20 recipe ideas to make meals in advance

• Chicken Burrito Bowl
• Chicken Lasagna
• Slow Cooker Carnitas
• Beef Stew
• Fish Sticks
• Vegetarian Burritos
• Meatball Curry
• Barbecue Meatloaf
• Veggie Calzones
• Slow Cooker Pork with Spiced Apples
• Slow Cooker Sausage and Potatoes
• Slow Cooker General Tso’s Chicken
• Slow Cooker Broccoli Cheddar Soup
• Oven-Baked Chicken and Broccoli Mac and Cheese
• White Chicken Chili
• Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup
• Chicken Pot Pie
• Chicken Enchilada Casserole
• Crustless Quiche
• Chicken Burrito Bowl

Chicken Burrito Bowl

A hectic day leaves you drained by 5 p.m., but you and your family still need to eat. There are plenty of quick-fix dinners, such as One-Pot Pasta, a baked potato or a quick egg dish, but you can make your life even easier by cooking meals in advance. Whether you make dinners weeks ahead and store them in the freezer, or just a few hours in advance by prepping the ingredients in the morning for the slow cooker or oven, you’ll be thankful when you get home and don’t have to put in a lot of effort for a hearty meal.

Chicken Lasagna

Lasagna is a classic make-ahead recipe for a reason — the flavours simply develop the longer it sits, and it freezes wonderfully — but if you’re looking for something a little different, try a chicken lasagna with a white sauce instead of the traditional tomato. Make this meal even easier on yourself by using shredded rotisserie chicken, no-boil pasta and pre-shredded cheese. You can cook this lasagna on a Sunday and serve it on a Tuesday without any worries (or pop it in the freezer).

Slow Cooker Carnitas

Sure, you could just brown some ground beef with packaged seasoning to make tacos — but that’s not nearly as tasty nor as easy as popping pork shoulder in the slow cooker with some vegetable oil and a handful of spices. Add a stack of warm tortillas, rice and a salad for a vegetable, and you’ve got a meal your family will clamour over.

Beef Stew

If you have 20 minutes in the morning, you have enough time to make this stew in the slow cooker. Chunks of rich beef meat simmer for eight hours alongside nourishing rutabaga, carrots, celery and potatoes for a hearty meal that feels just right when there’s a chill in the air. Add a loaf of bread on the side to dip into the soup.

Fish Sticks

When you want to make meals ahead of time, the freezer is your best friend. Kid-friendly fish sticks can be made in advance and frozen until you want to bake them — and they’re much healthier than the store-bought version. This recipe uses a mild white fish, like tilapia, that’s coated with panko and Old Bay for a kick. Add a sauce, such as tartar, cocktail or ranch on the side for dipping.

Vegetarian Burritos

Being a vegetarian doesn’t mean you can’t make meals in advance. Wrap up your favourite veggies — perhaps corn, zucchini and bell peppers, as this recipe suggests — with rice and beans in a whole-wheat wrap, and stack them in the freezer for easy grabbing. Pair it with the suggested cilantro pesto for a little extra flavour.

Meatball Curry

Give your dinner a little spice with a meatball curry, formed with ground chicken or turkey to make the meal a little healthier. Roll the meatballs in advance and par-cook them — that is, cook them partially by either sautéing or baking — and then freeze them in a single layer on a sheet pan. Once frozen, toss them all in a gallon-sized freezer bag. When you’re ready to eat, the tomato-based sauce can be whipped up in just a few minutes.

Barbecue Meatloaf

Most meatloaves are topped with a ketchup-based sauce, but this twist on a classic instead features a honey-barbecue sauce. It can be made in advance and frozen either baked or unbaked, but give it enough time to defrost before baking if you decide to freeze it unbaked. When done, add a potato on the side, whether mashed, baked or roasted, for a home-style meal that’s bound to please the whole family.

Veggie Calzones

No one wants to deal with their kids fighting over the last slice of pizza, so shape those pizzas into handheld calzones and stick them in the freezer for an easy make-ahead pizza night. This particular calzone recipe is not only vegetarian, but has a flavourful twist thanks to a dough stuffed with Mediterranean ingredients, such as feta cheese, Kalamata olives, roasted red peppers and artichoke hearts. If you like meat in your calzone, add pepperoni or sausage to your liking.

