1 Hour Freezer Meal Prep During a Pantry Challenge

Hey everyone! I’m Carrie from Keep It Simple DIY, and today I want to share my absolute favorite freezer meal prep strategy. I made 9 freezer meals PLUS prepped 5 pounds of cooked ground meat ready to use – all in just ONE HOUR.

Yes, you read that right. One hour!

The secret? Strategic planning and sticking to ONE type of ingredient: ground meat.

Why Ground Meat is the Perfect Freezer Prep Strategy

I used to spend hours making freezer meals, juggling different recipes that required the oven, the stovetop, the slow cooker – it was exhausting! I’d have pots and pans everywhere, multiple cooking methods, and by the end, I was completely burned out.

Then I discovered the power of strategic theme-based meal prep.

Here’s what makes ground meat perfect for quick freezer prep:

All cooking methods are similar (mostly stovetop)
Quick cooking time
Easy to portion
Versatile for multiple recipes
Can work on several recipes simultaneously
Minimal equipment needed
Budget-friendly

1 Hour Freezer Meal Prep During a Pantry Challenge pin

What I Made Today

Starting at 11:43 AM, I set out to create as many meals as possible in one hour. Here’s what I accomplished:

Freezer Meals:

4 Mini Meatloaves with sauce (my mom’s recipe – my husband’s favorite!)
3 Teriyaki Chicken Meatball pans with homemade teriyaki sauce

Pre-Cooked Ground Meat (Ready to Use):

2 bags of ground beef (seasoned with salt and pepper)
2 bags of Italian sausage (homemade, ready for any recipe)
1 bag of maple breakfast sausage (perfect for quick breakfasts)

Total: 9 complete meals + 5 bags of pre-cooked meat = 14 future meals prepped in 60 minutes!

The Shopping List

Here’s what I started with:

Ground Beef:

6 pounds ground beef (4 lbs for meatloaf, 2 lbs to cook plain)

Ground Chicken:

2 pounds ground chicken (I ground this myself from a mixture of breast and thigh meat we bought on sale)

Sausage:

2 pounds Italian sausage (homemade from a previous batch)
1 pound maple breakfast sausage (homemade, actually closer to 1.5 lbs)

Other Ingredients:

Eggs
Milk (I used powdered milk)
Panko breadcrumbs
Ketchup
Brown sugar
Worcestershire sauce
Soy sauce
Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder
Green onions
Fresh garlic and ginger
Canned zucchini pineapple (from my garden!)
Sweet chili sauce (homemade)
Apple jelly (homemade)
Cornstarch

Products Used in this Video

The Game Plan: How to Prep 9 Meals in 1 Hour

The key to speed is having a strategic plan. Here’s exactly how I did it:

Step 1: Start Multiple Pots Cooking (5 minutes)

I immediately got the Italian sausage and maple sausage on the stove to cook. I used my big burners and let them cook while I worked on other recipes.

Pro tip: Get your longest-cooking items started FIRST. This allows you to multitask effectively.

Step 2: Make the Meatloaf Mixture (10 minutes)

While the sausages cooked, I made my meatloaf mixture in my stand mixer.

Mom’s Meatloaf Recipe (Doubled):

4 lbs ground beef
2 eggs
Milk (made from powder, approximately 1/2 cup)
Panko breadcrumbs
Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder
1 cup ketchup

Mixer tip: If you’re not making meatloaf or meatballs in a stand mixer, you’re missing out! It’s the easiest method and ensures everything is evenly mixed without overworking the meat.

I mixed on low speed just until combined – overworking ground meat makes it tough.

Step 3: Shape the Meatloaves (10 minutes)

I had pre-labeled my freezer pans (I love these half-size pans for our family of two!), so shaping was quick:

Rough estimate about a pound of meat per pan
Press into the pan
Flatten slightly so sauce can reach the edges later

Why small pans matter: These half-size pans are perfect for a family of two. We get two dinners plus one leftover. No eating the same thing for a week!

Step 4: Make the Meatloaf Sauce (5 minutes)

While my hands were still messy from the meatloaf, I made the sauce:

Meatloaf Sauce (Tripled):

1.5 cups ketchup
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

I tripled the recipe because I have more surface area with four small loaves versus two large ones.

Storage hack: I put the sauce in small bags and then all four sauce bags into one large bag. This keeps them together in the freezer so they don’t get lost!

