freezer dishes

[firewatch]

hi, im going off to work full time and i need some ideas of what meals i can cook and then freeze, which can then be easily reheated, bearing in mind we currently do not have a microwave.
Its so if mr f feels chef like he can delve into the freezer and find something. cheers m'dears!

[wiggal]

I thought I may of been helpful here, until I saw that you have no microwave!

We have in our freezer that has been made before, Chilli, Lasagne, sweet and sour chicken, and some that we are not quite sure what they are lol!

Not sure if chilli & things can be reheated without a micro?

[firewatch]

im seriously contemplating getting a microwave just to make life a little easier for mr f, im not keen on them, but hey ho.

[puddicat]

Why not fire watch i dont use mine for meals as such just for pre baking a tattie or heating soup and sometimes cook veg, they are so cheap and fantastic for defrosting and heating and cooking the odd vegetable!!!

[wiggal]

If it wasn't for our microwave, I would of starged to death by now! I dont cook, my fella does it!
If he is not in, I either don't eat or stick something in the micro!

If you do get one, I'd spend a little extra and get a combi one, we got ours for �100, and it is a microwave, an oven and it grills, which is very handy if cooking and dont have much space in the oven, just put it in the micro!

[Jugglering]

I use my freezer a lot - on weekends I tend to make up large batches of my favourite foods and then I split them into one or two portion pieces, freeze them and simply get one out when I get home from work. I do have a microwave but sometimes I pop them into the oven. I have found the following dishes work well (I'm veggie, so these are all meat and fish free). Sometimes I make up parts of a meal and just add some freshly cooked pasta or rice from the storecupboard.

Vegetables in a cheese sauce (saut�d veg like mushrooms, peppers, onions, leek, celery, chillies and steamed veg like cauliflower, broccoli, baby sweetcorn).

Curries - eg chickpea curry, mushroom & potato curry, lentil dahl, okra in spices, carrot and peas in ginger etc etc...

Vegetable Lasagne - layers of lasagne with a homemade tomato sauce, saut�d finely chopped veg, spinach or greens (or pak choi), topped with lots of cheese sauce.

Cheese & Tattie Pie - layers of parboiled seasoned potato interspersed with finely chopped spring onion, gruyere and applewood (or your favourite cheeses). This can be baked in the oven for about half an hour until the potato is cooked, allowed to cool and cut up into portions etc. A variation of this is to add a beaten egg or two to the potato, cheeseand onion mix and then bake - a bit more protein.

All the above can be reheated in the oven - will probably take about 45 minutes from frozen.

Lentil & Vegetable stew - Just make up your favourite stew recipe and freeze into portions. To defrost you simply need to slide into a saucepan with a little water. Great served up with doorsteps of white crusty bread.

May I suggest that you do actually invest in a microwave - they are so cheap nowadays and will save you a fortune on cooking in the oven.

[spudqueen]

I don't have a microwave either firewatch. I get prepared the night before by taking whatever we'll be eating the next day out of the freezer. If it's not eaten the next day then it will keep for another couple of days in the fridge. Things made with mince are good for freezing - spaghetti bolognaise, chilli, shepherds pie etc. I also have things like lamb chops and sausages in the freezer, very handy to grill whilst you're cooking some potatoes to go with them.

[anniebird]

Most stew or casserole type dishes can be frozen and reheated. If you do not have a microwave then you can use a non stick saucepan on a gentle heat on the hob. I have done beef - lamb - chicken and all turn out well. My favourite is Creole Jambalaya.

[firewatch]

i have raided the bank of nan and granddad for my savings and i am seriously thinking of getting a microwave, i think it will be easier for mr f to work than the cooker, especially if his alerter goes off i can trust the microwave to turn itself off!