How to Do Once a Month Cooking
Make a menu., Avoid foods that don't freeze well., Keep in mind how some foods respond to freezing., Schedule an entire day (or two half days, back to back) to devote entirely to cooking., Make a grocery list and go shopping using the recipes...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Make a menu.
Collect recipes from various sources.
Read several once-a-month type cookbooks for ideas.
Choose recipes that are "hits" in your household, and that you have cooked successfully before.
When you are making large batches, you don't want to experiment with new recipes.
Assuming you are only making dinners, you don't need to cook thirty different dishes.
You can cook several batches of the household favorites like pizza (up to four, if you like a particular dish enough to have it once a week).
Think of some "master recipes" that can be adapted to several different dishes.
Take a large amount of cheap, normally tough meat, for example, and put it in a slow cooker until it's tender, then shred it and use it in hot sandwiches, enchiladas, etc.
What you decide to cook will also depend on what you found on sale.
Many once-a-month cooks base their "menu" around which meats they found for a good price.
Soups, stews and casseroles are the easiest to cook ahead of time, but make sure you don't go overboard on these.
Keep the dishes varied.
Make a big batch of empanadas and/or wontons.
Make a pot of tomato sauce with meat in it (or pesto), cook some pasta, and freeze both (stored separately). -
Step 2: Avoid foods that don't freeze well.
That includes:
Sour Cream (becomes thin/watery) Mayonnaise (separates, but is fine if mixed into a recipe) Cream Cheese (becomes watery and texture changes) Cheese (crumbles, but is fine for shredding or in recipes) Fried Foods (lose crispness or become soggy) Egg Whites- cooked (become tough & rubbery) Cream Pies (become watery or lumpy) Cream Fillings (texture changes) Frostings (texture changes) Icings made with egg whites (become foamy) Potatoes don't taste good after being frozen, whether in soup, stew, or casserole., Raw Vegetables (lose crispness, but if prepared correctly can be used for cooking or stews & soups.
Yogurt (may change texture) Heavy Cream (will not whip when thawed but can be used for cooking) Pastas & Grains (softer after freezing/reheating- undercook before freezing to counter-balance) Seasonings, onions, green peppers, herbs and flavorings (flavor may increase or diminish with freezing.
Add afterwards when possible) Thickened sauces or stews (may need thinning after thawing) Gravies or Fat-based sauces (may separate and need to be recombined) Don't thicken stews until you're ready to eat them.
Liquids with cornstarch or flour added can separate after freezing and the texture is not quite right.
Thicken after thawing..Soups.
Freeze the components of soup separately (broth, chicken, blanched onions, celery, and carrots) rather than freezing the assembled soup.
Put the ingredients together when preparing the meal., Let everyone know that your sole focus for that day is cooking--not errands, playing, walking the dog, etc.
Be prepared to order pizza or go out to dinner, as quantity cooking can be tiring. , Look at all your ingredients lists and consolidate them so you know exactly how much of each ingredient you will need.
Shop the day before the cooking session.
Gather flyers from your local grocery stores and supermarkets to see what is on sale.
Visit any wholesale clubs in your area; you can get deep discounts if you buy in bulk, especially when buying meat.
You can also save money at farmers' markets.
Don't forget to stock up on storage containers and supplies (sealable bags, plastic containers, aluminum foil, plastic wrap). , You may also want to do some of the minor food preparation.
A good example would be to chop onions using a food processor and then refrigerating the chopped onions for later use.
Print and tape the recipes to the cupboard doors for ease of reading while cooking. , Think of your kitchen as an assembly line.
Efficiency is key.
Start crock-pot recipes and preparing whole chickens first.
Do common kitchen tasks all at once.
For example, if several of your dishes will require ground beef, cook it all at once.
Blanch vegetables before you freeze them to preserve color, flavor, and texture. , Always seal, label and date the prepared meals.
It's no fun playing the guessing game when finding the mysterious freezer dinner.
Freezer bags
- Remove as much air as possible.
A vacuum sealer is highly recommended.
Soups and stews can be poured into freezer bags, sealed, and stacked flat; once they freeze, you can store them vertically like books on a shelf.
Use aluminum pans or line cake pans or casserole dishes with heavy aluminum foil so the food can be removed from once it's frozen; later, you can put it back inside that pan or dish for thawing and serving. -
Step 3: Keep in mind how some foods respond to freezing.
