Five Easy Chicken Freezer Crockpot Kits
I’ve found the easiest way to freezer prep crockpot meals is to focus on one meat at a time and to use recipes with minimal ingredients. Just because I prep 5 chicken meals doesn’t mean we’re eating chicken every night. I prepare and freeze the kit and then pull it out of the freezer in rotation with beef, sausage, fish and other store bought meals to ensure variety. So let me teach you how to take control of dinner time!
- Pick the recipes and print them. For today’s one hour prep session we’re going to do these five recipes.
Broccoli & Chicken Fettucini Alfredo
- Assemble the grocery list. You will need the following things. Check your pantry first as you’ve likely got some of the can goods already. I’ve listed the spices and staples separately as you likely already have them in your cabinet. I pulled the prices off of Walmart’s grocery store app as of November 2019 and used the generic brand when I could.
GROCERY LIST
- About 8-10 pounds of chicken breasts (depends on family size and how many leftovers you want. For us, 1.5 pounds makes enough for dinner for 5 and one or two leftover lunches) About $15.00 ($1.78 per pound)
- 2 jars Bbq sauce $2.00 ($.98 a jar)
- 1 package of Hawaiian rolls or buns $2.50
- 1 bag Potato chips $1.33
- 2 jars Alfredo sauce $3.00 ($1.50 per jar)
- 1 box of Fettuccini pasta $1.15
- 1 bag of Frozen broccoli $1.00
- 1 box of Frozen garlic knots or toast $2.00
- 1 can Cranberry sauce $.94
- 1 small bottle of Catalina Dressing $1.62
- 2 cans green beans $1.00 (50 cents per can)
- 1 box stove top stuffing $1.00
- 1 cans chicken broth $.50
- 1 small can of green chiles $.76
- 2 cans great northern bean $1.16 (58 cents per can)
- 2 cans corn $1.00 (50 cents per can)
- 1 box of Jiffy Corn Bread $.47
- 1 Shredded Colby Jack Cheese 8oz $1.74
- 1 pound smoked kielbasa sausage $2.98
- 1 can chicken broth $.50
- 1 6oz can tomato paste $.50
- 1 medium onion $.78
- 1 green bell pepper $.58
- 3 celery ribs $1.38
- 1 bag frozen okra slices $1.34
PANTRY ITEMS YOU PROBABLY ALREADY HAVE
chili powder
cumin
garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
Flour
Milk
Butter
Sugar
Eggs
Chicken bouillon cube
Grated Parmesan cheese
Minced Garlic in a Jar or Fresh Garlic cloves
Parsley flakes
Dried basil
Dried oregano
Cayenne pepper
White Rice
Gallon ziplock bags
Sharpie marker
The total grocery list (assuming you’ve got the pantry staples is $46.23. Most of these meals make a dinner for the five of us plus two lunches. The chicken alfredo and the jambalya recipes make enough for two complete meals for our family. Granted, if you’ve got teenagers or big eaters, this may not be the case for you.
I usually freeze the leftovers to reheat later or save for the weekend to simply microwave. The average per meal for dinner and adult lunches for our family of 5 is $5.75!! That doesn’t even pay for one person at McDonald’s!
- Go to the grocery store and buy what you need. Before you go, check coupons and sales to see if you can save any money.
- Set up the stations. After you make the grocery run, get out 5 ziplock bags and label them per the instructions in each of the recipes. Set all of the ingredients and the recipe next to the can goods and spices. Dice any vegetables that the recipes require.
For example, your counters should look something like this (minus the chicken). You get that out after the bags are labeled and set up and the ingredients are staged.
4. Start dumping and assembling. Put the raw chicken in the bags first. Then dump the cans and spices. I have these great bag stands that I use on my prep days. Seal up the bags and lay them in the freezer flat. They really don’t take up much space.
It’s that easy. You now have five kits prepared to pull out of the freezer the night before and thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then it’s a simple dump in the crockpot and dinner is done when you get home. Some recipes require 10 minutes to prep the sides, but that’s super easy!
5 Reasons these Crockpot Freezer Kits are Awesome
- They are inexpensive. The meals above cost $46.23 for all 5 recipes or roughly $5.75 each!
- It avoids frustration fast food meals. You’ve planned, you’ve prepared, you’ve used a simple recipe and you’re saving money!
- The kids will love these recipes. Mine do!
- Think of all that money you’re saving! Eating at home instead of hitting up a fast food drive through on you’re way home is an easy way to cut the monthly budget. Now tuck those savings away in an envelope and use them for the upcoming holidays, a special treat, to pay off debt or to add to the vacation fund.
- It’s easy all the way around. Prep day and Dump day are simple and fast. Once you get started you too will be on the Rinse and Repeat! Plan.
Go ahead and give the freezer prep life style a try. You can do it!
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