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Batch Cooking Like a Pro: Hearty, Healthy Meals for Colder Days
Knowing how to batch cook meals can save you money, time, and avoid waste. Read our guide to batch cooking and get your freezer stocked up with delicious dinners in a hurry.
Everyone should have a few batch cooking recipes up their sleeves. By cooking larger quantities of food and storing them in your freezer, you know you’ve always got a tasty, home-cooked meal, ready to blast in the microwave or defrost overnight.
Almost two-thirds of people in the UK batch cook regularly, and it’s particularly popular among younger adults. But while batch cooking is common and not overly complex, there are a few important ‘rules’ to be aware of.
In this guide, you’ll learn about:
- The benefits of batch cooking
- Practical and safety tips for batch cooking and freezing
- What does and doesn’t freeze well
- 5 easy, reliable, and tasty batch cooking ideas
The benefits of batch cooking
At Huel, we’re big fans of any food prep that saves you time and money while still being healthy. Batch cooking ticks all those boxes.
Here are the top benefits of batch cooking:
- Saves money: Food bought in bulk tends to be cheaper — whether that’s rice, dried beans, or fresh veg. So, if you cook up large quantities and then freeze them, your overall outlay should be less. If you know you have ready-made meals in the freezer, you’re also less likely to make impulse buys at the supermarket on the way home from work or uni.
- Saves time: While prep for batch cooking obviously takes slightly longer (you’ll need to chop more onions, veg, or whatever else), you won’t need to cook anything on all the days you eat your pre-prepared meals.
- Often healthier: Assuming you use whole foods in your batch cook recipes, your meals should generally be healthier than alternatives such as supermarket microwave meals or takeaway dinners.
- Makes meal planning easier: If you have a few different meals in your freezer, it’s easier to plan out your weekly meals. You might only need to cook ‘fresh’ meals two or three nights a week, then you can warm up your freezer meals on the other days.
- Reduces waste: If you cook all the ingredients you buy and freeze extra portions, you’re much less likely to waste good food. That’s good for your bank balance and the planet.
- Avoid cooking stress: If you find you’re often stressed deciding what to eat (and running to the local shop for missing ingredients), batch cooking is a game-changer. You know you’ve got dinner sorted - it just needs a few minutes in the microwave.
Batch cooking essentials: key safety and practical tips
It’s generally pretty easy to batch cook and freeze your meals. But it’s helpful to know some essential ‘best practices’ to make sure your food stays good.
Check freezing times
Most batch-cooked meals can be stored for up to three months in your freezer. If your freezer is working well, cooked meals can be stored indefinitely. However, the taste and quality can still change over time, and they’ll become less palatable.
Cool then freeze
After your food is cooked, leave it to cool to room temperature before freezing. Putting warm foods in the freezer raises the temperature, so the appliance will use more energy to keep things cold.
Divide into portions
If you’ve made a big batch of curry, lasagne, chili, or anything else, it’ll be a lot harder to divide into portions once frozen together. Put meal-size portions in separate tubs.
Label them up
Buy some erasable freezer labels. Write what’s inside the box and the date you cooked it. This helps with identifying your meals easily and means you can quickly see how long it’s been in the freezer for.
You don’t need fancy tubs
You can, of course, buy batch cooking boxes if you want, but it’s also fine to re-use takeaway containers, ice cream or yoghurt tubs, and any other clean receptacle with a lid. Freezer bags are also fine for some kinds of batch cooking recipes, such as chillies or curries (but less suited to things like soup or lasagne).
Defrost properly
Generally, it’s best to fully defrost your meals first before reheating (in the microwave or on a hob). If you can remember, take the portion out of the freezer the night before you plan to eat it and defrost it overnight in the fridge.
But we get it - that’s not always possible. If reheating a meal from frozen in a microwave, transfer the food into a microwave-safe bowl, cover, and blast on high for at least three minutes. Stir, then microwave for one more minute and check the temperature. Keep stirring, then microwave for a minute until heated through.
You can also freeze batches of meal components
Freezing is a great way to store components of many meals, and thereby save time when it comes to cooking. For example, you could chop a whole bag of onions in one go, then freeze them in tubs or freezer bags and pull them out every time you need them. The same goes for other common ingredients like garlic or ginger.
If you buy dried beans, chickpeas, or lentils in bulk, you can cook whole bags in one go, then store them all in smaller tubs in your freezer. This often works out cheaper than buying lots of tins.
