Freezer Grab bags: My new favourite Midweek Meal Hack

I'm going to say it right now ... .I hate the name “dump bag”, There I've said it!

But whatever we choose to call them, the idea behind them is actually brilliant.  Today Lilly and I made 11 grab bag meals , Grab back pancakes, and scones, Making our midweek meals so much easier

The best bit I haven't gone out and bought loads of new ingredients, I've used up the vegetables in the fridge that were looking a little sad, the vegetables in the freezer and ingredients i had in the cupboard.  It's a good way to have a good sort out of the cupboards,  fridges and freezer. 

A freezer reset at the same time 

Today's job started  with a good old fashion fridge and freeze we deep clean and organise

You know that moment when you find three used bags of the same frozen vegetable hiding behind something else you bought and totally forgot.  Yep…that was me.

Rather than simply putting everything back I decided to turn most of it into grab bags. It's a great way to use up food before it gets forgotten, while also making the freezer work for you

What is a grab bag?

Quite simply it's a bag containing the ingredients to make a meal, all chopped and prepared in advance, portioned, bagged , labelled and placed in the freezer for when needed. 

The label includes 

• What the meal is
• Anything that needs adding (I had the stock cube but water I add later)
• Cooking instruction 
• Whether it's for a slow cooker, oven or quick meal
• What to serve with it

So there is no more stressing when tired that I need to get a meal together with the chorus of “whats for dinner mum”

My new evening routine

Each evening I simply  grab a bag from the freezer, pop in the fridge to defrost, the next day whether it is in the morning in the slow cooker or in the evening follow the instructions. 

It saves time

The chopping, peeling, preparation is  all done

When tired and hungry midweek, it's a massive win. 

It saves money

I'm making meals from food I've already bought rather than relying on expensive last minute convenience food or takeaway. 

It makes meal planning easier

Instead of deciding every evening what we're going to eat. I've already made the decisions

Future me is going to be very grateful to today's me. 

It makes the freeze easier to manage

Everything is labelled and organised, so I can actually see what we have rather than playing freezer Tetris every time I need something.

Keep Note of meals you have

I have a list of all the meals in the freezer on our weekly meal plan so I know what's still available, I rub them out when I take the bag out of the freezer, this makes the weekly meal plan a breeze.

Then when I plan the weeks menu I can work out the days where I don't have much time to make dinners, late night, Cubs and brownies night and that means when we come home dinner if in slow cooker is done and I don't have to do a thing and there is  nothing better to coming home to the smell of good food cooking

And that something I can really get behind 

The 11 Meals we made today include:

• Keema Curry
• Honey Garlic Tofu (Dandelion Honey)
• Sticky Asian Tofu
• Hungarian Goulash
• 5 Space Tofu
• Mexican Tray Bake
• Vegetable stew with Dumplings
• Tomato Chorizo Pasta
• Katsu Curry 
• Meatball Curry
• Creamy Mushroom Pie