What’s in your freezer??

One of the best ways I have found to save money on real food is to stock up on it when prices are good. We buy at least a quarter of a cow at a time and store the meat. We butcher our own pigs & keep 2 whole pigs worth of meat in the freezer at a time. We also butcher our own chickens & keep enough for at least 2 to 3 per week for the year! When peppers are in season, I slice or dice them and freeze them. I saute mushrooms in butter and freeze them in muffin tins & then pop them out into plastic bags. I freeze whole and chopped tomatoes. I freeze ice cube trays full of minced garlic, diced onions, and herbs and pop them out into bags. We currently have 27 jars of chicken broth in our freezers! (Yes, we have a lot of freezers! My dream is to build a walk-in!). 🙂

So, with all of that frozen food, how do you keep track of it all and know what-to-cook-when? Well, there are a couple of ways to do it.

The Card File System

I have used a little “recipe card box” kind of thing, and wrote down each item that was in my freezers on an individual index card. When I used something, I would throw away that card. When I added something new to the freezer, I would write a new card.

The pros: This is easy. Keep it out in the kitchen, and you’ll remember it.

The con’s: It’s wasteful–you’re throwing away a lot of index cards! If you don’t have index cards or a little recipe card box, you’ll have to buy them. Kids love boxes full of index cards. They love to dump them out and create an organizing nightmare for Mommy (ask me how I know ;)).

The Excel (or Numbers) Sheet

This is what I used today. I make a separate sheet for each topic (Vegetables, Poultry, Fruit, etc.). I type in what’s in the freezers, where it’s at, the size/quantity, etc.

The pros: Not wasteful. Less painful on the hand (no writing, just typing!). It’s modern. 🙂 

The con’s: You have to actually open the document and use it. If your computer dies and you didn’t back it up, you’re toast. And we all know that toast is bad. 🙂

The piece of paper on the fridge

This is an easy method–just write it all down and post it up on your fridge. Cross things off when you use them.

The pros: Simple. No elaborate system. You don’t have to buy anything to make this work. It’s in front of you every day.

The con’s: It’s hard to add to. What happens when you freeze 25 lbs of fresh spinach and there’s no more room to write that? 😉

The white board on the fridge

An alternative method to the piece of paper would be a white board. Write your freezer inventory down on the white board and hang it up on your fridge. I do this for my fresh fruits & veggies–to remind me what I need to use up quickly. 

The pros: Easy, in your face. Inexpensive (I picked up a small magnetic white board for $2 at Target the other day).

The con’s: You have to buy something. One touch from the kids & your entire freezer inventory could disappear. 🙂 Most magnetic white boards are lame-o and end up falling off the fridge. Look for white boards that already have the magnets on them (not the sticker magnets), or white boards with a magnet over the whole back. I think a magnetic ipad would be even better, though it would cost a little more than $2!

I use my freezer inventory for the following purposes:

1. To make sure we’re using up the things in the bottom of the freezer.
2. To know what we have on hand to cook for dinner.
3. So that we will spend less on groceries. (“Waste not, want not”)
4. To know what I need to freeze when things are in season (i.e. I have 13 bags of frozen strawberries…it’ll be ok if the strawberry lady doesn’t have any flats left this week at Farmer’s Market. :))
5. So that I can remember to use those odd things–we currently have a goose, 2 ducks, pork back fat (to make lard), lots of chicken liver, etc. Now it’s time for me to research how to make some chicken liver pate and how to roast a tender duck so that I can mimic The Farmer’s favorite duck omelet from Meriwethers. Mmm. I love Meriwethers!

Some details to add to your freezer inventory:

1. What the item is.
2. Where it’s at. Which freezer. Or, you might even add your canned foods or dry foods to your inventory–so add the location.
3. Quantity/Size. Do you have a quart of stock, or a gallon? A large bag of strawberries, or just a few berries?
4. Notes
5. Maybe when you want to use it by.
6. Maybe the date you froze it (first in, first out).
7. Maybe some meal ideas for that item.

I use these categories in my freezer inventory:

• Beef
• Seafood
• Chicken/Poultry
• Pork
• Lamb
• Meal Additions (this is where I write down things like Tomato Sauce and Sauteed Mushrooms–that need to go with something and will not be served alone)
• Veggies
• Fruits
• Juices
• Stocks
• Cheeses
• Staples (Things like yogurt cultures, cubes of garlic, chives, etc.)

Do you keep a freezer inventory? If so, do you have any suggestions to share?

This post is a part of Fight Back Friday