Let's get this challenge started!
It's our very first set of recipes & shopping list for the Fall Freezer Meal Prep Challenge! This week we are not actually cooking anything (except for the rice for our stuffed peppers), but we are assembling our meals to freeze.
Tips for a successful meal prep
- get your rice cooking ASAP as it needs to be cooked & cooled before we stuff the peppers
- assemble all your ingredients
- get out all your bags or containers and label them
- batch prep everything: chop all your veggies and prep your chicken (chopping, trimming fat etc) all at once
- portion out ingredients one recipe at a time
Feeling overwhelmed?
GET YOUR PRINTABLE PREP LIST HERE and check off each number as you go through it!
I'll be sharing a video showing you exactly how to prep these meals later this week. If you don't have Facebook, you can also watch it on YouTube.
Don't forget to join the Facebook group and share a photo of your completed meal prep, we'll be giving away prizes!
1. Slow Cooker/ Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers
These stuffed peppers are easy to prep, and you can change up the filling depending on your dietary needs!
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 2 cups basmati or brown rice (cooked; roughly ¾ cups uncooked)
- 6 bell peppers
- 1 lb lean ground turkey
- 3 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 ½ cups of cheese (shredded; mozzarella or cheddar work)
Serving suggestions (do not freeze!)
- more cheese
- sour cream or greek yogurt
- fresh tomatoes or salsa
- avocado slices
- fresh green onions or cilantro
- tortilla chips
PREP DIRECTIONS:
- Cook and cool rice.
- Cut tops off bell peppers so that you have a 1.5-2 inch hole in the tops.
- Using a toothpick, poke a few holes towards the bottom of the bell peppers.
- In a large bowl, stir together the cooled rice, ground turkey, taco seasoning and 1 ¼ cups of cheese.
- Spoon filling into the bell peppers.
- Arrange stuffed bell peppers in a baking dish with rims (so they don't fall over).
- Freeze 3 hours- overnight before transferring to a large freezer bag. Freeze for up to 1 month.
COOKING DIRECTIONS:
- Thaw completely.
- Arrange filled bell peppers in a slow cooker, Instant Pot or deep baking dish; sprinkle with an additional ½ cup shredded cheese.
- Cook: Slow Cooker- Cook on low for 4-5 hours, or until cooked through.
- Instant Pot- Place 1 cup of water in the Instant Pot. Arrange bell peppers on top of trivet. Pressure cook for 10 minutes (12 if you have really large peppers!) with a quick pressure release, or until cooked through. Note that only 4 peppers will fit in a 6 quart IP, so you may have to work in batches.
- Oven- Add ½ cup water to a deep baking dish. Spray a sheet of foil with spray oil, then cover the baking dish. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until cooked through (you can use a digital thermometer to check that the filling has reached 160°F)
VARIATIONS:
- gluten-free: this recipe is gluten free!
- vegetarian & vegan: swap the turkey for a 2 cups of black beans; I have not tested with vegan cheese but it might work.
- nut free: this recipe is nut-free!
- low carb: omit the rice and reduce the taco seasoning by 1 tablespoon, but note you might only have enough filling for 3-4 peppers
Click here for nutritional information
2. Asian Peanut Chicken & Sweet Potatoes
This easy recipe can be cooked on the stovetop or in a slow cooker! No pre-cooking means you just need to toss everything in a heavy duty freezer bag.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup natural peanut butter
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon chopped ginger or 1 teaspoon powdered
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup/honey (or 1.5 teaspoon monk fruit sweetener for low carb)
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (omit for non spicy)
- ¼ cup water
- 4 cups 1 inch sweet potato cubes (1 large sweet potato; * see below for low carb)
- 2 carrots, peeled & sliced (cut small for slow cooker; * see below for low carb)
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (leave whole for slow cooker, cut into 1 inch cubes for stove top) (vegan- swap for 19 oz can of chickpeas, drained)
Serving suggestions (do not freeze!)
- rice
- 4 handfuls of spinach
- peanuts
- green onions
PREP DIRECTIONS:
- In a gallon sized heavy-duty freezer bag, add the soy sauce, peanut butter, garlic, ginger, maple syrup, sesame oil, red pepper flakes and water. Squish it all together until it is roughly combined.
- Add in the sweet potato cubes, carrots, red onion and chicken.
- Squeeze as much air as possible out of the bag and freeze flat.
COOKING DIRECTIONS:
- Thaw completely.
- Slow Cooker- Cook 4 hours on low.
- Add in the spinach and stir until it is wilted.
- Serve over rice or cauliflower rice.
- Stove Top- add an extra ¼ cup water or more if the pot seems to be getting dry. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes (stirring every 5-10 minutes), or until sweet potatoes are soft and chicken is cooked through.
- Add in the spinach and stir until wilted.
VARIATIONS:
- gluten-free: use tamari or coconut aminos in place of soy sauce
- vegetarian & vegan: swap the chicken for a 15 or 19 oz can of chickpeas (drain and rinse first; they can go in the freezer too!)
