What you Need to Know about Freezing Entrees and Casseroles

Just one word about choosing containers. If using foil, be sure to get the ones with tops. If you can’t, cover them with foil wrap and seal it by running a DAMP cloth around the edges. I take the extra precaution  of putting the package in a plastic bag and sealing it with a twist tie. If using plastic, buy the containers labeled for the purpose, sold in packs. The reason these are one to two portion size is because smaller amounts freeze, and heat, more evenly. If you need a larger container, make sure the bottom has a number 5 on it, indicating it’s polypropylene, the only plastic considered safe for this use. Better still if it’s stamped with a rectangle with wavy lines, a snowflake and two circles, indicating safe for the microwave, freezer and dishwasher.

The main asset of a Professional Chef Service  is being able to provide a client with a month, or more, of frozen dinners. In  fact, many of the recipes in my book, Dinners With Joy, are given this option, but there are some guidelines to follow in preparing them.

• Entrees with sauces freeze best; au jus, or purees like tomato and pesto. The liquid keeps the contents moist. Thickened gravies when over cooked become watery, so it’s best to only cook recipes with them to partial thickness originally, or reheat them on the stove and add a bit more thickening. Leftover gravy can be frozen separately but will need the same help.
• Recipes cooked with the intention of freezing should follow the same rule. Under cook them then add the time deducted to the 15mins. required for reheating, if the dish is not thawed. Usually that’s enough.
• Raw fats like chicken, including meat drippings, can go rancid in the freezer, Even processed fats like butter, margarine and oils tend to separate. So skim broths and thicken gravies with slurry not roux, then smooth them with a pat of butter as you reheat. If t here is separation, try stirring to re-incorporate. Also, in recipes not designed for the freezer, be sparing  with mayonnaise and salad dressings in dishes calling for them.. Use as little as possible, and add the balance as the dish thaws or reheats. Sour cream should always be added just before serving. It doesn’t freeze well and curdles when heated longer then a few minutes.
• The flavor of cloves, garlic, peppers, even pimento, hot sauce and celery become stronger with freezing. Onions(correctable with onion powder) and chili powder weaken. Ground pepper, oddly, is tamed with cooling, but becomes stronger with freezing. Imitation vanilla, depending on brand, can turn nasty and ruin a whole dish.
• Some foods can’t be frozen. Raw apples, bananas and cooked or fresh pineapple should be added to a dish before serving. Cream cheese and ricotta become crumbly, but dips made with them do well. Cottage Cheese doesn’t freeze period. Some foods, which can be commercially flash frozen, don’t do well at home. White potatoes, turnips, the Fall squashes, all of which freeze well mashed, and my personal peeve, eggplant, become watery. My solution is to omit them in the recipe, or remove them from the leftovers before packaging. then parboil and add fresh as I reheat, the eggplant I just add.  I often use canned potatoes to add to stew-like dishes, but for roasts needing browned ones, I first microwave raw ones about 3mins, cut them length wise, rub the splits with butter and broil them to golden, before adding.
• Casseroles are the stars of freezing but they may become  dry and need a bit of water, milk or broth before reheating. Any toppings, crumbs, cheese etc. should be added just before reheating, not before freezing. Above all, if you’re preparing for an event, resist the temptation to freeze in the serving dish, unless it’s appropriate for that use. Instead, freeze the food  in a large container and put it into the serving dish when it’s thawed. Glass and ceramic become very brittle when frozen and unless they are totally at room temperature when put into a hot oven they can blow apart creating an awful mess. I’ve been there and know!!
• The general rule for reheating frozen entrees is in a preheated  350degree oven for 15 mins. plus the time deducted from the amount required by the recipe, or until golden and/or bubbly. Thawed recipes don’t need the extra 15mins. Of course ovens vary, plans change, and perhaps a dish has thawed a bit. You will have to know your equipment and learn to trust your judgment, but it’s not hard. If reheating in the microwave, I give a one to two portion container 2mins at half power to thaw and then heat full power at 1min. Intervals, turning each time, until ready.

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Knowing how to freeze gives you freedom. You can prepare ahead for a party, consume leftovers at your pace, take advantage of the sales, especially of larger cuts of meat that seemed excessive, and, if you’re cooking for a small number, put those dishes you like, but avoided because of size, such as pot roast, back into your menu. Let me give you two examples:

Spinach-Mushroom Stuffed Pork Loin Roast  (Serves 6)

4lbs. Boneless, center pork loin roast -well trimmed of fat
(2)10 oz. Packs frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
(1) 4oz. Can stems and pieces mushrooms drained
½ cup Chopped onions
¼  tsp. Garlic powder
2 Tbs. Brandy
1 tsp. Olive oil
Cooking spray
Salt and pepper to taste
Cooking twine (or string)
1 Tbs. Butter

In a skillet, over medium heat, saute the onions in the butter for 3-4 mins, Add the mushrooms and brandy and stir for 30secs. Remove from heat to a bowl. Mix the spinach, oil and garlic with the onions and mushrooms. Butterfly the roast by slicing, lengthwise, almost through. Open the roast and slice each half the same way, then open flat. Cover the meat with plastic wrap and flatten to almost even thickness with a mallet or rolling pin. Spread spinach mixture to within ½ inch of the edges. Starting at the short end, roll the meat jelly-roll fashion. Secure at 2inch intervals with twine. Place seam side down in a cooking spray coated roasting pan. Cover and chill several hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 500degrees. Bake 35mins. per pound or until a meat thermometer registers 160degrees. Serve hot with Onion-Wine Sauce or chilled.

Onion-Wine Sauce: This is so simple. In a sauce pan, saute 1 cup chopped onion in 2 Tbs. oil for 3mins. Or until soft. Add 1 1/2 cups red wine to the pan and simmer to reduce to 1 cup. Serves 4.

Slice excess roast into desired portions and freeze with sauce. Lasts 3 months.

Southwestern Pot Roast  (Serves 6)

2 tsp Salt
½ tsp Black pepper
¼ tsp Paprika
½ tsp Garlic powder
3 lbs. Round roast-top or bottom
2Tbs. Butter
2 Tbs. Canola oil
1 cup Beef broth + more if needed
½ cup Chopped onions
½ cup Chili sauce

Mix the salt, pepper, garlic, and paprika. Rub the roast, cover and chill overnight.

In a Dutch oven, brown the meat slowly, first in the butter then adding the oil as needed. Add the onions and broth, cover and simmer 1 ½ hrs. adding more broth if needed. Add chili sauce and cook 30 mins.

Cool then chill. Divide into containers and freeze for up to 3 months

To reheat: Thaw in microwave and simmer on stove top until tender about 1 hr.

Two recipes from Blog #1, about using leftovers, also freeze well, the Beef Casserole and the Hot Chicken Salad, which is a really great party dish.(to substitute fresh chicken, allow 1 breast per person, or 3 whole breasts with bones. Thighs  can be used too.)  Remember to add the potatoes to the beef and the toppings to the chicken just before reheating.

Next–”Freezing More Than Just Entrees”