Step 5: Package the Cooked Sausages (10 minutes)

By now, the maple sausage was done. I:

Turned off the heat
Let it cool slightly
Packaged it in a labeled freezer bag

Why I pre-cook breakfast sausage: Meat is always what takes the longest to cook. Having pre-cooked sausage means breakfast casseroles are truly “dump and go”!

Then I did the same with the Italian sausage.

Step 6: Start the Ground Beef Cooking (2 minutes)

I got both pounds of plain ground beef on the stove with salt and pepper. These would cook while I made the chicken meatballs.

Seasoning tip: I season with just salt and pepper because these can go into ANY recipe – tacos, spaghetti, casseroles, soups, etc.

Step 7: Make Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs (15 minutes)

This recipe is SO good. Here’s how I made it:

Chicken Meatballs (Doubled):

2 lbs ground chicken
2-3 tablespoons soy sauce
Remaining panko breadcrumbs (supposed to be 2/3 cup, but I used what I had)
Pepper (no salt – there’s enough in the soy sauce)
2 tablespoons green onions
Garlic and ginger
Crushed zucchini pineapple with juice

My twist: I used my homemade canned zucchini pineapple! I crushed it in my blender and drained most of the juice for the sauce. The zucchini adds veggies to the meatballs, and my husband doesn’t even notice because of the pineapple flavor.

Extra additions: I threw in some leftover sweet chili sauce and apple jelly I had in the fridge. Waste not, want not!

I added a bit of ground oats to compensate for not having enough breadcrumbs.

Mixed everything in the stand mixer (easy cleanup since I’d just used it for meatloaf!).

Step 8: Make Teriyaki Sauce (10 minutes)

While checking on the ground beef, I made the teriyaki sauce:

Homemade Teriyaki Sauce (Doubled-ish):

Minced garlic
Minced ginger
1/2 cup brown sugar (approximately)
1 cup soy sauce (approximately)
Pineapple juice from the canned zucchini pineapple
Water to thin
Cornstarch slurry to thicken

I brought it to a boil, then whisked in the cornstarch slurry until it reached the perfect consistency.

Why homemade teriyaki? It tastes better, has no weird additives, and I can control the sweetness level. Plus, I’m using ingredients I already have!

Step 9: Roll Meatballs and Assemble (10 minutes)

I used a cookie scoop to portion the meatballs (consistency!), then rolled them with my hands.

I fit 12 meatballs per small pan, which gave me 3 full pans. The recipe says it makes 20 meatballs with 4 per serving, so three pans made perfect sense for my pan size.

Step 10: Package Everything (5 minutes)

Ground beef went into labeled bags
Meatballs in pans (I didn’t add sauce yet – I’ll add it when cooking)
Everything labeled with contents and date

Step 11: Clean Up (Remaining time)

I finished at 12:42 – exactly 59 minutes! I even had time to wash all the dishes and wipe down the counters.

Why This Method Works So Well

1. Single Ingredient Focus

By using only ground meat, I could:

Use similar cooking techniques
Multitask efficiently
Share equipment (like the stand mixer)
Work on multiple recipes simultaneously

2. Strategic Equipment Use

I had:

4 burners on the stove going at once
Stand mixer for two different recipes
Minimal pans and utensils

3. Smart Timing

Long-cooking items (sausages) started first, quick items (rolling meatballs) done while things cooled.

4. No Oven Required

Adding the oven would have slowed everything down. Everything was stovetop or no-cook assembly.

My Meatloaf Recipe (Mom’s Favorite)

Since my meatloaf is my husband’s favorite and my mom made it all the time growing up, I wanted to share the full recipe:

Ingredients (per 2 lbs):

2 lbs ground beef
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder to taste
1/2 cup ketchup

Sauce (per loaf):

1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Instructions:

Mix all meatloaf ingredients (I use a stand mixer on low)
Shape into loaf
Mix sauce ingredients
When ready to cook: top with sauce and bake at 350°F for about 45 minutes

For freezing: Shape the loaf, freeze it WITHOUT sauce. Store sauce separately in a small bag. Add sauce before baking.

Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs Recipe

This recipe is adapted from several I found online, with my own twists:

Meatballs:

1 lb ground chicken
1-1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon green onions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
2-3 tablespoons crushed pineapple with juice (I used zucchini pineapple)

Teriyaki Sauce:

1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup pineapple juice
Water as needed
Cornstarch slurry (2 tablespoons cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water)

Instructions:

Mix meatball ingredients
Roll into balls (about 1 inch)
Make sauce: combine all ingredients except cornstarch, bring to boil
Add cornstarch slurry and whisk until thickened
When ready to cook: place meatballs in pan, pour sauce over, bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes

Tips for Families of Two

As a family of two, here’s what I’ve learned about freezer meal prep:

1. Use Smaller Pans

Those half-size pans (about half of a 9×13) are PERFECT. We get:

Two generous servings
Usually one leftover
No eating the same thing for days
Appropriate portions

2. Make Variety

When I cook in bulk, I make DIFFERENT meals, not doubles of the same thing. Today I made:

Meatloaf (4 different meals)
Teriyaki meatballs (3 different meals)
Plain ground meat (for future variety)

3. Single-Serve Options

I also love making single-serve freezer meals for days when we want different things.

4. Pre-Cooked Protein

Having pre-cooked ground meat is a game-changer. I can make:

Quick tacos
Spaghetti in minutes
Casseroles
Soups
Anything that needs ground meat

What I’d Do Differently Next Time

Skip the ground meat next time: Since I focused entirely on ground meat today, next time I’ll probably avoid it completely and do a different protein – maybe chicken breasts or pork.

I almost added bacon: I considered baking up bacon (the only way I’ll use it is pre-cooked), but I’m glad I didn’t. Adding the oven would have completely slowed me down.

This is my new method: Instead of making random recipes that require different cooking methods, I’m sticking to this theme-based approach. It’s SO much faster and less stressful.

Storage and Organization Tips

Labeling is everything:

I pre-labeled all containers before starting
Include: Recipe name, date, cooking instructions
Use freezer-safe labels or permanent marker

Grouping items:

I put all meatloaf sauce bags inside one larger bag
Keeps related items together
Prevents small bags from getting lost

Freezer placement:

I’ll stack these flat to save space
Put newest items in back, older items in front
Keep an inventory list on the freezer

The Real Time Breakdown

Let me be honest about the timing:

Prep work before filming:

Got out all ingredients
Pre-labeled containers
Set up workspace

Actual cooking time: 59 minutes (11:43 AM to 12:42 PM)

This included:

Making all recipes
Cooking all meat
Assembling all meals
Washing all dishes
Wiping down counters
Filming everything

Post-filming:

Just needed to make room in the freezer
Everything was done and cleaned up

Why I Love This Method

Minimal burnout: One hour is doable. Three or four hours? That’s when I start avoiding freezer meal prep altogether.

Actually gets used: When I make too many freezer meals at once, they sit in the freezer forever. This amount is perfect – we’ll use them in the next month.

Easy to repeat: This is sustainable. I can do this monthly without dreading it.

Flexible: Don’t like meatloaf? Make meatballs instead. Don’t like teriyaki? Make Italian meatballs. The METHOD works with any ground meat recipe.

Cost Breakdown

Here’s approximately what this cost me:

Ground beef (6 lbs at $3.50/lb): $21.00 Ground chicken (2 lbs at $2.50/lb): $5.00 Italian sausage: Already made from bulk pork Maple sausage: Already made from bulk pork Other ingredients: ~$5.00

Total cost: ~$31.00 Number of meals: 9 complete meals Cost per meal: $3.44

That’s $3.44 per meal for a family of two! And that’s not counting the 5 bags of pre-cooked meat that will make at least 5 more meals.

What to Make Next Time

Since I did all ground meat today, next time I’m thinking:

Chicken breast recipes (maybe different marinades)
Pork chops with different seasonings
Or maybe a soup/stew focus day
Possibly a “dump and go” slow cooker meal day

The key is keeping the theme consistent so the method stays efficient.

Your Turn!

I’d love to hear from you:

Have you tried theme-based freezer meal prep?
What’s your favorite ground meat freezer meal?
What protein should I focus on next?

Drop a comment and let me know!

Ready to Try This Method?

Here’s your action plan:

For beginners:

Start with just 2-3 recipes
Use ground beef only
Allow 90 minutes your first time
Pre-label everything

For experienced meal preppers:

Choose 4-6 ground meat recipes
Get all meat cooking ASAP
Use stand mixer for meatloaf/meatballs
Work on assembly while meat cools
Clean as you go

Essential tools:

Large stock pots
Stand mixer (or large bowl + strong arms)
Half-size freezer pans (or whatever works for your family)
Freezer bags
Labels

Final Thoughts

Freezer meal prep doesn’t have to be an all-day marathon that leaves you exhausted. By being strategic with your theme and focusing on efficiency, you can create multiple meals in the time it would normally take to make one dinner.

The key lessons: