Food Freezing Tips to Make Cooking Easier
Freezers are a modern marvel, a way of preserving many foods for several days to months so a busy household can have all the essentials on hand. Many foods you purchase from the freezer section of the store have been frozen right in the fields when the food is at the peak of freshness.
But let’s start with foods you should NOT freeze.
* Raw eggs in the shells - they expand and crack.
* Hard-boiled eggs - they will get rubbery.
* Salad - lettuce and other foods with a lot of water in them are not meant to be frozen.
* Egg-based sauces, such as mayonnaise - they will separate and curdle.
* Dairy - milk, plain yogurt, low-fat cream cheese, cream and cottage cheese will all go watery and separate.
* Raw potato - it is also too watery to freeze. Cook it first, then freeze.
Getting the Most of Your Leftovers
Now that you know what to avoid, let’s look at what to do to get the best results from freezing your leftovers.
1. Always cool to room temperature
Never put hot food in the freezer. It will raise the temperature and defrost foods around it. It will also get condensation on the inside of the container, which will make the food watery and unappetizing.
2. Freeze your food at the peak of freshness
Don’t freeze leftovers that are two or three days old just to try to salvage them. Freeze them on the same day you have cooked them so they are at their best. If you know you and your family really don’t like to eat leftovers the next day, parcel them up into homemade TV dinners.
3. Use proper freezer containers
Preserve your foods properly in freezer containers with a tight-fitting lid to retain freshness. Handle with care so nothing cracks when the containers are frozen.
4. Freeze into sensible portions
Make single meals, or enough for a family of four, not twelve servings in one container.
5. Use freezer-friendly labels
Use labels that will stick to your containers and hold up against the cold. Write clearly. Note the name of the recipe and the date it was frozen. Most frozen food should be eaten within three months, and not beyond six months.
6. Don’t refreeze food
If you have bought a turkey, for example, keep it frozen until 24-36 hours before you are ready to cook it. Don’t thaw and refreeze a raw bird. Thaw in the refrigerator to ensure even thawing and minimal bacterial growth. Once it is cooked, it is fine to freeze the meat.
7. Pack your freezer
A refrigerator runs most efficiently when there is space between the food to let the cold air circulate. A freezer works in the opposite way. A packed freezer is more efficient to run and more economical. Cook, make, and freeze recipes in batches, or fill your freezer with staples such as loaves of sliced bread and frozen vegetables.
8. Wrap or bag up your proteins when you get them home
If you are buying meat in advance, take it out of the store packaging and wrap it well. Or, place in a plastic bag you can seal tightly so you will avoid food being lost to the dreaded freezer burn.
9. If you live in a warm climate, bring a cooler and/or ice packs
This will help preserve the food and stop it from defrosting until you can get it home and into your freezer.
10. Purge your freezer every six months
Contrary to popular belief, freezing does not completely kill bacteria. Cooking at a high temperature will. Check your freezer contents and throw away anything older than six months, or anything which look suspicious.
Getting the Kids to Help with the Cooking
Home cooking when you are in a rush can be really stressful if you try to do it all yourself. But if your children are old enough to help, it’s time to enlist them into the wonders of cooking and preparing food.
Safety First
The most obvious issue is safety in the kitchen. Children should not use sharp knives. They should always wash their hands well before engaging in any meal preparation. They should have an apron for their clothes and a work station away from any hot oven or stove with the burner on.
Invest in the Right Equipment
Be sure to have kid-safe mixing bowls and measuring cups. Also consider getting a chopper with a plunger. All they have to do is put the food under it and press down with both hands.
Make It Fun
Teach them fun and interesting things as you cook. Kids love to explore and learn.
Cook Their Favorites
Most children love pizza, pasta, burgers, meatloaf, and so on. They can help learn how to make all of these things. Have them help you roll out the pizza dough, or make English muffins or French bread pizza. Get them to help you toss the pasta with sauce, cheese and olive oil.
Let them roll up their sleeves to get messy with burgers and meatloaf. Use the plastic burger-forming shapes to get the children to make the burgers ahead of time, so all you have to do is defrost them.
For meatloaf, they will love to knead in the egg, spices, bread crumb, tomatoes and olives if you use them. At the end of the meal, have them help you make meatloaf sandwiches for the next day.
