By making big-batch and make-ahead freezer meals, you can help your loved one have healthy, tasty, and convenient food ready for weeks to come!
By making meals ahead of time and storing in single serve size containers, your loved one will be excited by their food options, likelier to eat what you have prepared and less likely to skip meals or opt for those unhealthy snacks. There are many ways to cook in large quantities, and it can seem like a time-consuming task at first, but once you get the hang of it – it will mean more variety and a smarter stocked fridge for your loved one.
There are 5 Major Steps to preparing make-ahead meals:
1) Choose A Recipe
First, talk to your loved one about their favourite foods. Maybe they love Shepherd’s pie, or quiche? Start exploring recipes with your loved one to get an idea of their preferences.
Pinterest is a great place to start for collecting recipe ideas, or you could check out Yummly for
personalized recipe recommendations.
As we age there are a variety of factors which can make eating more difficult, so don’t forget to consider issues like trouble chewing or swallowing so that you can modify your recipe search.
After you have a good idea of WHAT your loved one likes to eat, then try to find a similar but healthier version of the recipe online. There are so many healthy alternatives to our favourite recipes that contain less fat, sugar & calories. EatingWell and Minimalist Baker have a large variety of recipes to suit nearly any taste!
2) Modify The Recipe & Grocery Shop
Once you have an idea of what your making, the next step is looking at the serving size. Recipe serving sizes vary, so depending on the recipe you will likely have to scale it up to make enough for multiple meals.
A simple way to figure out correct measurements when scaling up a recipe is to multiply all the ingredients in the recipe by 2, 3 or 4 depending on how many servings you are trying to make with the recipe. I use this awesome recipe calculator, to help me easily divide, multiply and adapt any recipe with a single click. Make sure to SAVE this handy calculator so you have quick access to it for your next meal. When cooking in batches, aim to make 10-15 servings and adjust your recipe accordingly.
Remember, when modifying a recipe, the size of cooking dish/pan will also change. Sometimes doubling the pan size will do the trick, other times it will take practice to figure out the perfect dish size for your modified recipe. Just try your best, you can always pour the extras or leftovers into a smaller dish to cook alongside.
Now that you have an idea of what you’re making and how much - make your grocery list and get to the grocery store. If you can, take your loved one with you – even grocery shopping can be a fun outing!
Grocery Shopping Tip: Looking for a great “senior friendly” grocery list? Try this “All Out Of” fridge magnet, which has items listed – helping your loved one remember or recognize what types of groceries they may need/want in the house each week.
3) Cook & Let Cool
Now that you have all of the ingredients you need, let the cooking begin!
There are a few cooking hacks that you can do to make batch cooking more time efficient and enjoyable. The first, is to “cheat the chop” - use a food processor or mini chopper when a recipe calls for something like 6 cups of onions or 4 heads of garlic!
The second, is to slightly under-cook your vegetables. This saves a little bit of time and ensures that when your loved one heats up the meal the second time – the vegetables won’t be mushy!
The third cooking hack is to add spices moderately, tasting as you go when possible. Try not to over-season, adjusting seasoning once the meal is thawed and reheated is best practice. If you want to add more spices to a dish — “bloom” them first. To bloom, heat a small amount of oil in a fry pan, add your spices and cook just until fragrant — then add to your meal. This brings out the flavour of the spices and avoids the raw texture that spices can have.
4) Store In Single-Serve Containers & Let Cool
Now that you have all your cooking done, it’s time to let things cool.
Large batch recipes will take longer to cool, so I would suggest dividing the food among small, shallow single-serve containers to increase the surface area and speed up the rate of heat loss. To prevent bacterial growth, seal and pop the containers into the fridge or freezer as soon as the steam stops rising from the top.
5) Storing Options & Inventory
You could store the entire batch in a single container, BUT unless your loved one is having a party anytime soon, it’s pretty impractical!
My BIGGEST suggestion is to store food in SINGLE-SERVE containers for optimal convenience (protein, veg and carbohydrate)! Stored this way, your loved one can pull a meal of their choice from the fridge or freezer, heat and enjoy. No leftovers, minimal cleanup, and a chance to eat different things from meal to meal!
But if you would rather store things separately; consider the muffin tin method! Muffin tins tend to be the perfect portion size for older people and are great for sides such as mashed potatoes. Spoon the side of your choice into a muffin tin, place the tray on a level surface in the freezer and let things solidify for a few hours (even overnight if needed). Once solidified, remove muffin tray from freezer and store your perfectly sized portions in individual containers or Ziploc bags.
For baked goods, the best approach is to cut them into normal sized servings (unless they’re already single-sized portions), and then throw them into a glass container or large Ziploc bags (doubled for best protection) Just remember, the more layers between the food and the cold, the safer it will be from freezer burn.
To make sure your loved one knows what options they have and what is safe to eat; follow the “first in, first out” inventory method. Label each container with its contents and the date it was made. Make a running list of the meals you have made, where they are stored and tape it to the outside of your refrigerator. Have your loved one eat the oldest things first, and then rotate their stash to keep older things at the front, and newer items at the back.
Remember, no matter how you choose to store your batch meals – don’t forget to label everything with; WHAT the food item is, WHEN it was made, HOW long it’s good for & HOW to prepare it (thaw, microwave, oven?) – that way your loved one can feel confident that what they are eating is safe and fresh! While make-ahead/ batch meals require some cooling and defrosting, it’s important that foods always stay within a safe range of temperatures. Food-borne illness can be life-threatening for seniors. Educating yourself and your loved one on ways to prevent contamination and spoilage can make a massive difference!
Preparing food for your loved one may seem overwhelming or like too much of a hassle, but DON’T KNOCK IT UNTIL YOU TRY IT! Next time you have a free afternoon, start with a simple batch friendly recipe (like Bon Appetit’s 97 Big-Batch Recipes) and see what you can do!