What types of food work (and don’t work) for batch cooking?
In principle, practically any food can be cooked in batches and frozen. It’ll be perfectly safe to eat once reheated. However, some foods don’t freeze as well, and may not look or taste so good after a few weeks at -18°C.
What sorts of batch-cooked meals don’t freeze well?
The following foods can certainly be frozen, but might not be so palatable when re-heated:
- Salads, raw vegetables, and vegetables with a high water content
- Cooked pasta
- Milk, cream, or egg-based sauces
- Deep-fried foods
- Soft cheeses
- Foods containing gelatine
- Fully cooked veg
What sorts of batch-cooked meals do freeze well?
The following sorts of dishes tend to freeze better:
- Curries
- Chillis
- Stews
- Pies
- Par-boiled veg
- Soups
- Raw chopped onions and garlic
5 batch cooking ideas to try
Need some batch cook ideas? Try out our healthy batch cooking recipes for wholesome meals that are perfect for storing and then reheating.
We’ve included an estimate of the number of servings for each recipe. You’ll want to make sure you have enough tubs to contain them all in the freezer (of course, if you eat a couple of servings on the day you cook, you’ll need fewer containers).
1. Red lentil and squash soup
Soups are ideal for cooking in large batches. Practically any soup will work, but we love the hit of spice in this moreish meal.
This recipe should provide eight servings.
| Ingredients | Method |
|---|---|
| 3 tbsp coconut oil (or any other neutral oil) 4 onions, sliced 4 garlic cloves, chopped 1 (1-inch) piece of ginger, peeled and grated 2 tsp curry powder ½ tsp chilli powder 2 butternut squash cut into cubes 300g (1 ½ cups) red lentils 2L (8 cups) vegetable stock 1 x 400ml tin (1 x 13.5 fl oz can) of coconut milk Salt and pepper, to taste | Gently cook the onions, garlic, and ginger in the oil in a deep pot or casserole. Once softened, stir in the spices and cook for 30 seconds. Add the squash and mix through the spice and onion mixture until combined. Add the lentils and stir through before pouring in the hot vegetable stock. Bring to boil, then simmer for 20 minutes, or until the squash is soft. Pour in the coconut milk and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Use a stick blender to blend the soup until smooth and consistent. Season to taste. |
2. Hearty vegetable stew
This is the kind of comforting batch-cook meal that’s ideal for cold winter evenings.
This recipe should provide eight servings.
| Ingredients | Method |
|---|---|
| 5 tbsp olive oil 1 large onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic 3 carrots diced 3 celery sticks, diced 250g (9 oz) button mushrooms, quartered 1 tbsp cornflour 1 tbsp dried mixed herbs (such as oregano, thyme, or rosemary) ½ glass red wine (or alcohol free substitute) 500ml (2 cups) vegetable stock 2 tins (approx 14oz each) tomatoes 3 potatoes, cubed 200g (1 ½ cups) frozen peas Salt and pepper, to taste | Gently cook the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in the oil in a deep casserole dish. Once softened, stir in the mushrooms and continue cooking until they lose their liquid and take on a golden-brown colour. Stir in the herbs and cornflour, then add the wine and cook to reduce. Stir in the veg stock and tinned tomatoes, then add the potatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 mins until reduced to a thick, hearty texture. Check the potatoes are cooked (add a splash of water and continue cooking until soft if needed). Stir through the peas and simmer for a further 5 mins. Season to taste. |
3. Veggie lasagne
A veggie lasagne is one of our all-time favourite batch cooking recipes. Keen-eyed readers will notice we just advised not freezing pasta or cheese sauces, but this one’s the exception to the rule!
This recipe should provide six servings.