Create Stunning Salads
In addition to using their little chopper, the kids can tear lettuce into a salad spinner, wash the salad, and then spin to get all the water out.
Create Delicious Desserts
Every child loves desserts. Keep control of what you eat by making them at home. You can cook quick microwave cakes, or bake a pie in the oven. Have the children roll out a pie crust — every child loves Play-Doh.
Bake cookies. Let them make mini fruit tarts with whipped cream. Try a bread pudding. Make muffins and cupcakes. Have them help cut up fruit for all kinds of desserts. Just remember to let fruit cool thoroughly if you cook it so it does not burn young mouths.
Create Healthy Breakfasts
While you are in the kitchen preparing dinner, or washing up afterwards, the children can help you get a head start on the next meals of the day. Scramble some eggs. Add cheese if you wish. Cook and crumble some sausage or bacon. Put it all together into a flour tortilla and wrap in waxed paper. You will have heat and eat breakfast burritos you can even take with you as you run out the door.
Try French toast you can heat and eat on the go, or French toast sandwiches with your favorite fillings, such as ham, cheese, Nutella, peanut butter, and so on.
Organize Brown Bag Lunches
If you and the family brown bag it every day, get a jump start by making them up the night before. The kids can lay out the bread, add mayo, mustard and so on, and layer the ingredients as needed. Make the sandwiches fun by letting the kids cut them with cute cookie cutters. You can eat the rest once the shapes are cut out.
There are lots of ways children can help in the kitchen. Start them off young and be patient and ready for messes. Over time, their skills will definitely improve, until they will be a real help in the kitchen and hopefully have developed a love of healthy food as well.
Items You Always Want to Have in Your Pantry
When it comes to cooking quickly, stocking up your pantry with the right staples and equipment can go a long way towards helping you feed your family without having to slave over a hot stove for hours or spend a fortune. Here are some of the items you should always have on hand for quick, easy and cheap meals.
Pasta
This is a versatile food that can be used on its own or in other recipes. Italians have hundreds of sauces to add flavor to these humble little items made out of flour, eggs and oil. Use in soups, stews, salads, and on its own. Use spaghetti or one of the wonderful shapes the kids will love, like butterflies or twists. And of course, elbow macaroni is perfect for homemade mac and cheese, or macaroni salad.
Noodles
Closely related to pasta are egg noodles, which are great with dishes like stroganoff and chili if you don’t want to serve it with rice. There are all kinds of Asian-style noodles as well, such as soba, udon and buckwheat. Even ramen have their place in a busy kitchen, as long as you don’t use too much of the ultra-salty seasoning packets.
Rice
Rice offers an amazing array of tastes. White and brown rice are musts for the house. Parboiled is perfect for Mexican food. Jasmine rice is great with Asian food. Arborio and short-grain rice are perfect for risottos.
Tuna Packed in Water
Tuna packed in water can be eaten hot or cold. Go for the solid white albacore versus the chunk light, which can be very watery. You can buy eight cans of solid white cheaply at your local warehouse store for a fraction of what you would pay per can in the supermarket.
Want a real taste treat? Look for the gold cans of Bumble Bee Prime Fillet solid white. You can usually get six cans at the warehouse club for a reasonable price if you want to use the tuna as a featured entrée in an impressive dish such as tuna cakes or tuna Caesar salad.
Canned tuna is perfect for sandwiches, salad, tuna casserole, stuffed peppers, stuffed mushrooms, and more. Tuna is high in protein and low in calories and is a filling way to feed your family.
Eggs
Eggs are extremely versatile. As long as no one in your house is allergic, you can whip up dozens of meals in a matter of minutes. Try scrambled, poached, fried, over easy and soft or hard boiled. Make omelets, frittatas, quiches, French toast, pancakes, crepes and more.
Beans
Canned beans and legumes that have already been cooked are ideal for quick and easy recipes. Look for low sodium varieties of red and white kidney beans, pink, black and pinto beans, and chick peas.
Canned Vegetables
Not all canned veggies hold up well in salted water, but two that you should always have on hand for salad are beets and corn. Rinse well before serving and toss in your salad. Or, pickle the beets slightly with some white vinegar before serving as a side dish.
Frozen Vegetables
These are frozen at the peak of freshness on the farms and can be added to stretch any meal. Some frozen vegetables, such as cauliflower and broccoli, can be a real time and energy saver with a minimum amount of waste.
Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Buy from your local farmer’s market in small amounts you know you are going to use. They will have fewer pesticides on them and be riper and tastier than what you find in the supermarket.
Potatoes
White and sweet potatoes make an excellent accompaniment to a range of meals. You can keep it simple and cook them whole in the microwave, or make boiled, mashed, fries, hash browns and more.
With these staples in your pantry, there will always be something quick and easy to cook for dinner.
Kitchen Gadgets to Speed Up Your Cooking
There are literally thousands of kitchen gadgets available, from the humble to the gourmet. The right tools in the kitchen can really save you time and money. Here are some must-haves.
* A Good Set of Measuring Cups
These are essential if you want your recipes to turn out right, especially when baking.
* A Set of Measuring Spoons
These are also essential, for the same reason.
* A Kitchen Scale
This is ideal for measuring ingredients by weight. It can also help with portion control if you are on a diet. Don’t guess at how much three ounces of meat is — measure it accurately.
* A Good Set of Mixing Bowls
Buy them in various sizes from small to large.
* Hand Mixer
This makes mixing everything from eggs to muffins a breeze.
* Salad Spinner
Wash your lettuce, give it a spin, and the centrifugal force will remove the water so the salad will be ready to put in a bowl. Tip out, add dressing, and toss to serve. You can also use it to drain pasta.
* Hand Chopper with a Plunger
This is perfect for you and your children to dice fruits, vegetables, cheese and so on without having to worry about cutting your fingers. Just push down on the plunger several times until you have the right-sized pieces for your recipe.
* A Mandoline Slicer
This will allow you to slice vegetables quickly according to your desired thickness. Put the handle on the thing you wish to slice so there is no risk of harming your fingers. Set the thickness and start to slice. It’s ideal for making sliced potato dishes, apple pie and more.
* A Food Processor
A food processor will slice, dice, chop, grate, pulverize, and more, depending on what blades you have as attachments. The blender attachment can also help make smoothies, meringues and more.
* An Immersion Blender
An immersion blender is perfect for soups, stews and sauces. Instead of running the risk of burning yourself and splattering food everywhere in order to make your soup smooth (such as cream of mushroom soup), you just place the blender in the pot and start to liquidize all of the ingredients. Many of them have a measuring cup as part of the set. You can use it to whip up a smoothie in the morning, make scrambled eggs, and more.
* A Crock Pot
A crock pot, or slow cooker, will take some practice to master, but it is a great way to have a hot meal waiting at home for you and the family every night. Just follow the recipe and set the timer. It is also a great option in the summer. You won’t want to turn on the oven or cook on the stove top when the temperatures soar. A slow cooker allows you to have a hot meal every night without heating up the kitchen and the whole house.
* A Foldable Colander
This sits flat in your cabinet so it does not take up a lot of space, and opens when you need to strain pasta, vegetables and so on.
* A 3-in-1 Cutting Board
Cut your items on the board and store them in the inserts until ready to use. One insert is a colander, the other a serving tray.
* An Egg Separator
This is ideal for all the times you need to separate your egg into yolks and white. Little chips of shell will be a thing of the past with the help of this useful gadget.
* A Cast Iron Frying Pan
It will take some time to break it in and learn how to cook with it, but it can last you years and never be thrown away because its non-stick surface is ruined, which is what happens all too often with modern frying pans. It goes from stove top to oven to grill and to table as well, making it very versatile.
Quick and Healthy Breakfasts
Most experts agree that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. As the name suggests, you are breaking your fast, or period when you have not been eating. Some people eat at around 6 or 7 pm in the evening and get up about 12 hours later. Skipping breakfast would mean running on an empty fuel tank.
Eating a sugary sweet donut can be worse than eating nothing because it will cause a spike in blood sugar. The spike will last about 30 minutes, temporarily boosting one’s energy. Unfortunately, this spike can often leave you hungrier than before and prone to uncontrollable cravings which can cause you to start packing on the pounds.
The Secret of Healthy Breakfasts
There are a number of things to consider when planning a healthy breakfast. It should have protein in it, and fiber. Both of these will help fill you up. You should also eat "slow carbs" - ones that will not release their energy in one big spike, but gradually over time.
Protein
Eggs are an excellent breakfast food as long as no one is allergic. There is about 7 grams of protein for 70 calories in a boiled or poached egg.
A lot of people enjoy breakfast proteins such as bacon and sausage. Just be careful that they don’t have too much hidden sugar in them (such as maple bacon) or too much salt (sodium).
Fiber
When choosing bread and cereals, opt for whole grains. Avoid white bread and sugary cereals with lots of food coloring. Homemade oatmeal is a great way to start off the day; it is rich in fiber and can be dressed up with cinnamon and fruit.
Fresh fruit can be eaten on its own, or added to oatmeal, made into yogurt parfaits, or added to cereal, pancakes and waffles. Berries are a good choice because they are high in disease-fighting antioxidants. You can use apples for the same reason.
Some people like to start the day with citrus, such as orange juice and grapefruit. Try to use the whole orange to get all of the fiber. Grill the grapefruit with a bit of brown sugar on top for a tasty start to the morning.
Slow Carbs
Slow carbs take longer to digest and are high in fiber. They release their energy slowly, so they should tide you over until lunchtime. They also make you less prone to cravings because you feel fuller for longer.
Bread choices include whole wheat and any of the 12- or 15-mixed grain breads, which usually have a dense texture and a nutty taste. Cut off the crusts if the children are picky. Use the bread for French toast or a breakfast bread pudding.
Multigrain wraps are ideal for breakfast burritos. You can make them the night before while you are cleaning up after dinner. Wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate overnight. Heat and eat the next morning. For breakfast on the go, wrap in foil before heading out the door.
Pancakes and waffles can be made with whole wheat flour, but they will be denser and absorb more liquid, so adjust your recipes accordingly.
French toast and pancakes can be ideal bread substitutes for a breakfast sandwich such as bacon, ham, cheese, sausage, and so on. You can also fill with berries, cream and Nutella for a tasty treat on the go. Cook your French toast and pancakes in batches and freeze in a zippered storage bag. Take out, heat and eat as needed.
Potatoes in hash brown or home fries can also be a good choice provided you don’t use a lot of oil when frying them.
Use these suggestions to keep the hunger pangs out until lunchtime.
Quick and Healthy Sandwich Ideas
If you and your family tend to brown bag it for lunch every day, you probably feel stuck sometimes as to what to serve. No one wants to eat the same old things all the time. A couple of simple twists can add all-new excitement to your sandwiches, so you can be sure your children will look forward to them and actually eat them instead of throwing them away. Or even worse, swapping them for something unhealthy.
The Bread
The secret to a healthy sandwich is the bread. Aim for whole grains. Whole wheat and multigrain breads pack a lot of fiber and healthy B vitamins. If your kids don’t like the crusts, trim them off and use for homemade bread pudding.
There is white whole grain bread if they really refuse to eat brown bread. Another good option is multigrain wraps. Look for whole grain pita pockets for a nice change. Or, skip the bread and pack some really nice crackers.
The Protein
The protein is what will keep you feeling full until (hopefully) dinner time. Cold cuts are a quick and easy option, but unfortunately, they are packed with salt (sodium) and preservatives. If you really can’t avoid them, ask for low sodium varieties. Buy if you do, only buy as much as you are sure you will use within a couple of days because the lack of salt (also a preservative) means the meat will spoil faster.
One of the best ways to save money is to roast a chicken or buy a rotisserie one. You can use the meat sliced, or chopped in a salad with celery and a small amount of mayo and yogurt dressing.
Roast beef is another excellent option if your family eats red meat. Slice thinly and add mayo, mustard and/or horseradish.
Most people cook a ham at the holidays. But there’s no reason you can’t make one any time and use the remaining meat after dinner for hearty ham sandwiches. Add a smear of mustard and serve as is, or chop it up to use in your favorite ham salad recipe.
Vegetables and Fruit
Coleslaw makes a great crunchy topping for most sandwiches and adds moistness thanks to the dressing. Use green or red cabbage to vary the tastes.
Lettuce and tomato are two popular choices of veg. There is a wide array of salad greens available these days, so you don’t just have to stick to iceberg or Romaine. Arugula is a popular choice because of its peppery taste.
Pickled vegetables are another good choice. People put sauerkraut on their Reuben sandwiches for some crunch and acidity. Korean kimchi is becoming more popular, especially with barbecue. Pickles are always a favorite - try dill or sweet and sour. Italians use giardiniera, an assortment of pickled carrots, zucchini and so on. It and cold cuts are the two essential ingredients in a muffuletta from New Orleans.
As for fruit, try thinly sliced pineapple, apple, pear, or apple slaw. Some people like to add julienned carrots, which go well with raisins.
The Condiments
What you put on the bread and atop the ingredients can make or break your healthy sandwich. Most condiments like mayo and creamy salad dressings are high in fat and calories. Water them down, so to speak, with some low-fat Greek style or regular yogurt.
You don’t want your sandwich to get soggy, so you could toast the bread and/or spread the dressing on it to act as a barrier to things seeping everywhere.
Popular dressings to add to sandwiches include Thousand Island with roast beef, and Caesar for a chicken Caesar salad sandwich.
With these ideas, sandwiches need never be boring again.
Quick Meal Ideas Using Leftover Meat
There are lots of ways to use leftover meat, especially if you are creative and willing to explore other cuisines. And it doesn’t just have to be for dinner; it can be for breakfast, lunch and snacks as well.
Menu Planning for Your Meat
Meat and poultry will always be the most expensive items on your grocery list, so it is important to make the most of them. This is especially true if your family isn’t too keen on eating leftovers. Fortunately, a few simple additions can transform that sneered-at chicken into a veritable feast.
Homemade TV Dinner
The most obvious use of any meat you cook is to package up the leftovers into complete TV dinners with a small amount of protein, about 3 to 4 ounces for an adult, so you will always have tasty food on hand and won’t have to resort to junk food or takeaway.
The trick here is to plan ahead to make sure all the sides can be frozen. All starches and vegetables that have been cooked will hold up well, but you can’t freeze salads or most dairy very well because they are too watery.
Protein on Its Own
If you are roasting a chicken at home for Sunday dinner or buying a rotisserie chicken in the supermarket, make the most of it by carving it as close to the bone as possible and then freezing the meat into portions you can use for a range of recipes. Use 2 to 4 ounces of meat per person depending on how many children and adults you have to feed. Try to make the most of the dark meat, even if your family is not that fond of it. You can usually hide it in burritos, pot pies and so on.
When you are finished carving, put the carcass in a pot and boil up the bones for your own homemade chicken stock. Or, add apple cider vinegar and make your own bone broth. It will take 24 or so hours to cook.
Strain the meat out of the stock or broth and use it in soups, stews or pot pies.
Going Global
There are so many different cuisines to try; it can be a wonderful journey of exploration transforming your protein into something new and exciting. The most common cuisines are:
* American
* Italian
* Mexican
* French
* Mediterranean
* Asian: Chinese, Japanese, Thai and Korean
Chicken, roast beef and pork tenderloin are all pretty versatile, so will work well with a range of seasonings.
American
American food is hearty and full of flavor. Try "pulled" sandwiches, with the meat shredded and mixed with your own homemade barbecue sauce. Serve on a soft roll with some crunchy coleslaw. This is a great way to hide dark meat chicken and also tenderize cheaper cuts of meat.
Italian
Grind your pork tenderloin, add some fennel and an egg, and you have homemade sweet Italian sausage. Add red pepper flakes for spicy sausage.
Use ground meat or pork in your lasagna or a pasta bake.
Mexican
Any protein will work well in tacos, burritos and enchiladas. Or, cut the meat into strips and grill it with onions and green peppers to make your own fajitas.
French
French cooking can seem very fancy, but the emphasis is on fresh ingredients. Use chicken for your own cordon bleu and beef in slow-cooked dishes like boeuf bourguignon.
Mediterranean
Mediterranean also focuses on fresh ingredients. Add your protein to salads and eat with an array of vegetables and cheeses.
Asian
Asian food will take some time to master, but start with simple stir fries and noodle dishes. Try to find an Asian supermarket in your area and experiment with sauces such as black bean, hoisin, and char siu. Good brands to buy include Amoy and Lee Kum Kee.
Things to Batch Cook and Save Time
Batch cooking makes the most of the cooking time you do have in order to create a large portion of a particular dish and be able to enjoy the food in the coming weeks too. Batch cooking goes hand in hand with make-and-freeze recipes as you portion out the batches and freeze them so you can just pull them out of the freezer, heat, and eat, any time you need to.
