Five Slow Cooker Freezer Bag Meals (Make 5 Meals in Just One Hour)

Are you super busy during the week with little time to make a wholesome dinner every night? Well, what if I told you that you could prep ahead five freezer bag meals for the week in about one hour?!
Yes, it’s true! Try these five simple and delicious make-ahead meals that can be stored in the freezer and then placed in the slow cooker when you’re in a hurry and need an easy family meal. You’ll want to use a gallon sized freezer bag for each meal and store each bag flat in the freezer to take up less space. I recommend removing each meal from the freezer the night before you are planning to serve it so it can defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
** Print Master Grocery List HERE (includes ingredients for all 5 meals below) **
(To view all FIVE recipes, click the link below “Read More / Post Your Comments”.)


Teriyaki Chicken
* Print Teriyaki Chicken Grocery Shopping List HERE *
Fill a freezer bag with:
1 and 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, sliced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup Teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 carrots sliced
1 green bell pepper sliced
1 teaspoon ginger paste
1 cup chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, minced
To Cook: Place thawed contents in a slow cooker and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 4 hours. Optional: To thicken sauce at the end, whisk together 1/2 cup of the cooked sauce with 2 tablespoons cornstarch and pour back in the slow cooker. Turn cooker on high for an extra 10-15 minutes so sauce can thicken. Serve on top of rice and garnish with sesame seeds if desired.

Sausage with Onions & Peppers
* Print Sausage with Onions & Peppers Grocery Shopping List HERE *
Fill Freezer Bag with: 1-16 oz. package Sausage, sliced
1 onion sliced
3 Bell Peppers (one green, one yellow, and one red) sliced
2 cans diced tomatoes, fire roasted and not drained
1 chicken bouillon cube
2 cloves garlic minced
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
To Cook: Place thawed contents in the slow cooker for about 5-6 hours on low or 3 hours on high. Serve on top of rice.

Creamy Italian Chicken
* Print Creamy Italian Chicken Grocery Shopping List HERE *
Fill freezer bag with:
1 and 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut up in one inch pieces
1 bar of cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 packet zesty Italian salad dressing mix
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cup green beans, frozen or fresh
To Cook: Place thawed contents in the slow cooker on low for 7-8 hours or high for 4 hours. Serve chicken on top of noodles and garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Cilantro Lime Chicken
* Print Cilantro Lime Chicken Grocery Shopping List HERE *
Fill Freezer Bag with:
1 and 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, chopped
1/2 white onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup black beans, drained
1 cup frozen corn, drained
4 oz. can green chilies
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
juice of two limes
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup cilantro, chopped
2 teaspoons cumin
To Cook: Place thawed contents in slow cooker and cook on low 7-8 hours or high for 4 hours. Serve on top of tortillas for tacos or serve on top of rice. Garnish with extra lime or cilantro if desired.

Chinese Beef & Broccoli
* Print Chinese Beef & Broccoli Grocery Shopping List HERE *
Fill Freezer Bag with:
2 pounds beef, sliced (sirloin works well)
1 can beef consume (found in the soup aisle)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon ginger paste
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 cups fresh or frozen broccoli (separate in a smaller bag)
To Cook: Place defrosted contents in slow cooker on low 7-8 hours or high 4 hours. Consider bagging the broccoli separate and adding it in about 30 minutes before meat is done cooking (otherwise, the broccoli tends to over cook!). Optional: To thicken sauce at the end, whisk together 1/2 cup of the cooked sauce with 2 tablespoons cornstarch and pour back in the slow cooker. Turn cooker on high for an extra 10-15 minutes so sauce can thicken. Serve beef and broccoli on top of rice and garnish with chopped green onion if desired.

Notes/Tips:
I thought it was faster to label all the bags first, cut up all the meat and add to bags, and then focus on the vegetables and sauces etc. Cooking times may vary a bit depending on the size and shape of your slow cooker. For instance, meals cook faster when I cook with my larger oval shaped 6 quart slow cooker as opposed to my medium sized tall shaped 4 quart slow cooker. Servings sizes for these meals are about 4-6. We have four people in my family and we had left overs for all of these meals. You can cook rice ahead of time and freeze it as well. Consider storing cooked rice in freezer bags according to the amount you would use in one dinner. To reheat, just place on a skillet with a little butter or olive oil and sprinkle with some water and stir fry. Use a Sharpie to label freezer bags with the name of the meal and the date the meal was prepared (you may even want to note the cooking instructions). My kids LOVED the Creamy Italian Chicken the most. It really is a must make if you don’t already make a similar version :) These meals would make a fantastic and thoughtful gift for a new mom or maybe someone who is ill or just had surgery.

Do you have any favorite freezer bag to slow cooker meal ideas? Please share!