Budget Friendly Tips!!
Apr. 26, 2009 3:05 pm
Updated: Jul. 7, 2009 5:14 pm
Eying up that bag of pre-cooked grilled chicken strips? Wanting more convenience with onions? Love that cookie recipe, but can't make 2 dozen cookies just for you? What does all of this have in common? Why your freezer of course! And taking some time to do some prep work.
Your local grocery store is having a BOGO (buy one get one [free/half-off/etc] sale), but you can't possibly see why you should pay that much money (let's face it, they do up the price a bit) when you can easily buy those chicken patties, chicken tenders, or better yet pre-cooked grilled chicken strips or chunks. Well how about setting aside a few hours or less to make your own pre-cooked stuff. Take that whole extra bag of chicken, thaw it, and make strips, chunks, ground chicken patties, cook them up, cool them off, then freeze. TADA! Instant pre-cooked chicken products, and since there are no fillers, no disclaimers that it has soy or wheat products in it, you know it's better for you and there is no risk of having food allergy reactions.
Don't see how this could benefit you? You don't ever want to do a quikie stir-fry? Or grab one of those new single rice cups and some flash frozen veggies, but lack a meat because you didn't thaw it and don't want to take the time too cook it when everything else can be nuked? Then I am amazed at how un-normal you are!
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I've bought the the frozen diced onions, hoping for convience, but found that they lack highly in the flavor dept. They taste more like funny frozen water chunks to me. And everyone knows what onions they prefer, here in the south it's the Vidallia, but the growing season is short. So go ahead and buy that 5lb bag of onions, grab some GOOD freezer bags, and slice, dice, mince, and chop your way into convience with your cooking. Sliced onions are great for stir-fries, diced onions are great for everyday flavor. One of the best tricks is to use those old ice cube trays your holding onto, put some minced or even ground onion in it, put just enough water (or broth) to make sure it will stick together, freeze, and when winter rolls around, and you need small amounts of onion for soups, sauces, or light flavor things, just pop one of those in to what your cooking, no hassle.
The best thing about any of these ideas. You know how fresh they are, because you remembered to put the date that they were chopped on the baggie...right? So, your not thinking in the back of your mind "so how long can this stuff really last in the freezer when they freeze it anyways?"
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Love a cookie recipe, but can't possibly make, bake, and eat 2 dozen? Yeah, I wish I could too, but reality sets in, and you just can't. So make it, prep it into the balls, then freeze them on wax paper for about an hour (til they aren't tacky anymore and can't stick together), throw them into a plastic bag with the date on it, then just take and bake as you want them. I have found that when they go from the freezer to oven the cooking time lowers, so you may want to check about 5 mins earlier than you normally would. Cookies when you want, so no more of the expensive refridgerated cookie dough (as good as it is), and yours taste 3x as good anyways.
**Most cookie dough only lasts about 3 months in the freezer. So putting the date on the bag is important**
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Butter on sale? Put it in the freezer if you go through it like a crazy man (like our house does). It last's about 3-4 months in the freezer if wrapped tightly to keep the freezer funk out. Freeze leftover spagehetti and meatballs in a container that can go from freezer to microwave in an instant, but before you put it in, put about a tablespoon of water in there. It helps thin things out a little bit so the noodles don't remain stuck together (even if you did mix them up with the sauce first).
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Just some ideas that I use to share with those of you who are looking for a few ways to save a buck and add some flavor. Do I do this all the time? I wish.
When your in the grocery store, and your tired, hungry, and all you want is to go home...of course your going to buy those chicken strips for that salad you said you would eat tomorrow, but in the end you realize they taste a heck of a lot better warmed up in some oil and added to that mac-n-cheese you bought, and your going to buy that roll of cookie dough because you have no intention of actually baking it, it's going to be your desert. And that one and only onion is going to end up in your cart because there is no way 5lbs are going to be gone through quickly because you forget you have it preped in your freezer.
Your only human, at least you THOUGHT it was a good idea... =P
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