BATCH COOKING GUIDE
Top tips to get started
Cooking for your family every day isn’t easy.
That’s why batch cooking is such a great tool for
feeding your family healthy and nutritious meals
BATCH COOKING
without feeling like you are constantly cooking
and making a something new every night. It saves
time, is cost effective and makes those constant
for snacks that little bit easier!
By dedicating a pocket of time every week to
batch cook makes the week easier by having
staples on hand for tasty, wholesome meals and
snacks.
WHAT IS BATCH COOKING?
Batch cooking is an organised way to
prepare meals and snacks for the weeks
ahead. It allows you to have healthy and
nutritious food on hand and saves time
Batch cooking is simply making “a quantity
of something” which you to cook once and
eat several times. Or cooking something in a
large quantity that can be repurposed in
different ways, for example, a veggie loaded
tomato sauce could be used for pasta, pizza,
as a dip, in a stew.
ADVANTAGES TO BATCH COOKING
1. Saves time - you can pull out a meal or snack from the freezer. This is great
for busy school nights, toddler snacks and lunchboxes.
2. Cost effective - it can be cheaper to buy larger quantities of food rather
than a few individual items for a specific meal.
3. Reduces food waste - there is less food waste as you can portion out
effectively when freezing.
4. Healthy, wholesome meals - batch cooking means you will always have
wholesome meals and snacks in the freezer ready to go.
5. Less time cooking - batch cooking reduces the amount of time spent
cooking as you don’t need to make something from scratch every
evening/snack time
WHAT DO YOU NEED?
Here is a list of some basic equipment that will make batch
cooking easier!
1. Large pots and pans - this will make it easier to
double/triple recipes.
2. Zip lock bags for food storage or reusable silicone bags
for flat storing. These take up less room than Tupperware
and are easier to label with the food contents and the use
by dates.
3. Permanent marker to label food and write any specific
instructions for cooking.
4.
Parchment paper - this is really useful for separating
foods like pancakes, fritters, waffles etc (otherwise they
can stick together).
5. Small ice cube trays or larger molds are great for freezing
smaller quantities for babies/toddlers. Once frozen, you
can pop these out and into ziplock bags (as they take up
less space).
SAFE STORAGE & DEFROSTING
When it comes to defrosting and storing food there are some
important rules to follow.
Batch cooked food that is going to be frozen should be
1. cooled down within 2 hours. It can be cooled at room
temperature or by splitting the food into smaller
portions.
2. Do not put warm food into the freezer or fridge.
3. When freezing, clearly label the contents and the use by
date.
4. Defrost food in the fridge or in a dish of cold water. You
can also reheat from frozen in the oven, microwave or
stove top,
5. Reheat food until it is piping hot (at least 80°C for 6
seconds) and then allow it cool down before serving,
References:
https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/chilling
https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/cooking-your-food
Meal Ideas to batch cook
Breakfast Lunch/Dinner
Salmon & Egg Muffins Fish Pie Bites
Banana & Strawberry Oat Bars Chickpea & Sweet Potato Tagine
Fluffy Pancakes Red Lentil Pasta
Peanut Butter Baked Oat Bars Falafel Bites
Spinach Pancakes Sweetcorn & Quinoa Fritters
Pancake Muffins Black Bean Burgers
Apple Waffles Cheesy Broccoli Bites
Banana Pancakes Lentil & Spinach Curry
Banana Breakfast Muffins Sweet Potato Bites
Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal Veggie Loaded Bolognese
Superfood Granola Cheesy Chicken Fritters
Apple Oat Bars Roasted Tomato Soup
Almond Pancakes Fish Nuggets
Chickpea Frittata Muffins Popcorn Chicken
Frittata Muffins High Iron Lentil Soup
Vanilla Pancakes Chicken & Broccoli Balls
Sheet Pan Pancakes Carrot & Cheese Bites
French Toast Casserole Cheesy Pancakes
Chicken Burgers
Veggie Loaded Tomato Sauce
Easy Kebabs
Lentil Bolognese
Pesto Meatballs
Chicken & Vegetable Soup
Potato & Peas Curry
Meal Ideas to batch cook
Sides & Snacks Sweet Delights
Pizza Muffins Cookie Dough Balls
Broccoli & Cheddar Biscuits Granola Bars
Cauliflower Nuggets Raspberry Bliss Balls
Broccoli Balls Yogurt Bark
Sweet Potato & Apple Fritters Chocolate Bliss Balls
Zucchini Squares No Bake Nutty Flapjacks
Creamy Potato Salad Birthday Cake Bliss Balls
Devilled Eggs Carrot Cake Bliss Balls
Carrot & Cheese Crackers Oat & Coconut Bliss Balls
Pizza Crackers Orange & Apricot Oat Squares
Chia Jam Blueberry & Coconut Muffins
Shredded Chicken Strawberry Cheesecake Oat Bars
Tuna & Sweetcorn Fritters Egg Free Banana Bread
Black Bean Dip Oat Flapjacks
Easy Bagels Chocolate & Beetroot Muffins
Easy Hummus Carrot & Apple Muffins
Kale & Carrot Muffins Carrot Cake Bites
Chickpea Crackers 1 Bowl Banana Bread
Herby Couscous Nuggets Strawberry Muffins
Zucchini Tots Vanilla Miffins
Cauliflower Fritters Pumpkin Miffins
Broccoli & Cheddar Muffins Pumpkin Bread
Sweetcorn & Spinach Muffins Lemon & Raspberry Oat Muffins
Zucchini Fritters Chocolate & Tahini Cookies
Apple & Carrot Cookies
Pineapple & Coconut Muffins
Banana & Cardamom Muffins
Protein Banana Bread
where to find our recipes
You can find all of the recipes on previous
pages on the My Little Food Critic App.
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