Freezer Meals With Chicken That Stay Juicy After Reheating
Freezer meals with chicken stay juicy when the chicken goes into the freezer in sauce, in a flat bag, with the air pressed out. Shredded chicken in tomato sauce, creamy stroganoff, coconut curry, teriyaki and baked nuggets are the dishes that handle thawing without drying out.
Chicken is the most common protein in American kitchens, and the most unforgiving when it is overcooked. The details below come from the Sunday Freezer chicken recipes, and they are the difference between a freezer dinner you tolerate and one you ask for again.
The base that makes ten dinners: shredded chicken in tomato sauce
Shredded Chicken in Tomato Sauce serves 6, takes about 20 minutes of prep and 35 of cooking, and keeps 3 months. Freeze it in a gallon bag laid flat, about three-quarters of an inch thick, so it freezes fast and thaws evenly. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then heat in a covered saucepan over medium-low 10 to 12 minutes, stirring, until bubbling and 165 °F in the center.
What you can do with it:
- Serve it over rice or pasta.
- Roll it into wraps or quesadillas.
- Pile it on a baked potato.
- Use it as a pizza topper or in baked pasta.
Shredded Chicken for Tacos is the sibling. Keep the filling a little drier than usual so it will not soak the tortilla. Freeze flat in bags and reheat in a skillet 6 to 8 minutes.
Creamy and saucy dinners
- Creamy Chicken Stroganoff. Thicken with cornstarch and add the cream last: the sauce does not split when reheated. Reheat in a saucepan on low for 10 minutes, adding 2 tablespoons of water if it is too thick.
- Honey Mustard Chicken. Stir in the cream off the heat so the sauce stays smooth.
- Coconut Chicken Curry. Coconut milk may separate in the freezer. Stir well while heating and it comes back together.
- Homemade Chicken Teriyaki and Orange Chicken. Weeknight takeout replacements. Teriyaki reheats in a skillet in 6 to 8 minutes, and works great in single-serve lunch containers.
- Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew. The squash breaks down and thickens the sauce, which is an advantage after reheating.
- Chicken Stir-Fry with Peppers and Peanuts.
Handhelds and baked favorites
- Homemade Chicken Nuggets. Serves 8. Freeze them loose on a tray first so they do not fuse into one block, then bag them. Air fry from frozen at 375 °F for 10 to 12 minutes, or oven at 400 °F for 15 minutes, until crisp and 165 °F inside.
- Chicken Burgers. Straight from the freezer to the air fryer.
- Garlic Paprika Roasted Drumsticks. Freeze on a tray for an hour first. Oven or air fryer at 375 °F for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Baked Chicken Meatballs in Marinara. Bake, then freeze in sauce.
- Ham and Cheese Chicken Roll-Ups. A kid-friendly dinner that freezes before it is baked.
- Chicken Crepes in Tomato Sauce and Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Lasagna for the weekend meals.
- Creamy Chicken Pot Pie and Chicken Pie with Cream Cheese Filling. Comfort food that keeps 3 months.
Meal prep boxes with chicken
For lunches: Grilled Chicken, Rice and Broccoli Meal Prep Boxes and Chicken and Zucchini Penne Meal Prep Boxes. Each serves 6 and keeps 2 months. Microwave covered 3 to 4 minutes, stirring once. Cool the rice and pasta quickly, and do not leave them in a closed container for more than 2 hours.
Tips for juicy chicken from the freezer
- Use thighs for stews and curries. They tolerate long cooking and reheating.
- Do not overcook before freezing. The dish will cook again when you reheat it.
- Keep chicken in its sauce. Dry shredded chicken goes stringy.
- Freeze flat. Fast freezing means smaller ice crystals and better texture.
- Reheat gently. Covered, medium-low heat, with a splash of water if needed.
- Check the temperature. 165 °F in the center, every time.
Raw or cooked? How to choose
Raw chicken in a marinade is the easiest for a dump-style bag: combine chicken, sauce and vegetables, freeze flat, thaw, and cook. Cooked chicken is the fastest at dinnertime. A mix of both is usual. Whichever you choose, label with the date and cooking instructions. For slow cooker bags, see crockpot freezer meals.
Portioning for your table
For a family of four or five, freeze the full recipe in two bags or one large container. For two people, use 2-serving portions, which every Sunday Freezer recipe lists. Honey mustard chicken, for example, freezes one 2-serving portion of about 13 ounces per container, and teriyaki freezes in 2-serving containers of about 12 ounces. More on this in freezer meals for two.
A chicken prep afternoon
- Start the stew and curry, which take the longest.
- Poach and shred the chicken for the tomato sauce base.
- Mix, bread and freeze the nuggets on a tray.
- Season the drumsticks and bake them.
- Cool everything within 2 hours in shallow pans.
- Portion into flat bags and 2-cup containers, then label and freeze.
At the end you have enough for roughly 6 weeks of chicken dinners for two, or 3 weeks for a family of four, with variety in every bag.
## Seasonings and finishers that revive thawed chicken
A thawed dish often wants one fresh note. Squeeze a lemon over the roasted thighs, stir a spoonful of Dijon into the honey mustard sauce, scatter scallions over the teriyaki, or add chopped cilantro to the curry. Warm tortillas for the taco filling, and add a handful of fresh spinach to tomato-sauce chicken for the last minute of heating. These small touches take thirty seconds and make a frozen dinner taste like you cooked it tonight.
Next steps
Sunday Freezer · 12 Dinners in 1 Hour Meal Plan System comes with 12 printable freezer meal plans with shopping lists, the Freezer Plan Builder web app, and 127 recipes, 20 of them chicken. If you want more recipes by type, see freezer meal ideas; for the beef side, read freezer meals with ground beef.
Chicken is easy to cook. With a freezer plan, it is also easy to have.