Freezer Skillet Meals

This freezer meal is a little bit more involved in terms of the prep ahead, but it’s worth it. The apples make these Apple Pork Chops the perfect Fall recipe.  If you have an apple tree, you can even harvest your own apples to use. These fall flavours are nice to bring indoors.

Apple Pork Chops Recipe:

• 4 pork chops
• 4 fresh apples (more if you are using smaller ones from your backyard)
• 1/2  jar of apple butter
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 4 Tbsp. brown sugar, packed
• 2 tsp. chili powder
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt*

*You can make your own seasoning salt by mixing equal parts salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder or you can purchase it from the store.

Season both sides of each pork chop with the seasoning salt blend. Place the pork chops in a large resealable freezer bag. Remove the excess air and seal.

Slice and core each apple.

In a large skillet, melt 2 Tablespoons of butter. Add the apple slices and allow them to cook until soft, about 5 minutes.

Add in 1/2 of the jar of apple butter, brown sugar, and chili powder. Stir well to combine. Pour in the cream and continue to stir. Bring it all to a light boil. Remove it from the heat and allow it to cool. Pour the cooled apple mixture into a medium sized resealable freezer bag. Seal. Staple the bag to the pork chop bag above the seals and freeze.

On the day of cooking, thaw.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the pork chops to the preheated skillet and cook each side for about 3-4 minutes.

Pour a spoonful of the apple topping on top while it cooks. Pour the rest of the apple mixture into the skillet on top of the pork. Serve hot. Even though this meal requires cooking the apples and sauce ahead of freezing which is more involved in the prep than most of my freezer meals, it is still quite fast to prepare. I like to do a mix of more time consuming make ahead meals with simpler ones. It provides more variety in my freezer.

Check out these easy freezer meals that are also great for Fall:

Apple Maple Chicken Dump Recipe 

Beef Curry Freezer Meal 

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Apple Pork Chops Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 pork chops
• 4 fresh apples more if you are using smaller ones from your backyard
• 1/2  jar of apple butter
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 4 Tbsp. brown sugar packed
• 2 tsp. chili powder
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt*

Instructions

1. Season both sides of each pork chop with the seasoning salt blend. Place the pork chops in a large resealable freezer bag. Remove the excess air and seal.
2. Slice and core each apple.
3. In a large skillet, melt 2 Tablespoons of butter. Add the apple slices and allow them to cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
4. Add in 1/2 of the jar of apple butter, brown sugar, and chili powder. Stir well to combine. Pour in the cream and continue to stir. Bring it all to a light boil. Remove it from the heat and allow it to cool.
5. Pour the cooled apple mixture into a medium sized resealable freezer bag. Seal. Staple the bag to the pork chop bag above the seals and freeze.
6. On the day of cooking, thaw.
7. Melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the pork chops to the preheated skillet and cook each side for about 3-4 minutes.
8. Pour a spoonful of the apple topping on top while it cooks. Pour the rest of the apple mixture into the skillet on top of the pork. Serve hot.

Recipe Notes

*You can make your own seasoning salt by mixing equal parts salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder or you can purchase it from the store.

I have no idea why this recipe is called Tequila Lime Shrimp because tequila is nowhere to be found in this dish. Alcohol of any kind for that matter is not involved in the making of this meal.

I suppose you could serve it with a glass of wine or in the summer, even a margarita which has tequila in it. But regardless of how it got its unusual name, if you like shrimp, chances are, you’ll like this.

This cooks up so quickly that dinner can be on the table in less than 10 minutes! I know the pictures don’t make it look all that exciting, but it’s got nice flavours. One of my daughters loves to eat this on top of pasta.

Tequila Lime Shrimp Recipe:

• 1 lb. large, uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped

Place the shrimp into a large resealable freezer bag. Add the other ingredients into the bag. Squish together to combine. Remove the excess air from the bag and seal before freezing.

On the day of cooking, take the bag out to thaw. Stir fry the bag contents in a large skillet on medium-high until the shrimp are heated through and turn pink. 

Serve the shrimp with rice, potatoes, or pasta and a side of vegetables. If you want, you can top the shrimp with some additional fresh cilantro and lime wedges.

OR you can cook up the marinated tequila lime shrimp to use inside shrimp tacos. Serve them in a soft tortilla with guacamole. The taste of summer in a simple dish.

And here’s where that tequila could come in. Imagine sitting on your patio with a margarita in a frosted glass while a plate of shrimp tacos is perched on your lap. Yum!

