast sandwiches, and French toast are all freezer-friendly.
Lunches: soups, stews, chili, burritos, sandwiches, and cooked proteins are good to freeze. You can even freeze peanut butter sandwiches!
Can I freeze family recipes that I know we love?
There are a lot of things that you can freeze, so the chances are great that yes, your favorite family recipes will freeze well.
If you’re not sure, the next time you prepare a fan fave, freeze a small portion of it. A week or two later pull it out of the freezer and give it a taste test. If you like the taste and texture after freezing, try a full batch next time.
Once you’ve confirmed it’s freezer-friendly, you can go to town, making bulk batches and converting your favorite recipes to freezer meals your kids love.
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15 Great Freezer Meals Kids Love
Chicken Bacon Subs for the Freezer
This is a yummy make-ahead sandwich with shredded chicken, bacon, cheese and garlic butter that you can bake straight from frozen if you don’t have time to thaw. Feel free to tweak the fillings to suit your family’s tastes.
Lawnmower Taco Casserole
This is a simple casserole my kids love. LOVE! We called it Lawnmower Taco many years ago in a plot to get our second son to eat dinner. He loved it that it looked like a taco that got stuck in a lawnmower. And the ploy worked! This has been a winner at our house for years!
5-Minute Asian Chicken Marinade Recipe ($1.55/batch)
One of the easiest things that I pull together for freezer cooking is chicken bagged in a marinade. Not only is it quick to prepare for freezing, but it’s also a quick meal on the other side of thawing. This Asian chicken marinade hits the spot when everyone is craving take-out.
Easy Homemade Marinara Sauce ($2.65/big batch)
When we moved to one income, I knew we needed to economize. I started making my own pasta sauce and haven’t looked back. About once a month I cook up a big batch, divide it into 2-cup portions, cool, and freeze. This all-purpose sauce beats any canned version at the store and it goes great on pasta, pizza, or for dipping calzones.
Red Sauce with Meats
This delicious red sauce cooks quickly and deliciously. The meatballs or sausage poach in the sauce, adding great flavor to the sauce.
Slow Cooker Taco Soup Recipe
This Taco Soup can be cooked in the slow cooker with very short prep time. This recipe contains hominy, but feel free to omit if hominy is not your thing. It’s still delicious without it. Plus, it’s so simple to prepare — I’ve had kids as young as 4-years old assemble it.
Best Ever White Bean Chicken Chili (82 cents/serving)
My kids request this white bean chili on the regular. There's just something about the tender beans, chunks of chicken, and creamy broth that has them coming back for more and more.
Bulk Batch Supreme Meatballs
Meatballs are one of the most versatile of freezer meals, meaning you can suit your kids whim at the drop of the hat. The secret, of course, is in the sauce. With a big batch of supreme meatballs, you can sauce them with marinara, savory gravy, or even teriyaki. Better yet, let the kids choose which sauce they want and make everyone happy!
Pork Carnitas Tacos
Carnitas taco filling is easy to make in huge batches. Cook a pork shoulder in the slow cooker and then divide into meal-size packages. Taco night was never so easy!
Freezer Burritos with Chicken, Beans, & Cheese (49 cents each!)
Freezer burritos are just the ticket when you need something quick and easy to serve the kids. You can vary the fillings and make a bag for each kid -- or go simple with these 5-ingredient burritos loaded with chicken, beans, and cheese.
Vegetable, Beef, and Barley Soup
This recipe is a throw-back to my own childhood when one of my favorite soups came in a big red can. Mix up a pot of this delicious homemade vegetable beef and barley soup, chocked full of vegetables, beef, and barley. It’ll do your body good.
Homemade Chicken Pot Pie Recipe (Freezer-Friendly)
People seem so intimidated by Chicken Pot Pie, but it’s really a super easy recipe. And it’s a great make ahead meal. Just like my apple pies, I often make several at once, wrap tightly unbaked, and freeze them. How nice to pop a pot pie in the oven on a night when I don’t want to cook, but crave good home cookin’! The kids go crazy for this pot pie.
Creamy Chicken Enchiladas
Here's another one of those freezer meals you can adapt to your whim -- or the kids'! With a pan of creamy chicken enchiladas on hand, you can vary the sauce to suit the suppers. Green sauce, sour cream sauce, red sauce, it's all up to you!
Buttered Maple French Toast Casserole
No kid ever said no to breakfast for dinner, or brinner as they say. This Buttered French Toast Casserole is very freezer-friendly, so feel free to make multiple batches to stash away for those emergency nights.
Breakfast Sandwich Recipe: Easy & Freezer Friendly
Breakfast sandwiches made of sausage, cheese, and English muffins won't last long in your freezer, because your kids will gobble them down too quickly. Add a fresh egg (or not) depending on your preferences.
What’s your favorite kid-friendly freezer meal?
Gabby@MamaGab
Awesome list!! Pinning it now. I love freezer meals but since my kids don’t love casseroles, it can be a challenge. This list is perfect for me AND them.
Heather @ My Overflowing Cup
Thanks so much for this – pinning it to my Freezer Cooking board. My favorites to freeze are pot pies, enchiladas, soups, meatballs, etc. The key for me is finding what we like and what freezes well and sticking with those.
Shandon-dy
Ok so i have a question. I know that you can buy ground beef, cook it however you want and then freeze it in portions that work for the fam. Can you have frozen ground beef or chicken and cook it how you want for tacos or whatever and then freeze it after it is cooked in portions that work? I’ve done the buy it cook it freeze it and it works awesome. But we bought a quarter of a cow from friends and have alot of ground beef and was wondering if it was possible.
Jessica Fisher
Yes, when I was writing my freezer cookbook, I did a fair amount of research on this issue. All food safety sources that I read said it is fine to refreeze meat that has been properly thawed, cooked, and cooled before refreezing.
Shandon-dy
Thank you!
Jennifer
I had an unexpected quiet afternoon to make Hélène’s birthday cake and do some stuff at home. So, I’m printing some recipes here to try and get in the freezer. I’ll let you know if I manage!! I’m SOOOOO busy these days and as you said, getting the food taken care of can help with the crazy December days.
Jessica Fisher
Look at you becoming a freezer cooker.
Cherie
great list – some of our favorites are there:) I will add that a new success in my freezer to stove prep is chicken parmagiana – which is a favorite here, but such a load of work to do – and the oil – oy vey. Living in italian-land like you live in mexican-land – it’s something we often order out because it’s everyone’s fave – and often too much time/work for the result
But MS did a piece on flash freezing thin cutlets that have been triple dredged [she uses flour, egg, toasted panko – I use toasted breadcrumbs – and flash freezing – I didn’t think it would work – but it’s low effort because I do a lot at once – and you know what? It’s not bad – and the chicken isn’t fried [some oil is added to the breadcrumbs before toasting] and it makes another easy meal on a busy night – throw frozen cutlets in the oven, add cheese later in the party and it’s done pretty quick.
Just sharing – it’s rare for me to find new freezer recipes that work for us – I’ve been doing it too long LOL! But your stuff is some of my favorite ‘new to me’ recipes – figured you’d like another thought 🙂
Jessica Fisher
Great idea. Love chicken parmesan!