Slow Cooker Pork with Spiced Apples

This recipe is a make-ahead double whammy! Not only do you prep the ingredients in advance and package them up in a freezer bag for later use, but then you simply arrange the frozen ingredients, which include a pork loin, sliced apples and spices, in a slow cooker and let it simmer for hours. Not only will this taste delightful, but it will make your home smell amazing.

Slow Cooker Sausage and Potatoes

You really can’t get any easier for a make-ahead meal than a five-ingredient recipe that goes into the slow cooker. Combine smoked pork sausage (or the flavourful sausage of your choice), potatoes, onions and Creole seasoning (add it to your desired level of spice!) with a can of cream of mushroom soup, and eight hours later, you’ll have a hot, filling dinner, straight from the slow cooker.

Slow Cooker General Tso’s Chicken

Chinese food takeout is mighty delicious, but it’s also hard on your wallet and your waistline. Luckily, your slow cooker can create a saucy General Tso’s chicken all on its own. In fact, with the addition of fresh green onions and sesame seeds, sprinkled on once the chicken is cooked, this homemade version will beat any takeout. Serve the chicken over freshly steamed rice and a side of steamed broccoli for a full meal.

Slow Cooker Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Fill your belly with a soul-nourishing soup — specifically, a creamy broccoli-cheddar soup. Made in the slow cooker, this soup recipe is rich with vegetables, including broccoli, carrots and onions, but made even tastier with half-and-half and cheddar cheese. It cooks for eight hours, though you must be around to add ingredients in stages. When it comes down to it, though, this is a flavourful make-ahead dinner with practically no effort from you.

Oven-Baked Chicken and Broccoli Mac and Cheese

If you’re looking for a meal that will please the whole family, this is it. Kids love the mac and cheese, parents love the broccoli and chicken. You can make this meal ahead, whether it’s the night before or in the morning, and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to bake in the oven, or you can stick it in the freezer for a meal in a few weeks. In either case, don’t forget to undercook your pasta slightly on the stove, as it will continue to bake in the sauce in the oven.

White Chicken Chili

Who says chili must have a tomato-based sauce and ground beef? A white chicken chili offers all the flavour of the standard variety, but includes cannellini beans instead of kidney, chicken instead of beef, plus green chilis and cilantro. This dish can be made in a Dutch oven, and then frozen in smaller portions, or you can toss everything in a slow cooker and let it simmer all day.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Soup

Butternut squash is nutritious, and bacon is delicious—put them together in a creamy soup, and you can’t really get a better meal. You can make this butternut and bacon soup whenever you have time and freeze it, either as a family-sized meal or in individual portions. Defrost it when you’re ready to eat and sprinkle a little crumbled goat cheese and chopped chives for a colourful meal.

Chicken Pot Pie

An American classic, chicken pot pie is a recipe that was simply made for being frozen. However, this recipe modernizes it a bit and splits it into individual pot pies. Not only does it make it easier to defrost before you bake, but it means your kids won’t be fighting over the last piece! By using puff pastry, you can avoid the tedious process of rolling out your own crust.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Enchiladas are a mouth-watering dinner, but the process of cooking, filling and rolling each enchilada can be daunting. A casserole, which can be made ahead and frozen, lessens the amount of prep work that you need to do when cooking. This enchilada casserole combines the classic south-of-the-border flavours of brown rice, chicken, bell peppers, black beans and a tomato-based spicy sauce.

Crustless Quiche

A delicious quiche is helpful to keep in the freezer to pull out when guests pop by for breakfast or dinner—it works for both! Plus, quiches are so easy to make and freeze beautifully. You can throw in meat or vegetables that you have on hand, but this recipe focuses on onions, broccoli and cheddar cheese. Skipping the crust makes it just a little bit easier.

When it comes to prepping dishes in advance to freeze, pasta casseroles top the list in terms of ease. Any form of pasta, meat and cheese can be combined — you could even throw in veggies, if you’re feeling healthy — but this combination of macaroni, beef and mozzarella is not to be missed. Plus, with just six ingredients, plus salt and pepper, it’s easy-peasy.

Chicken Burrito Bowl

Rice bowls, such as this chicken burrito bowl, are perfect for make-ahead meals that don’t require the use of a freezer. Brown rice, seasoned chicken and lime vinaigrette can all be made a day or two ahead and refrigerated separately, while the other ingredients — corn, black beans and pico de gallo — only require opening a can or container. Toss it all over shredded lettuce, which can be bought prepared in a bag, and it’s an easy dinner for the whole gang.