-
Step 4: Schedule an entire day (or two half days
-
Step 5: back to back) to devote entirely to cooking.
-
Step 6: Make a grocery list and go shopping using the recipes selected.
-
Step 7: Set out all the cooking utensils and pans the night before in preparation for the tomorrow's cook-a-thon.
-
Step 8: Follow the cooking and freezing directions for each recipe.
-
Step 9: Freeze the meals.
Detailed Guide
Collect recipes from various sources.
Read several once-a-month type cookbooks for ideas.
Choose recipes that are "hits" in your household, and that you have cooked successfully before.
When you are making large batches, you don't want to experiment with new recipes.
Assuming you are only making dinners, you don't need to cook thirty different dishes.
You can cook several batches of the household favorites like pizza (up to four, if you like a particular dish enough to have it once a week).
Think of some "master recipes" that can be adapted to several different dishes.
Take a large amount of cheap, normally tough meat, for example, and put it in a slow cooker until it's tender, then shred it and use it in hot sandwiches, enchiladas, etc.
What you decide to cook will also depend on what you found on sale.
Many once-a-month cooks base their "menu" around which meats they found for a good price.
Soups, stews and casseroles are the easiest to cook ahead of time, but make sure you don't go overboard on these.
Keep the dishes varied.
Make a big batch of empanadas and/or wontons.
Make a pot of tomato sauce with meat in it (or pesto), cook some pasta, and freeze both (stored separately).
That includes:
Sour Cream (becomes thin/watery) Mayonnaise (separates, but is fine if mixed into a recipe) Cream Cheese (becomes watery and texture changes) Cheese (crumbles, but is fine for shredding or in recipes) Fried Foods (lose crispness or become soggy) Egg Whites- cooked (become tough & rubbery) Cream Pies (become watery or lumpy) Cream Fillings (texture changes) Frostings (texture changes) Icings made with egg whites (become foamy) Potatoes don't taste good after being frozen, whether in soup, stew, or casserole., Raw Vegetables (lose crispness, but if prepared correctly can be used for cooking or stews & soups.
Yogurt (may change texture) Heavy Cream (will not whip when thawed but can be used for cooking) Pastas & Grains (softer after freezing/reheating- undercook before freezing to counter-balance) Seasonings, onions, green peppers, herbs and flavorings (flavor may increase or diminish with freezing.
Add afterwards when possible) Thickened sauces or stews (may need thinning after thawing) Gravies or Fat-based sauces (may separate and need to be recombined) Don't thicken stews until you're ready to eat them.
Liquids with cornstarch or flour added can separate after freezing and the texture is not quite right.
Thicken after thawing..Soups.
Freeze the components of soup separately (broth, chicken, blanched onions, celery, and carrots) rather than freezing the assembled soup.
Put the ingredients together when preparing the meal., Let everyone know that your sole focus for that day is cooking--not errands, playing, walking the dog, etc.
Be prepared to order pizza or go out to dinner, as quantity cooking can be tiring. , Look at all your ingredients lists and consolidate them so you know exactly how much of each ingredient you will need.
Shop the day before the cooking session.
Gather flyers from your local grocery stores and supermarkets to see what is on sale.
Visit any wholesale clubs in your area; you can get deep discounts if you buy in bulk, especially when buying meat.
You can also save money at farmers' markets.
Don't forget to stock up on storage containers and supplies (sealable bags, plastic containers, aluminum foil, plastic wrap). , You may also want to do some of the minor food preparation.
A good example would be to chop onions using a food processor and then refrigerating the chopped onions for later use.
Print and tape the recipes to the cupboard doors for ease of reading while cooking. , Think of your kitchen as an assembly line.
Efficiency is key.
Start crock-pot recipes and preparing whole chickens first.
Do common kitchen tasks all at once.
For example, if several of your dishes will require ground beef, cook it all at once.
Blanch vegetables before you freeze them to preserve color, flavor, and texture. , Always seal, label and date the prepared meals.
It's no fun playing the guessing game when finding the mysterious freezer dinner.
Freezer bags
- Remove as much air as possible.
A vacuum sealer is highly recommended.
Soups and stews can be poured into freezer bags, sealed, and stacked flat; once they freeze, you can store them vertically like books on a shelf.
Use aluminum pans or line cake pans or casserole dishes with heavy aluminum foil so the food can be removed from once it's frozen; later, you can put it back inside that pan or dish for thawing and serving.
About the Author
Anna Allen
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow pet care tutorials.
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