For batch cooking, you will need a range of plastic containers, freezer-proof labels, and a pen. Zippered food storage bags are also very useful.
Here are some foods that work well in batches.
Tomato Sauce
Tomato sauce can be made Italian style for pizza and pasta, or Mexican style for tacos, enchiladas and more. It is just a question of what seasonings to use. Note: tomato sauce will stain your plastic containers, so oil them first and don’t reheat the sauce all the way in them. Use a bowl in the microwave or a saucepan. You can also use a small zippered storage bag.
Rice
Each time you make rice, make more than you need and save it in 1- or 2-cup portions as side dishes, stir fries and so on. Just reheat in the microwave and serve.
Muffins, Cupcakes and Cookies
If your family is on the go all the time, this is a great way to keep them well fed. You can make different styles of muffin for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Get a make-and-freeze muffin cookbook and you and the whole family can go on a tasty journey of exploration.
Cookies can be made in large batches and frozen to keep them at the peak of freshness. For muffins and cookies, freeze them in zippered food storage bags. Then unzip, take out what you need, re-close the bag, and get on with your busy day. Defrost in the microwave or take on the go. The food should defrost by the time you wish to eat it.
Soup
Make it on the stove or in a crock pot. Freeze into individual portions. Just add bread or a sandwich for a full meal. Heat in the microwave and add to a Thermos for a hot lunch on a cold day.
Stew
Stew works well in batches too. Portion into individual servings. Make the dumplings on the side and add one or two to the bowl.
Chili
Chili with or without meat is always a hearty meal. Add rice for a complete dinner in one bowl. Take it to work or school and heat it up in the microwave as a hot alternative to the usual sandwiches.
Casseroles
Casseroles can be made in large portions, then portioned up and frozen. Eat fresh while the meal is still warm. Then allow the casserole to cool completely before putting it in the plastic containers. Add cooked vegetables for a really filling lunch or dinner.
Hard-Boiled Eggs
Cook up a big pot at the start of the week and use as snacks, protein in salad, egg salad sandwiches and so on.
Meatballs
Meatballs go well with pasta, in a hero, and so on. Fry up a couple of pounds of your favorite recipe, cool, and freeze. Place in a zippered storage bag and take them out as needed.
Lasagna
Always make extra and freeze. This makes a tasty dinner with a side salad and some Italian bread.
Pumpkin Puree
Get a jump on all of your holiday cooking by roasting your pumpkins in the oven and scooping out the flesh. It is a lot cheaper than buying in the can. Use a 1- or 2-cup measure, place in a zippered storage bag, and flatten. Stack them up ready for all your holiday pies, cakes, muffins and more.
Tips for Cooking with a Slow Cooker
A slow cooker can be a welcome addition to any busy household provided that you learn a few tricks of the trade when using it.
The slow cooker is ideal for two reasons. Firstly, you can set it up on the morning and have a hot meal waiting for you when you get home at night. The second reason is that it won’t make the entire kitchen hot, so it is ideal in summer months for people who want hot food but don’t want to heat up the whole house.
Getting Started
If you already have a slow cooker, try to find the instructions that go with it. Read it from cover to cover. Make sure you know the capacity of the cooker - that is, how many cups it holds.
If you are in the market for one, read the reviews online. Check the capacity. If you have a large family, buy the largest one. Also consider buying the largest one if you would like to batch cook make-and-freeze meals. Eat one meal fresh and pack up the rest into the freezer, so you will always have healthy homemade food on hand.
Finding a Place to Put It
Some slow cookers can be really large. If you don’t have a lot of counter space, consider putting it in an accessible corner or in the dining room. If you have to haul it in and out of the cabinet all the time, chances are you’re not going to get as much use out of it as you could.
Cooking Tips
* Start with room temperature ingredients
* Don’t open the lid once you have started the cooking process
* Place the hard root vegetables on the bottom near the heat source
* Follow the recipe carefully
Don’t try to get creative when first starting out. Follow the recipe exactly as written and make notes. You need to have the right balance of solids and liquids and don’t want to burn anything.
* Always brown your meat before cooking in the slow cooker
This seals in flavor. Don’t discard the bits in the bottom of the pan. Add a splash of red wine, stir and scrape to loosen, and add to the slow cooker.
* Dredge the meat before browning if you want a thicker sauce
Flouring the meat, browning, and adding everything to the slow cooker will make the sauce thicker, for creamier soups and stews.
