Did you know that there are a lot of items that frequently go on sale for FREE after coupon that you can freeze? There are tons of products I have stocked up on in the past year to freeze until I need to use them. Recently after a trip to Meijer, my husband asked, "What are we going to do with all of that lunch meat?".....well, freeze it of course!
Here is a run down of some items that you can find at rock bottom prices that you can easily freeze then use later. It's my basic philosophy that it is better to have 10 of an item purchased at $0.05 then 1 of an item purchased at $2.50!
- Butter - You can freeze tub butter or sticks with no problem! I recently stocked up on I Can't Believe It's Not Butter products for FREE - and our freezer is full of them! Just place in the fridge to thaw a few days before you will need it.
- Eggs - Simply break the eggs out of their shell and store in a Rubbermaid container.
- Bread - I use this all the time! I love Aunt Millie's Bread as you can typically find it FREE - $0.29 at Meijer. We stock up and freeze it until we need it! Generally, it takes about a day to thaw.
- Hot Dogs - One of my kids favorites.....just place them in the freezer and they are good to go! You can stock up this week at Meijer on Kahn's and Ball Park hot dogs! Again, place in the fridge 1-2 days prior to needing them so they can thaw.
- Milk - If you come across a great deal on milk, buy some extra. You can freeze milk, just be sure to leave a bit of extra room at the top of the container in case of swelling. Allow several days to thaw and the milk will likely need to be shaken up prior to first use due to separation.
- Pillsbury Biscuits, Rolls, and Sweet Rolls - Remember all of those Pillsbury sales that were going on during the holidays? We stocked up and now have rolls to last until the next round of great deals show up for those products! Place them in the fridge about a day prior to use and they are ready to use.
- Cheese - One of my favorite things to freeze :-) I have been able to stock up on cheese singles for very little over the past 6 months. We eat a lot of sandwiches for lunches here and the kids love cheese for snacks. Plus, cheese doesn't take up a lot of room in your freezer. Generally will take about a day to fully thaw.
- Bananas - You can freeze them right in their peel for baking or using in smoothies!
- Onions - Chop up and place in Rubbermaid containers until ready to use (great for additions to recipes and soups!)
- Yogurt - You can easily freeze full fat yogurts. Go-gurts are great for this as it makes a special treat for the kids....I would not recommend freezing fat free yogurts as they tend to have a grainy texture when thawed.
- Lunch Meat - There have been some great deals lately where you could get lunch meat for $0.50 per pack! We have stocked up on this as well.
- Coffee Creamer - Remember all those free sales a few months back at Meijer for coffee creamer? Stock up when that happens as you can freeze your liquid creamer! Just give a good shake before using.
- Veggies Made Into Baby Food - If you want to take advantage of the great sales you are getting on vegetables, make up your own baby food and then place it in ice cube trays. Each cube is roughly one ounce.
- Berries - You can freeze blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries for later use in your baking
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10 comments
Karen says:
May 27, 2010 at 9:15 pm (UTC -5 )
RE Eggs
I recently started started freezing eggs. I found it helpful to use the whisk option on the Kitchen Aid mixer. Then freeze in ice cube trays. 1 egg = 2 ice cube tray slots.
This way you freeze cubes and can get out exactly what is called for in a recipe.
savingmoneywisely says:
May 27, 2010 at 9:34 pm (UTC -5 )
That is a great tip on the eggs! Kind of the same idea as with the baby food so you know what you are getting – Good idea!
Fantacy says:
May 27, 2010 at 9:27 pm (UTC -5 )
Can you use the eggs for like scrambled eggs or do you have to only use them in baking…
With the Coffee Creamer, does it swell like other liquids or just put the whole container in the freezer?
savingmoneywisely says:
May 27, 2010 at 9:35 pm (UTC -5 )
I just put the whole creamer in the freezer and have never had any problems! The only bad thing when you stock up when it is free as you sometimes get a flavor you don’t like – I have a ton of Cinnamon Bun and I don’t like it – too sweet……But I will still use it
K says:
May 27, 2010 at 9:31 pm (UTC -5 )
We only use eggs for baking, so I couldn’t say…
As to the freezing of liquids, I find it unnecessary to pour off milk. I just freeze it unopened. The depressions in the milk container will pop out to allow for the expansion. Also, I find gallons too difficult to freeze….they take FOREVER to thaw. I only freeze 1/2 gallons.
I have never frozen creamer…
savingmoneywisely says:
May 27, 2010 at 9:36 pm (UTC -5 )
Yes, another good tip on the milk….the 1/2 gallons are much easier to do than a full gallon. And a good tip on not having to pour off – I had always thought you had to. Thanks!
K says:
July 19, 2010 at 10:37 pm (UTC -5 )
Can you freeze cream cheese?
savingmoneywisely says:
July 19, 2010 at 10:42 pm (UTC -5 )
Yes! You can – the only thing is if you are planning on just eating it straight up it can get a little grainy after freezing it…..but if you’re just using it to cook with it is fine.
K says:
July 19, 2010 at 10:44 pm (UTC -5 )
Oh Happy Day!
Check out this recipe for one of my planned uses:
http://athriftymom.com/2009/11/chicken-pillows/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AThriftyMom+%28A+Thrifty+Mom%29
savingmoneywisely says:
July 19, 2010 at 11:28 pm (UTC -5 )
Wow! Those look really good! I think I will be using that recipe as well