This simple tutorial is a tried and true meal prep hack straight from my kitchen to yours. This is the technique I use for preparing Make Ahead Ground Beef For Freezing on a day when I have time to cook a large batch of seasoned beef in advance for busy day meals. Quality lean ground beef is seasoned and cooked with diced sweet onion for an added layer of flavor, then cooled and separated into individual meal prep portions. On a hectic day pull a pack or two, from the freezer and you’re ready to make smokey joes, chili spaghetti, Shepherd’s pie or a plethora of other ground beef casseroles and meals that suit your fancy. Doing so will save you time and money on those days you may be tempted to order out.
Are you a bargain shopper? I’m a proud penny pincher and I’m constantly looking for ways to save money and time when it comes to my grocery budget and weekly meal prep. It occurred to me one busy afternoon while preparing to brown ground beef for sloppy joes, that many of my ground beef recipes begin the same way, with olive oil, diced onion and garlic seasoned beef. So, I began making cooked beef in large batches lightly seasoned, knowing that half of the work was done for busier days when there’s little time to plan and cook.
While I love eating out on occasion like anyone else, I don’t think it should be your “go to” meal plan on busy days. By taking time to prepare portions of your meals in advance you can keep both your grocery and eating out budget on track. When preparing this ground beef to freeze, you can separate it into any amount you’d like. I choose to separate it into 2 cup portions knowing that if I need more for a recipe I can easily pull 2 packages out for transforming into a meal. Toss it into a skillet frozen and it thaws in minutes ready to be transformed into a homemade feast. It’s saved my life on more than one occasion hope it helps you, too.
Visit my recipe index for more scrumptious ways to enjoy ground beef here!
Make Ahead Ground Beef For Freezing
Ingredients
- 1 jumbo onion small diced (Or 2 large onions)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 6 lbs lean ground beef
- 6 tsp garlic salt Roughly 1 tsp/pound
- 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Drizzle a large skillet with olive oil. Add the diced onion and cook over medium-high until softened about 2 minutes.
- Add the ground beef, garlic salt and black pepper to the pan. Cook the meat over medium-high until no pink remains around 12-15 minutes.
- Drain all excess fat from the pan, then add the Worcestershire sauce. Cook for 2 minutes stirring to fully distribute.
- Remove from the heat and spread onto a large paper towel lined baking sheet. Place into the fridge to cool.
- Divide the cooled beef and package into quart size plastic freezer bags, 2 cups per bag and label.
- Press flat, seal and freeze.
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Lauren says
Hello Melissa!
I’m a vegetarian and my significant other is a complete meat eater. I feel I am always in the kitchen for hours since I have to adapt recipes and take a portion out to make it vegetarian in some way. I’m so excited to try this idea! I absolutely love cooking, but I really feel this will help me on days when I’m feeling overwhelmed with being in the kitchen for hours. I’m also about to check out your website for other recipes and whatnot. I’m excited for that too! 🙂
Melissa says
Ah this is perfect for you, thanks for visiting!
Kelsey says
How long is the meat good for in the freezer?
Melissa says
I’m not certain there’s a time limit but, I usually use it within 30-60 days.
Michelle says
Thank you for sharing this tip and recipe.
Melissa says
It’s my pleasure.
Kathy says
Hi. How long can can you keep the thawed cooked ground beef in the fridge? I started cooking my ground beef ahead and putting it in the fridge to thaw but something would come up and I would not be able to use it after it thawed and may not be able to do it the next day. I’ve thrown ground beef out several times for that reason. Do you know how long it is good to keep in the fridge
after it has thawed?
Melissa says
Follow the dates on the packaging to be safe.