* Aim for your optimal temperature
Food needs to be cooked above 140 degrees F in order to kill bacteria. If you have tried to cook on the warm setting or the slow cooker has been unplugged, do not eat it. Discard and explore other options.
* Don’t use frozen food
Loading a slow cooker with icy ingredients will keep food in the danger zone where bacteria can flourish (40 to 140 degrees F). So make sure your meat and vegetables are fully thawed before turning the cooker on. The exception is prepackaged slow-cooker meals sold in the freezer case; these are fine to use as long as you follow the package's directions.
* Don’t overfill
For the best results, fill between one-half and two-thirds full. Don’t make it brim up to the top — it will boil over.
* Trim all fat
This will prevent your liquid from becoming a greasy mess. Remove poultry skin as well, for the same reason.
* Cut pieces evenly
Try to keep all cut-up meat and vegetables roughly the same size so you don’t get any hard or chewy bits.
* Add dairy last
If you are going to add sour cream, milk, cheese or yogurt to the recipe, stir them in during the last 15 minutes of cooking so they don’t break down and curdle or ooze.
Follow these tips and you will soon have mastered the art of cooking with a slow cooker.
Tips on Effective Meal Planning
If you are not already planning your meals each week, chances are you’re wasting a lot of time and money. Effective meal planning can make your life a great deal easier, freeing up time and cash, and making your household more environmentally friendly by ensuring as little as possible goes to waste.
What Is Meal Planning?
Meal planning is all about listing what you are going to eat at each meal. Menu planning will usually cover an entire week of meals. Certain ladies’ magazines will offer a complete menu plan with recipes, so all you have to do is clip and save them, try the dishes, and see which your family likes. You will soon come up with a few weekly menu plans of all-new family favorites.
You can also do it yourself using your family’s favorite recipes. Make a list and then start buying the ingredients to prepare them in rotation.
Meals and Snacks
You will need to plan two or three meals a day, plus structured snacks. Try to make a balanced menu overall for the week, without too much red meat or saturated fat. Try to eat a rainbow of vegetables. Think of interesting snacks your family can take with them that do not require refrigeration. Go beyond the sandwich for lunch to make-and-go Thermos recipes or heat-and-eat meals.
Transform Your Proteins
One roast or rotisserie chicken can be stretched to many meals with a bit of menu planning. So can a pork tenderloin or a roast beef. Cook and eat the meal hot on a Sunday, for example, and portion the rest of the protein into a range of dishes. Family-pleasing options include:
* Stir fry
* Burritos/tacos/enchiladas
* Fajitas
* Chicken salad with mayonnaise and celery
* Sliced chicken for sandwiches
* Sliced roast beef for sandwiches
* Salad topped with protein strips
* Chicken Caesar salad
* Homemade TV dinners using the rest of the leftovers
* Pot pie
* Stuffed peppers
* Stuffed potato skins
* Baked ziti with protein of your choice
* Homemade egg rolls or wonton cups
* And much more
The Leftover Dilemma
It’s important to make the most of your leftovers. Studies have shown that Americans actually throw away 50% of the food they buy. This means if you are spending $100 in a week on groceries, you’re throwing $50 straight in the trash. Menu planning is the solution.
Part of the issue is that many people don’t like leftovers. They want something new and interesting every night of the week. You might start out with the best of intentions, but as the latest dish you cook or the takeaway you have ordered shoves last night’s leftovers to the back of the fridge, they will soon be forgotten and go to waste.
Fridges preserve food well, but most dishes will start to break down and become inedible within a couple of days. The solution? Make-and-freeze meals.
Make-and-Freeze Meals
If your partner refuses to touch leftovers, it is time to arm yourself with some plastic or glass food containers and start parceling up your leftovers into homemade TV dinners. This is a great way to menu plan because you can cater to any taste or special menu, such as vegetarian or gluten free, and even watch your weight through effective portion control.
Serve as-is again, such as sliced pork loin with sweet potatoes and corn. Or, portion your protein into various meals as outlined above. Label each container and freeze. Write down on a list how many containers you have of each dish. Cross them off as you use them, and make a note on a second list that it’s time to make more once you are running low.
Cook and parcel leftovers for a week in this way, and you will soon have a freezer full of ready meals.
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