10 Freezer Staples, and One Thing I Never Freeze

Georgia has been in a state of emergency this weekend with extremely cold weather. In keeping with the freezing weather outside, I thought of writing this freezer-themed post. The list below is long and I certainly don't have all of these items in the freezer at all times. They rotate in and out. But each of these has, at various times, saved us from a mediocre takeout meal, fed last minute guests, or fended off an untimely grocery run. 

Blanket weather

10 Freezer Staples

1. Fruit
• Frozen blueberries: I eat some for breakfast every day
• Other frozen fruit like cherries, peaches, mango which I use for
• Smoothies
• Protein shakes
• Quick compotes for topping pancakes, cheesecake, etc. 
• Seasonal buys like cranberries- purchased after thanksgiving and used for desserts and date cranberry chutney in winter
2. Vegetables
• Boxed spinach for lasagna, saag, casseroles
• Edamame as a quick side for Asian-inspired meals
• Okra- okra sambar and okra-potato sabzi
• California medley- for sipping soup
• Fire roasted peppers and onions- soups, stews, stir-fries
• Italian beans/ green beans- sabzi and khichdi
• Peas- curries, samosa filling, peas pulao
3. Basic ingredients
• Ginger garlic paste- I make enough to fill several small jars and pull them into the fridge one at a time
• Ginger, chopped- mainly used for chai
• Coconut- chutneys and curries
• Butter- baking
• Puff pastry during the holidays
• Dosa batter
4. Flours
• Almond flour for baking
• Flaxseed meal for adding into oatmeal and baked goods
5. Plant-based meat substitutes
• Quorn nuggets- my son takes two in his lunchbox every day
• Chikn strips- meal starter
• Crumbles- meal starter
6. Breads
• Sliced bread- sandwiches
• Mini naans- quick pizzas
• Burger buns, rolls
• Rotis and parathas
• Tortillas- wraps and quesadillas
7. Hash brown patties
• Aloo tikki chana chaat
• Hash brown casserole
8. Frozen meals
• Store-bought- for those occasional times when we have no lunches on hand and no time to fix anything, it is easier to grab a boxed meal from the freezer than to walk out and find lunch in the cafeteria. We have a few favorites from Trader Joe's that we keep on hand- palak paneer (although that's been out of stock for months), vegan tikka masala, chana masala
• Homemade- when I have extra curries/dals on hand, I box them in individual servings. A relevant post: On freezing Indian food
9. Take out fake out stuff
• Frozen dumplings
• Vegan orange chicken
• Veggie burgers and frozen fries
10. Extra food that can be frozen for later use instead of being wasted
• Overripe bananas
• Cheese, shredded
• Sweets and treats

One thing I never store in the freezer- spices. I find that it completely kills the taste.

On a recent Friday afternoon, the fridge and crisper were quite bare and I needed to put together a quick dinner. The freezer came to the rescue with a box of spinach. I paired it with a block of hi-protein tofu to make this spinach and tofu curry, inspired by Vegan Richa's recipe. It literally takes 20 minutes to put together and was a good reminder of how it helps to keep a well-stocked freezer. 

Every few weeks, I do a freezer eat-down by scanning for items that have been in there for a while and planning to use them up in the next week. 

What do you have in your freezer that you don't see on my list? 

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it!