12 Make-Forward Wholesome Freezer Meals For New Mothers

These 12 wholesome freezer meals for brand new mothers with prep directions & buying lists use a sluggish cooker and Instantaneous Pot to make her life a lot simpler...in solely 3 hours!

Once I was pregnant, I knew that stocking my freezer with wholesome meals throughout my third trimester was excessive on my precedence listing. I did loads of googling for recipes that may match the invoice, however, truthfully, there weren’t loads of recipes on the market that match the invoice.

I’ve misplaced 100 kilos and it is extremely necessary to me to eat meals that:

• are excessive in protein
• embody a number of greens
• use restricted processed substances

However, most significantly, with a brand new child, I knew I wanted them to be QUICK and EASY! I had no thought what to anticipate with our infant, however I knew that I wouldn’t have a lot time, vitality, or brain-power to spare, so I wanted meals I might simply dump in and be carried out with it!

So, once I couldn’t discover what I used to be in search of elsewhere, I made a decision to provide you with a plan of my very own.

And that’s my principal objective of this put up – to do the pondering, planning, and organizing for you so that you could simply comply with the plan, inventory your freezer, and focus in your new infant!

On this put up, you can find:

• 12 wholesome freezer meal recipes
• an inventory of the provides you want for this freezer session
• step-by-step freezer bag prep directions for every meal

12 Wholesome Freezer Meals for New Mothers

The meals under embody 9 meals to be made in an Instantaneous Pot and three to be made in a sluggish cooker or Crockpot.

I take advantage of a 6-quart Instantaneous Pot DUO and a 7-quart Frigidaire Skilled sluggish cooker (two of my favourite kitchen home equipment!).

Instantaneous Pot Freezer Recipes

I take advantage of the 6-Quart Instantaneous Pot DUO for all of my Instantaneous Pot recipes.

Sluggish Cooker Freezer Recipes

Day Earlier than Your Freezer Session

1. Grocery Store

I like to recommend grocery buying the day earlier than your freezer prep session. It’s not the top of the world if you happen to do it the day of, but it surely simply makes it simpler if you happen to get it carried out the day earlier than!

Save your vitality for prep day.

I extremely counsel you do two issues for this step.

#1 – Obtain the total buying listing I put collectively for you for this 12-meal freezer session.

I’ve included the buying listing, prep directions, the printable recipe playing cards, and a clean weekly meal plan within the packet so that you can obtain….and it’s all free!

#2 – Use grocery pick-up.

I’m a HUGE fan of Walmart grocery pick-up, particularly for a giant freezer session like this! It’s free, quick, reasonably priced, and really easy.

In the event you’re new to Walmart pick-up, you’ll be able to click on right here to get $10 off your first order!

2. Label Your Freezer Luggage

I’ve created printable labels that you’re welcome to tape onto your freezer baggage (utilizing packing tape).

Every printable label consists of:

• the prep directions (so you may make every recipe individually if you wish to decide & select)
• the substances & order to place issues into your freezer baggage
• the extra substances wanted on cooking day
• the variety of servings every recipe makes
• the prep/cook dinner time wanted on cooking day
• the cooking day directions

It’s also possible to simply use a sharpie and write the recipe identify on every bag!

I write the identify of the recipe and the quite simple/condensed cooking directions on every bag in everlasting marker.

Useful Hints To Make Meal Prep Simpler

I used to be 36 weeks pregnant once I did my freezer session, so I didn’t wish to spend too lengthy on my toes or exhaust myself.

Listed here are some tricks to preserve this freezer session low-key.

• Use pre-chopped produce. The produce prep on this session takes essentially the most vitality, so if you happen to’d like to chop down your workload, be happy to make use of pre-chopped butternut squash, candy potatoes, onions, and peppers. You possibly can even use frozen, pre-chopped veggies if you happen to’d like!
• Make your self a sitting station. This was essentially the most useful factor for me. I arrange a station at our kitchen desk with a knife, a reducing board, my chopper, a peeler, and the garbage can pulled proper subsequent to it so I might sit throughout the entire produce prep.