| Ingredients | Method |
|---|---|
| 5 tbsp olive oil 2 large red bell peppers, quartered and chopped into 3-cm (1-in) chunks 1 courgette (zucchini), quartered and chopped into 3-cm (1-in)chunks 1 aubergine (eggplant), quartered and chopped into 3-cm (1-in) chunks 1 large onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, diced 1 small carrot, diced 1 celery stick, diced 2 tsp dried Italian herbs/oregano 2 tbsp tomato puree 250ml (1 cup) veg stock 2 tins (approx 14oz each) tomatoes 50g (½ cup) red lentils Salt and pepper 9-10 dried lasagne noodle sheets 75g (5 tbsp / 2 ½ oz) cubed butter 75g (½ cup) all-purpose flour 750ml (3 cups) milk 200g (2 cups) cheddar cheese, grated 1 ball (8 oz) mozzarella, grated | Set your oven to 200°C. Combine 1 tbsp of the oil with the peppers, courgette (zucchini), and aubergine (eggplant). Roast for 30 mins. In the meantime, make the sauce. Gently cook the onions, garlic, carrot, and celery in the remaining 4 tbsp olive oil until softened. Stir in the herbs and tomato puree. Pour in the veg stock, tinned tomatoes, and red lentils. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 mins. Remove the roast veg from the oven and stir it into the tomato sauce, then season. To make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan on a low heat. Stir in the flour until you have a thick paste. Continue stirring for a minute or so — don’t let the mixture catch or burn. Now, pour in about 100ml (½ cup) milk and stir with a whisk or wooden spoon until fully integrated with the sauce, then add another 100ml — continue until all the milk is used and you have a consistent sauce. Stir in the cheese, season, and remove from the heat. Get a large oven dish and spoon a quarter of the tomato sauce over the bottom, then cover with a single layer of lasagne (about 3 sheets). Next, add a third of the cheese sauce, before the next quarter of tomato sauce, and another layer of lasagne. Repeat. Once you’ve placed the final layer of lasagne sheets, add the final third of cheese sauce and gently spread the final quarter of tomato sauce over the top. Sprinkle the mozzarella evenly over the mixture, then bake for 40 mins. |
4. Bean chilli
When it comes to batch cooking ideas, you can’t go wrong with a bean chilli. Hearty, healthy, and wholesome, it’s perfect for freezing and reheating whenever you need a hit of plant-based protein (serve it up with brown rice). We’ve added some quinoa for added protein and texture.
This recipe should provide up to 10 servings.
| Ingredients | Method |
|---|---|
| 3 tbsp oil (canola, olive, or avocado) 2 onions, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1 red pepper, deseeded and diced 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp smoked paprika 1 tsp chilli powder 3 tbsp tomato puree 1 x 400g (approx 14oz) tin kidney beans, drained and rinsed 1 x 400g (approx 14oz) tin black beans, drained and rinsed 1 x 400g (approx 14oz) tin borlotti beans, drained and rinsed 2 x 400g (approx 14oz each) tins of tomatoes 500ml (2 cups) veg stock 100g (½ cup) quinoa Salt and pepper, to taste | Gently cook the onion, garlic, and red pepper in a pot with the oil until softened. Stir in the spices and cook for about 30 seconds, then stir in the tomato puree. Next, add all the beans and tinned tomatoes. Stir through, then pour in the veg stock. Bring to a boil, then leave to simmer for 10 minutes. Add the quinoa, then continue simmering for another 15-20 mins. Season to taste. |
5. Chickpea, spinach, and tomato curry
When it comes to healthy batch cooking, this delicious curry really ticks all the boxes.
This recipe should provide up to 8 servings.
| Ingredients | Method |
|---|---|
| 5 tbsp vegetable oil 3 onions, diced 5 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped 3 cm (1 inch) ginger, peeled and grated 2 tsp cumin powder 2 tsp coriander powder 2 tsp chilli powder 1 tsp turmeric 2 x 400g (approx 14oz each) tin tomatoes 3 x 400g (approx 14oz each) chickpeas 2 tsp salt ½ tsp sugar 750g (1 ½ lbs) washed spinach | Gently cook the onion for 10-12 mins until golden but not caramelised. Stir in the garlic and ginger and fry for a further 3 mins. Stir in the spices for 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes, chickpeas, salt, and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes until fairly dry. The sauce should be fairly thick, but add in a splash of water if it starts to stick. Stir through the spinach and cook for 5 mins until fully wilted. |
Simple, easy, and tasty batch cooking ideas
By knocking up a couple of batch cooking recipes when you have a couple of hours to spare, you’ll have meals ready to go for several days in advance. That means you can be sure you’ve got healthy lunches and dinners cooked with whole foods - and avoid eating takeaways or junk food.
And on those days when you don’t fancy defrosting dinner, Huel is another great option for meals that don’t require loads of prep and planning. Our nutritionally complete powders and hot meals contain all the macronutrients and micronutrients your body needs. They’re also long-lasting, take seconds to prepare, and taste delicious too.
Words by Len Williams
