To think batch cooking is awful

[Newyear2025]

It takes forever to do and everything comes out tasting of freezer.

I don't batch cook per se but if I'm making something I know will freeze week I do make extra. Usually it tastes way better second time after having cooled/marinated and then been reheated.

Maybe you're cooking things that don't suit being frozen? Or maybe your freezer is a bit rubbish?

I live on my own so think batch cooking is great
Nothing tastes of freezer

I make spaghetti Bol , cottage pie , veggie lasagna , chilli , fish pie and curry mostly , I also batch cook and freeze jacket spuds

It's a lottery what I take out the freezer , never know what I'm getting but will definitely carry on in 2025

@MyrtlethePurpleTurtle same, if I’ve had something I might not want it again in the next month.

*freeze well

i understand 'tasting of freezer'. Some ice cream tubs that don't have efficient resealable lids end up tasting like that.

I batch cook a lot, especially atm as I'm going away for a few weeks soon and want to leave lots of choices for DH while I'm gone. Nothing ends up tasting of freezer because I have a huge collection of lock and lock tubs that are 100% airtight so the freezer air can't taint the food. You need to invest in some OP. Ziplock bags are also very good.

We use good quality thick plastic ones from dunelm. We used some cheap thin plastic ones once and did get more freezer burn. We freeze things that have a decent amount of sauce so home made pasta sauces, curry's, stews etc. No full meals as find they don't defrost aswell we find.

Splendud, yes, Peppers! They do not work for me frozen.

This made me laugh. Reminds me of the Kitchen nightmares - of fresh frozen.

Yes. I double wrap everything for the freezer, or it does get that taste.

Is it possible to cook whole meals ready for the freezer? Say Pasta with sauce or curry and quinoa? I basically want to make my own frozen ready meals.

I batch cook loads of things as there's only two of us - if anything I think casseroles/curries taste better after freezing! I'm not sure what you mean by "tastes of freezer".

You see on here women devoting full Saturdays or Sundays to batch cooking so there are meals for the week quickly available on busy weeknights. I mean, on those kind of evenings what’s wrong with beans on toast or something like that?!

I make meatballs to freeze, cook them in the oven then freeze, and then just fry quickly before eating. I made about 100 the other day.

This is what I do too rather than a day batch cooking.

I always do big pots of chilli or bolagnase. Then job done for a few days. I don't mind eating same food on repeat though. Just add different veggies and carbs

Some foods don’t freeze and reheat well, those are poor choices for batch cooking. But for stuff like stews, bolognaise sauce, chilli, some curries etc they work well.

I don’t do the set batch cook days, but i realised making spaghetti bolognaise that could serve 8 people took only a minute more than making one that served 4. (Just chopping more veg). As such, making double, then freezing the extra 4 portions of sauce (ideally in 2 portions for 2) means at some point, I could come in from work and just cook up pasta and throw the frozen sauce in the microwave and have dinner on the table in a short time with me free to do something else while the pasta is cooking.

Could you share a recipe please, if you have one, using those ingredients?

I found the biggest issues were I would defrost things only to find my H suddenly 'didn't fancy that' - I used to waste quite a bit when I used to do it-

I know what 'freezer' tastes like, but I only get this when my husband does the freezing because he doesn't prepare things properly.

Also, I don't freeze whole dishes (e.g lasagne). I freeze components. E.g for lasagna: sauce, cheese sauce, even cheese toppings - all separate. So it defrosts fast. I then assemble and cook.

I think soup, pastasauce or curry is fine to put in the freezer. But I like my food crisp and crunchy and it often looses the bite after freezing and reheating.
We do cook for 2 days ahead and then keep it cool in the fridge, not the freezer. Like a roast or a lasagna, i always cook double portions and eat the rest 2 days later.

I do often cheat to speed up meal prep though, for example the Waitrose Soffritto mix

I use Pyrex glass dishes with tightly fitting silicone lids. They stack well

you're clearly doing something wrong then - maybe storing it incorrectly in the freezer? What do you use?

We (DH not me) batch cook. He's a chef so that's a no brainer for us. And everything tastes fantastic. Not of "freezer" for sure (whatever that tastes like)

First everything is cooked, then it is frozen in batches in Tupperware * containers, then when frozen we take the frozen bricks out of the box and vacuum pack it. (get good quality vacuum bags/supplies). Pies and things are frozen then put in boxes layered with greaseproof paper.

Then the reheating is key, do that properly.

*other types of storage box are available

Made a carrot and coconut soup last month. Took some out of the freezer yesterday to heat. Tasted better than when I made it the first time. No freezer taste. Must be your food or the way you heat it.

Curries, chillies and stews made with pulses freeze really well. Slow cooked tomato based sauces also freeze well with no loss of texture.

Veg with high water content like cauliflower can go mushy and lose texture so I don’t bother freezing them.

I usually have two or three different dhals in the freezer as an instant side dish for a curry.

Ramja is great as a frozen batch cooked meal - I tend to do a full bag of kidney beans at once and portion it up. Soaking and cooking the beans is the bit that takes longest, and that’s the same if it’s one portion or 20.