• Eat beforehand. I ate breakfast proper earlier than beginning in order that I wasn’t ravenous mid-way by means of meal prep.
• Drink water. I had my water bottle proper subsequent to me throughout the entire session and that helped so much!

Step 1 – Collect Your Provides

Fortuitously, you actually don’t want very a lot for this freezer session!

**If you’re a good friend or member of the family prepping these meals for a brand new mother, you don’t even want an Instantaneous Pot or a sluggish cooker your self. You don’t want them for the prep, only for the day-of cooking!

An enormous factor to contemplate is how a lot freezer area the brand new mother has.

• If she has ample freezer area, then you should utilize these spherical storage containers (you’ll be able to simply pop the meals straight out of those containers from the freezer into the Instantaneous Pot and cook dinner them from frozen).
• We didn’t have the freezer area for that, so I selected to freeze all of my meals in gallon-sized Ziploc baggage. That required us to partially thaw all of our baggage earlier than cooking, but it surely was value it to suit extra meals in our freezer. ***NOTE – Do NOT totally thaw the Instantaneous Pot meals together with potatoes or rice. The rice will disintegrate and the potatoes will brown. In the event you depart it principally frozen, simply thawing sufficient to pour it into your pot, it ought to work nice!

Other than the easy Sharpie you want for labeling the baggage, you actually solely want some fundamental kitchen provides – a skillet, spatula, a very good knife, a reducing board, and a can opener.

Provides You NEED

• 12 gallon-sized Ziplock baggage OR 9 spherical storage containers + 3 gallon-sized Ziplock baggage
• packing tape to affix printable labels to freezer baggage OR everlasting marker for labeling
• giant skillet & spatula for cooking floor meat (& I take advantage of a smaller skillet, as properly – 1 for floor turkey and 1 for floor beef)
• good knife for chopping veggies (I like Santoku knives like this)
• scissors for opening packages (lentils, rice, and so forth)
• giant reducing board
• can opener
• peeler

Optionally available Provides That Make Prep Work A Lot Simpler

I’m fairly frugal, so, though each of these items are fairly low-cost, I held off on shopping for these two issues for a very long time and now I majorly remorse it! I extremely suggest you get these, not only for this freezer session, however to make your cooking life simpler any more.

The bag holder is SO useful while you want each of your palms to raise, open, pour, and scoop issues and the vegetable chopper saves me SO a lot time and vitality in chopping greens!

Provides You Want On Cooking Day

Lay It All Out

I laid every little thing I wanted out on our kitchen desk.

From left to proper, I laid out:

• the labeled freezer baggage
• my prep provides
• produce (preserve the frozen inexperienced beans within the freezer!)
• meat (I stored this within the fridge whereas I prepped my produce after which introduced it out)
• packaged items
• canned items
• spices & condiments

Step 2 – Prep Your Produce

That is undoubtedly essentially the most tough step of the meal prep. There’s loads of chopping concerned (which is why I like to recommend the Vegetable Chopper so extremely…it will have taken me a lot longer if I hadn’t had it!).

It took me simply over an hour to prep the produce.

As you prep every ingredient, I like to recommend inserting them in/on separate bowls/Tupperware/plates for clean meeting.

So, right here is the total listing of produce you have to to prep for these 12 recipes.

• Wash crimson peppers, inexperienced peppers, zucchini, crimson potatoes, Yukon potatoes. & apple.
• Mince 1 Tbs recent ginger (or you’ll be able to choose to make use of 1 tsp floor ginger).
• Chop 5 crimson bell peppers (every pepper offers you ~1 cup chopped pepper).
• Cube 4 inexperienced bell pepper (every pepper offers you ~1 cup chopped pepper).
• Cube 10 medium onions (every onion offers you ~1 cup diced onion).
• Chop 1 medium zucchini.
• Chop 4-6 cups butternut squash (1 medium to giant squash).
• Chop 9 cups candy potato.
• Chop 4 cups crimson potatoes.
• Chop 4 cups Yukon gold potatoes (or one other 4 cups crimson potatoes).
• Chop 1 giant inexperienced apple

Step 3 – Prep Your Meat

This step took me a little bit over half an hour.

I like to recommend retaining the turkey meatballs within the freezer when you prep your meat. Take them out while you assemble that individual meal.

