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7 Freezer-Friendly Recipes for Busy Weeknights

Cooking recipes in large batches allows you to always have meals on hand for lunch and dinner. But freezing small dishes is also a good practice in order to reduce food waste. Here are a few batch-cooking recipes that the whole family will love.

1. White Pasta Sauce with Fennel and Celeriac

A pasta sauce always comes in handy! Simply reheat and toss with pasta for a comforting meal. This “white” version features ground pork, celeriac and an entire bulb of fennel.

2. Pickle-Brined Chicken with Herb Sauce

Pouring a jar of pickle juice down the drain? That’s some fine brine you’re squandering. The proof? It brings the right amount of zing to this chicken dish. There are no limits as to what you can do with pickled veggie or olive brine, such as dips, sauces and soups.You can freeze the chicken thighs and serve them with another sauce or even shred the chicken to make sandwiches for lunch.

3. Beef and Zucchini Meatballs

Kids and grown-ups alike enjoy meatballs. This ground beef version with oats and grated zucchini can be halved, with one part served with tahini sauce and the other frozen to be enjoyed in another meal. They can even be frozen raw and then cooked from frozen; simply use the amount you need. 

4. Potato and Ham Croquettes

Got leftover ham that you don’t know what to do with? Whip up these simple croquettes by combining it with mashed potatoes and cheese; they’re perfectly crispy and make for a great weekday lunch.

5. Ratatouille

Make the most of abundant harvests by using vegetables to their full potential, preparing a ratatouille made with eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini, onions, bell peppers and garlic. Each vegetable is first cooked separately, then combined until melt-in-your-mouth tender. This recipe is so versatile, it can be served with pasta, fish, grilled chicken or on a pizza. No food waste here!

6. Cream of Roasted Tomato Soup with Confit Garlic

Soup is usually the start to a good meal or the perfect side to a grilled cheese sandwich. When tomatoes are abundant in the grocery store, at the farmers’ market or in your garden, take advantage to cook them to their fullest. The best part is, given that this recipe requires roasting the tomatoes, you can avoid food waste by using soft or wilted tomatoes.

7. Sweet and Savoury Braised Pork

Using your slow cooker for one or two meals per week can make a huge difference when it comes to weeknight planning, but also helps make affordable cuts of meat more tender, like this pork shoulder with sweet and savoury Thai flavours. This cut of meat is enough to make multiple meals.

For more batch-cooking ideas, be sure to consult our wide selection of recipes: