The old saying goes that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Well, with freezer soup that is as wrong as can be. If you know the basics of this frugal technique, you can have your free lunch (or dinner) and eat it too!
Freezer soup is one of those things that is so simple to do. It uses up leftovers that might otherwise go bad or be thrown away. How many times have you been left with just a little bit of leftovers that aren’t quite enough to make another full meal. Do you force yourself to eat them up even though you aren’t hungry so they won’t go to waste? Do you put them back in the refrigerator and then just ignore them until they spoil and can be tossed out without guilt? Or do you simply toss them away at the start?
I am guilty of the “hide them in the fridge and hope they grow larger, or someone else takes care of them” technique. My husband. on the other hand, will just toss the extra away. But, we have found a better way to use those leftovers and get some free meals in the bargain.
Basically, you grab a container to put in your freezer (I like a glass bowl with a lid). Then, whenever you have those leftovers, you open up the freezer, open the container and toss them in. When the container is full, just thaw it and make it into soup. One way of doing this is to make up a pot of hot water and toss in a bouillon cube or powder. Then toss in your leftovers. As you get better with saving extras, you may eventually not need the bouillon, as you will have already allowed for a broth with the types of leftovers you add to your freezer container.
What types of leftovers make the best freezer soup? Vegetables of course. Just a tablespoon or two will add lots of flavor. Pasta or egg noodles, rice, chicken, beef and ham are all good choices for a freezer soup.
You’ll have a different soup each time, so you won’t get bored with this inventive meal.
Does anyone out there have any tips for gourmet freezer soup?
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