I get each skillets of meat browning and whereas they cook dinner, I slice the kielbasa and rooster.

• Brown 4 ½ lb floor turkey & 4 chopped onions (in a single giant skillet), drain, & cool.
• Brown 1 lb lean floor beef, 1 onion, & 1 Tbs minced garlic (in smaller skillet), drain, & cool.
• Slice 12 oz turkey kielbasa into half cash.
• Cube 1 lb rooster breast.
• Cube 1 ½ lbs boneless skinless rooster thighs.

Step 4 – Assemble Your Meals & Freeze

Now you get to place all of it collectively! That is undoubtedly the simplest step. It’s actually simply grabbing and pouring.

This step took me about an hour.

I like to recommend having measuring cups and spoons useful for this step to seize the suitable quantities of produce and spices.

That is the place I LOVE utilizing the Upright Freezer Bag Holder. I assemble one meal at a time, set the bag up, after which I’ve each palms free to open and drain cans, stroll away from the bag to get different substances, and preserve them stacked in the correct order with out having issues spill all over the place!

You’ll discover that for the Instantaneous Pot recipes, I’ve you assemble the substances backwards from the order listed within the recipe.

It is because you can be dumping the substances into your pot, so the substances we wish on the high of your Instantaneous Pot for cooking really must be on the backside of your freezer bag.

I additionally have you ever put the spices form of in the midst of the bag, as an alternative of on the high or backside in order that they don’t keep on with the bag.

When you’ve got the entire substances within the bag, attempt to squeeze out as a lot air as attainable, then lay it flat in your freezer (you’ll be able to rearrange them later, however I like to recommend freezing them flat!).

Freeze every bag instantly after assembling.

As you’ll be able to see in my image, I emptied the underside shelf of my freezer and obtained all 12 meals to suit there.

Layer Every Freezer Bag In This Order

#1 – Instantaneous Pot Turkey Sausage, Potatoes, & Inexperienced Beans

• 4 cups crimson potatoes
• 1 Tbs garlic & herb seasoning
• 24 frozen entire inexperienced beans
• 12 oz turkey kielbasa half-coins

#2 – Instantaneous Pot Unstuffed Turkey Cabbage Roll Bowl

• 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 (16 oz) bag coleslaw combine
• 1 cup raw long-grain rice
• 1 lb cooked floor turkey + 1 onion

#3 – Wholesome Instantaneous Pot Egg Roll Bowl

• 2 (16 oz) baggage of coleslaw combine
• 1 Tbs recent ginger
• 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1 1/2 lb floor turkey/onion

#4 – Instantaneous Pot Enchilada Quinoa

• 1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce
• 1 medium chopped zucchini
• 1 (4 oz) can inexperienced chiles, drained
• 1 chopped crimson bell pepper
• 1 (15 oz) can corn, drained
• 1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained
• 1 cup raw quinoa
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 chopped onion

#5 – Wholesome Instantaneous Pot Rooster Burrito Bowl

• 1 cup salsa
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 cup raw white rice
• 2 Tbs taco seasoning
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 diced inexperienced bell pepper
• 1 diced crimson bell pepper
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 lb diced rooster breast

#6 – Instantaneous Pot Turkey Chili Soup Recipe

• 1 (15oz) can kidney beans, drained
• 1 (15oz) can black beans, drained
• 1 (13.5oz) can fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp floor cumin
• 1 ½ Tbs chili powder
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 1 chopped crimson pepper
• 1 chopped inexperienced pepper
• 4 cups candy potato
• 1 lb cooked floor turkey + 1 onion

#7 – Instantaneous Pot Turkey Meatball Stroganoff

• 12 oz raw entire wheat egg noodles
• 36 frozen turkey meatballs
• 1 oz packet onion soup combine
• 1 Tbs Worcestershire

#8 – Instantaneous Pot American Goulash & Inexperienced Beans

• 1 (15oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 (28oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 diced inexperienced bell pepper
• 8 oz raw elbow macaroni
• 2 Tbs Italian seasoning
• 1 Tbs Worcestershire
• Cooked 1 lb floor beef/ 1 diced onion/1 Tbs garlic

#9 – Instantaneous Pot Lentil Curry With Potatoes & Zucchini

• 1 can (14.5oz) petite diced tomatoes
• 1 can coconut milk
• 4 cups diced Yukon gold potatoes
• ¼-½ tsp cayenne (relying in your spice desire)
• 1 tsp salt
• ¼ tsp coriander
• ½ tsp cumin
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp floor ginger
• 1 Tbs curry powder
• 1 Tbs minced garlic
• 1 ½ cups inexperienced lentils
• 1 diced onion

#10 – Sluggish Cooker Curry Butternut Squash Soup Recipe

• 1 chopped giant onion
• 4-6 cups diced butternut squash
• 1 Tbs dried basil
• 1 Tbs curry powder
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 cups diced candy potatoes
• 1 giant chopped inexperienced apple
• 2 tsp minced garlic

#11 – Sluggish Cooker Turkey Sloppy Joes Recipe

• 1 lb cooked floor turkey + 1 onion
• 1 chopped inexperienced pepper
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp cumin
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup ketchup
• ¼ cup bbq sauce

#12 – Sluggish Cooker Rooster Curry & Greens

• 1 onion
• 2 diced bell peppers
• 1 ½ lbs boneless skinless rooster thighs
• 2 cups candy potatoes
• 1 Tbs minced garlic
• 3 Tbs curry powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 (13.5oz) can coconut milk

Step 5 – Thaw & Serve!

I like to recommend shifting your sluggish cooker meals from the freezer to the fridge 2-3 days forward of time in order that they’ll thaw earlier than cooking.

I like to recommend taking your Instantaneous Pot meals out of the freezer a day forward of time and shifting them to your fridge. It will depend on the temperature of your fridge, however that’s about how lengthy it takes my meals to thaw simply sufficient to have the ability to pour them into my pot.

***Reminder – Do NOT totally thaw the Instantaneous Pot meals together with potatoes or rice. The rice will disintegrate and the potatoes will brown. In the event you depart it principally frozen, simply thawing sufficient to pour it into your pot, it ought to work nice!

***The Instantaneous Pot Turkey Sausage, Potatoes, & Inexperienced Beans Recipe is the one meal I don’t suggest thawing in any respect forward of time. Your substances shouldn’t stick collectively if you happen to freeze it shortly after assembling and if you happen to thaw it first, your inexperienced beans will overcook.

For the sluggish cooker meals, all meals must be thawed forward of time. I thawed my Instantaneous Pot meals simply sufficient for me to get them out of the bag and into the pot.

As I discussed earlier, with the Instantaneous Pot meals, you can cook dinner them straight from frozen so long as your frozen block of meals can match into your pot (and you continue to have to have a minimum of 1 cup of liquid to your pot to come back to stress).

You don’t want to regulate your cooking time if you’re cooking from frozen, however know that it’ll take longer to your pot to come back to stress (about 25 minutes is regular for my frozen meals).

Additionally, if you happen to neglect to tug your meals out forward of time (like me – oops!), I’ve discovered inserting the frozen bag in some water for some time thaws it pretty shortly (I take advantage of my sink for this).

Be sure that to obtain your packet for the entire day-of cooking instructions, in addition to any further objects wanted on cooking day.

Extra Useful Hints for This Freezer Session

Really helpful Serving Calendar:

I deliberate for these 12 meals to final us a month. I plan on cooking 3 meals from this plan every week after the infant is born.

We can even have a frozen pizza evening, one household dinner evening, and 1-2 leftover nights each week (we’ll in all probability fill in with one other meal out when we have to).

For The Rooster & Beef Broth:

You should use do-it-yourself broth, store-bought broth, OR you should utilize water and add Higher Than Bouillon (it provides such superb taste!). I take advantage of a mix of the three, relying on what I’ve on-hand on the time!

Aspect Dishes For These Meals:

Most of those meals had been created with the intention of being one-pot meals, which means no facet dishes are vital!

I’d encourage you to look over the listing of meals and add facet dishes the place you’d like (I nearly at all times serve frozen candy potato tots and a bag of frozen greens with the sloppy joes!).

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