Pack individually-sized freezer meals for easy lunches to take to work. Not only will you save money and time, but you’ll eat the food you love with freezer lunch meal prep!
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My husband eats a homemade lunch at work almost every day. This is not because I am a perfect cook or a perfect wife. I am neither.
It started out mainly because I am cheap. I wanted to get us out of debt. So did he.
He was willing to forgo fast food if I was willing to pack something that worked. We experimented with lots of options, including but not limited to: packing leftovers, packing sandwiches, and a weekly meal prep of rice bowls.
Freezer Lunch Meal Prep for the Win!
What has worked the best for him in this season is to have a bag of Freezer Burritos to keep in the freezer at work. I make several dozen in one prep session so my time investment is easy and occasional. He has lunch for weeks, ready to go.
He microwaves them and tries to convince his co-workers that they should make freezer burritos as well.
This is one way that freezer lunch meal prep can work. But there are lots of other options.
With seven people in our family all doing some kind of freezer lunch meal prep, we use several strategies in our household to enjoy good food without paying the high price of fast food.
Tips for Success
When you pack up your lunchtime freezer meals, consider the following:
1. Package them in individual portions.
I used one-cup containers for soups, stews, and chilis. If I know someone will be able to reheat at home, then I often freeze portions in my Souper Cubes.
I wrap sandwiches and burritos individually and store in one larger bag in the freezer.
2. Label carefully.
Be sure to write the name of the dish across the packaging clearly so that there’s no confusion, especially in the early morning hours. Add the date if you’re not sure how quickly they meals will be eaten up.
3. Keep records of what works.
Since I vary the type of burritos or other foods for freezer lunch meal prep, I try to keep a record on my phone of what is a hit with my people. This way I can repeat those options and forget the ones that they didn’t love.
Freezer Lunch Meal Prep Recipes
The following are some of the tried and true recipes we’ve used for freezer lunch meal prep. In most instances, it’s handy to have a microwave or air fryer available for reheating. If not, then be sure to heat and store in a thermal container.
Hot Lunches
Foods to Freeze and Serve Cold
These freezer lunch meal prep recipes can be cooked and frozen and later served cold, after thawing. Proteins and spreads listed can be served in sandwiches, in a snacky lunch, or on salads.
This post was originally published on August 2, 2012. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Eva
I use lidded paper freezer cups (think “pint of ice cream” type container) to freeze soups for lunches. They come in different sizes at the restaurant store or online. The guys grab a frozen one on the way out the door and can heat it at lunchtime in the microwave with no worries about plastics. And the paper is disposable so no bringing Mom a bag of moldy containers when you clean out your car…
Caroline
These are great ideas. Thank you!! I can’t wait to make them. I always take a lunch to work and most of the time it is left overs, but if we don’t have left overs then usually he won’t make a lunch. We are looking to save money, eat healthier and save time when it comes to work lunches. These recipes and ideas are perfect.
Jessica
I’ve made similar subs before, using ranch seasoned chicken. They are fantastic!
Jennifer B
Can you share what kind of sandwich is in the picture and where the recipe might be? Thanks!
Jessica Fisher
https://lifeasmom.com/freezer-cooking-with-bone-in-chicken-breast/ A big favorite at our house!
Kate
What a great idea! I was trying to double and triple my recipes for my husband to bring to work, but then I found out if we have more food in the pan, he will eat it, even if he’s full, haha. Can’t wait to try these, thanks!
Kris
@Kate, Kate, when I make double to have leftovers I pack the extra up and put them in the freezer before anyone gets near the food for dinner. This way the excess is not tempting to my husband (or me depending on the meal :)). I especially need to do this with meatballs or we end up eating way more than we should have eaten!
Tricia
What do you put in your chicken & onion wraps? Just grilled chicken and raw onions? Cooked onions?
Jessica
There’s lots of seasonings and cheeses mixed in with cooked onion and chicken. Wish the book was here already.
Tricia
@Jessica,
I guess I’ll just be patient then! 🙂
Christine A
My fitness pal.com is also a good website to track meals. You can scan bar codes for on the spot calorie tracking!!! I am sure it is similar to Livestrong …but in case you end up looking for another option! I have lost 20lbs (yes, 20) since April when I started counting calories!
Jessica
@Christine A, I noticed you were looking pretty svelte in your instagram pic! Great job!
Tiffani
Thanks for this great post. I’m starting to think about lunches for back-to-school. There isn’t a way to reheat food at school, so it limits taking most leftovers. Would love any further recommendations in this area! Also, if you know of any great thermos containers that don’t leak and work well, that would be helpful, too!
jennifer
@Tiffani, A great thermos is the key…we bought a Thermos® 16 oz. Vacuum-Insulated Food Jar and so far it’s worked great…including soup…hot and no leaks
harriet dodson
I usually make lunch-sized portions and freeze them for quick lunches. I like it because I do not have to pack a freezer pack and I just leave my lunch bag out of the fridge at work. Since I have to be at work at 6:00, it is well on its way to being thawed at noon and it only takes a minute or two in the microwave.
Liz
Love this idea! On the chicken bacon subs, did you bake them first then freeze them? I saw on the recipe that it says to wait to bake it until serving day, but that wouldn’t work if you were just wanting to grab it in the morning and eat it at lunch. Thanks!
Jessica
I didn’t bake them, nor did I add cheese to them. I was counting on their reheating in the microwave, or baking them at home. You make a good point. I’m not sure if this will work. I guess we’ll see.
Melissa
@Jessica, We just made these for the first time. I made some for now and some for later. The now ones we baked and the later ones we froze without baking. Everyone in the house loved them. Compared them to a restaurant sub we’ve bought. I love it that there are sandwiches in the freezer I can pull out if I need an “emergency meal” or someone can take for a lunch outside of the house. Thanks, Jessica. Another recipe that blesses this family : )
Jessica
@Melissa, yeah! So glad to hear. Thanks!
Deb
I like to freeze left-overs in silicon muffin liners. I find that they are easy to pop out the frozen meals & store them in a large ziploc bag in the freezer. I prepare lunches the evening before, so I simply take-out what we need & put it into lunchboxes. Anything that needs thawing (i.e. meatballs & sauce) can easily be heated in the microwave in a small bowl or custard cup.
I, also, like to make individual serves of jello, yogurt, etc. in half-cup lidded containers. One box of jello makes 4 serves & it takes me only minutes to make up a dozen to have in the fridge. These are great for lunches or for a lighter dessert with fruit. A bit of prep before hand does make it easier (& cheaper) in the long run.
Jen
A few years back, I started making larger or double portions of most of our meals. As we clean up, instead of putting the leftovers in the frig, we started dividing them out in lunch size portions. We used masking tape on the container to write the date and menu item. We have saved so much money this way, and never waste leftovers. A more recent change is that we’ve started buying glass containers for anything that needs to be heated in the microwave.
Jessica
Sounds like you’ve got a great workable plan!
Steph
I usually rely on leftovers for my husband to take to work. But lately we haven’t had leftovers for whatever reason so it’d be super helpful if I had some individually stored freezer meals.
Jessica
@Steph, same thing here.