Meal Preparation Tip

It's 5 o'clock. You're making spaghetti or chili, or something else that requires browning meat. Want to take 20 minutes off of your cooking time? Brown your meat ahead of time and freeze it. I got this wonderful tip at one of my MOPS meetings, and let me tell you, it has significantly helped on those nights when I don't want to cook or need to cook quickly. Here's the game plan: When you get home from shopping with all of your raw meat, instead of throwing the ground hamburger or turkey in the freezer, throw it in a big pot and brown it all at once. I put a lid on my pot to speed up the cooking time. Drain off the excess fat, let cool slightly, and divide into Ziploc freezer bags. Label each bag with the date and pop in the freezer. Next time you want to make anything with ground beef or turkey, don't fret! Just pull the cooked meat out of the freezer and thaw. You can thaw it in the microwave if your in a time crunch, in a bowl of water, or in the fridge if actually remember to pull it out in the morning. Today, I also prepared meatloaf to freeze. I added all the ingredients to the meat, mixed, and wrapped in plastic wrap and foil. When I'm ready to cook it, all I have to do is pull it out and pop it in the over. Easy!