Other seafood freezer meals you might enjoy:

Garlic Butter Shrimp 

Seafood Curry Pasta Freezer Meal 

Make Ahead Shrimp Stir Fry Packets 

In the mood for hearty, rich, comfort food? This Italian sausage pasta sauce fits the bill. It has a delicious blend of flavours and you can easily adjust the spice level according to your tastes.This recipe is one that we invented after I accidentally miscalculated the amount of sausage for a freezer meal session. I bought double what I should have, so I had to come up with recipes to use the extra meat.

One of the recipes I came up with was a simple Sausage and Peppers Skillet Freezer Meal. Another was an Italian Wedding Soup. I still had sausage left after making a few bags of those, so I came up with this sauce.

It was so good that it has gone into our regular freezer meal rotation. The second time we made it, we experimented with throwing some capers into the sauce. Amazing! I only thought of it because we had extra capers leftover from another freezer meal we had made, but it was the perfect addition.

Italian Sausage Pasta Sauce Recipe:

• 1 lb. Italian sausage, made into meatballs and cooked*
• 3 cups salsa
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup diced green pepper
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1-2 Tbsp. capers, drained

Depending on your family’s preference, you can use mild or spicy sausage. We prefer the spicy variety! You can also adjust the spice level of this recipe by using mild, medium or spicy salsa.

If you’re unsure about the capers, you can try making it without them and adding them to individual plates for those who like them. I was a bit nervous about how they would go over the first time I added them, but my family loved them. They give just the right amount of tang and saltiness to bring this sauce to the next level.

To put this meal together, put the cooked sausage meatballs (see instructions below) and all the other ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag. Remove all the excess air you can and seal the bag before freezing.

On the day of cooking, take the bag of the freezer to thaw and heat in a large skillet until heated through. Serve over your favourite type of pasta.

I also like to sprinkle with Parmesan or Asiago cheese and red pepper flakes. A simple salad and some garlic bread would round out this meal nicely.

How do I make and cook the sausage meatballs?

*Remove the sausage meat from the casing and cut into 1/2″ slices or squeeze out sausage meatballs and flatten them a bit with your fingers. The squeezing method is messier, but it is easier to remove the casing that way and I find it faster.

Place the sausage meatballs on a cookie sheet. Bake in a 350° oven for 20 minutes or until lightly browned on both sides. You may want to flip them once during baking. Blot the cooked sausage meatballs on a paper towel to remove some of the grease. Allow to cool a bit before placing them in the freezer bags.

You may also like these great freezer cooking recipes:

Freezer Spaghetti Sauce 

Easy Ground Beef Stroganoff 

You’ll be so glad you have some of these shrimp stir fry freezer packs on hand for busy weeknights. Just pull one out and heat in a skillet for 8-10 minutes and dinner is served! These are so easy to make and fast to cook. These freezer meal bags make great gifts for expectant moms or those who are suffering an illness or moving.

It is just as fast to whip up two or four of these stir fry packs as it is to make one so I suggest that while you have the ingredients out, you make multiples. You can also experiment with adding different vegetables and find your favourite combination.

This dish is flavourful and colourful. The sauce is inspired by Asian influences and ingredients.

Shrimp Stir Fry Freezer Pack Recipe:

• 1 1/2 lbs. medium or large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1/2 cup zucchini, diced
• 1/2 cup sugar snap peas
• 3/4 cup carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/4 cup onion, diced
• 1/4 cup frozen peas
• 14 oz. can baby corn, drained
• 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
• 2 Tbsp. orange juice
• 1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. freshly grated ginger
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)

Place the shrimp, zucchini, carrots, onions, snap peas, peas, and baby corn in a large resealable bag. In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, oyster sauce, orange juice, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, ginger, minced garlic, sesame oil, and pepper flakes. Pour the sauce into the bag with the shrimp and vegetables. 

I use frozen shrimp that is already peeled and deveined. We rinse the shrimp under cold water in the sink to separate the shrimp and wash them. We do this quickly so that they don’t thaw before we get the shrimp stir fry packs into the freezer. 

On the day of cooking, take the stir fry freezer bag out to thaw. Heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a skillet on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Add the bag of shrimp and veggies to the pan and stir fry for 8-10 minutes until the shrimp is pink and the vegetables are tender.

You can garnish with sliced green onions or cilantro. If you like things spicy, you can also stir in a bit of Sriracha sauce towards the end of cooking. Serve over rice.

Check out these other freezer skillet meals:

Seafood Curry Pasta

Garlic Butter Shrimp