- low carb: swap maple syrup for 1.5 tsp monk fruit sweetener; omit the sweet potato and carrot.
- Slow Cooker- Add low carb veggies such as green beans, broccoli, zucchini during the last 1 hour of cooking.
Click here for nutritional information
3. (Low Carb Option) Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken
An easy all purpose recipe that you can serve in tacos, on taco salad, or as is.
Serves 8 (can be halved to serve 4 or you can freeze the cooked leftovers!)
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts
- 2 cups salsa
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
Serving suggestions (do not freeze!)
- tortillas or low carb tortillas (or serve as a taco salad)
- fresh tomatoes
- shredded cheese
- avocado
- cabbage
- greek yogurt or sour cream
PREP DIRECTIONS:
- In a gallon sized heavy duty freezer bag, combine all ingredients.
- Squeeze as much air as possible out of the bag and freeze flat.
COOKING DIRECTIONS:
- Thaw completely.
- Slow Cooker- Dump contents of the bag into a 6 quart slow cooker and cook 4-5 hours low. You can half this recipe and cook in a 2.5 quart slow cooker.
- Oven- Heat oven to 425°F. Dump contents of the bag into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover and bake for 25-35 minutes or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Shred chicken with two forks and toss in the sauce.
- Serve in tortillas or as a taco salad.
VARIATIONS:
- gluten-free: this recipe is GF!
- vegetarian & vegan: use our alternate recipe (Quinoa Stew)
- low carb: serve in low carb tortillas or as a taco salad
Click here for nutritional information
4. (Vegan Option) Slow Cooker/Instant Pot Black Bean Quinoa Stew
An easy slow cooker or IP recipe that requires no cooking before hand! Do not add the quinoa until just before you cook the stew.
Serves 8
Ingredients:
- 4 cups sweet potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
- 11 oz/ 341 mL can of corn
- 19 oz/ 540mL can black beans drained and rinsed
- 19 oz/ 540mL can diced tomatoes including juices
- 1 cup red onion diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
To add fresh before cooking (do not freeze):
- 4-5 cups stock
- ½ cup quinoa
Serving suggestions (do not freeze!)
- juice of ½ a lime
- tortillas or low carb tortillas (or serve as a taco salad)
- fresh tomatoes
- shredded cheese
- avocado
- cabbage
- greek yogurt or sour cream
PREP DIRECTIONS:
- Place all ingredients except the stock and quinoa in a gallon-sized heavy duty freezer bag.
- Squeeze out as much air as possible, then freeze for up to 3 months.
COOKING DIRECTIONS:
- Thaw completely. Remember to add the stock and quinoa before cooking.
- Instant Pot- Dump contents of the bag into an Instant Pot. Pressure cook for 5 minutes; let it sit for 10 minutes before releasing the remaining pressure.
- Slow Cooker- Dump contents of the bag into a 6 quart slow cooker and cook 6 hours low.
- Squeeze juice of ½ a lime over everything, and serve.
- Serve with yogurt (or coconut yogurt), tortilla chips and/or avocado slices.
VARIATIONS:
- gluten-free: this recipe is GF!
- vegetarian & vegan: this recipe is vegan!
- low carb: use our alternate recipe (salsa chicken)
Click here for nutritional information
Looking for more freezer meals to stock up on? Here are some ideas!
- Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Stew
- Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Stew
- 7 Freezer Chicken Marinades
- 7 Freezer to Instant Pot Chicken Recipes
- 7 Freezer to Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes
- Instant Pot Enchilada Quinoa (Veg/GF)
- Slow Cooker Chickpea Tortilla Soup (Vegan/GF)
- Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Lentil Curry (Vegan/GF)
- Enchilada Stuffed Sweet Potatoes (Veg/GF)
If you wish to skip any of the recipes, simply cross out the number corresponding to that recipe from this shopping list.
* this list does not include serving suggestions, only items which are needed on prep day
Produce
- 6 bell peppers (1)
- garlic (2 cloves) (2)
- ginger (1 tablespoon) (2)
- 2 large sweet potatoes (8 cups cubed) (2, 4)
- 2 carrots (2)
- 2 red onions (2, 4)
- spinach (needed after cooking for (2))
- 1 lime (4)
Dairy/Meat
- 1 lb lean ground turkey (1)
- mozzarella or cheddar cheese (1 ½ cups) (1)
- 3 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (2, 3)
Pantry
- rice (1)
- reduced sodium soy sauce (2)
- natural peanut butter (2)
- maple syrup or honey (2)
- sesame oil (2)
- salsa- 2 cups (3)
- 11 oz/ 341 mL can of corn (4)
- 19 oz/ 540 mL can of black beans (4)
- 19 oz/540 mL can of diced tomatoes (4)
- vegetable or chicken broth (4-5 cups) (4)
- quinoa (½ cup)
Spices/Baking
- taco seasoning (1)
- red pepper flakes (2)
- ground cumin (3, 4)
- chili powder (3, 4)
- salt (4)
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