Yeah, I was a little surprised when she said she ‘coined it’ and it’s taking the world by storm; this is a lifestyle for many with very little resources-not as a trend- but for survival.
I try to keep my freezers super organized. One freezer is just meat and it’s separated into different types with boxes and bins. The other freezer is mostly fruit and veggies, breads, etc. I don’t buy many prepackaged foods, mainly just ingredients, and we generally eat leftovers as we go. I’m currently working on my canning skills so I can also fill my pantry with homemade items. It’s a fun hobby!
This is so interesting to me, thanks for this. I also enjoy watching people go 30 days or more without grocery shopping and still being able to feel their families 3 meals a day like normal 👏🏼
One good thing about having so many mouths to feed is that it can make light work of eating through a freezer lol. You’re doing such a great job and giving me lots of inspo❣️
I have done this for the last 4 months! First we moved in to our in-law's and needed to use up 3 freezers of food. Now we are all moving out of state together and have 3 freezers of my in-law's food to go through! Whenever I need to eat through a freezer or pantry, I do not allow myself to buy any groceries except fresh produce, eggs, and dairy. I make my own bread, tortillas, biscuits, etc, and freezers usually have loads of meat. Limiting what I buy really forces me to get creative with what I have!
I'm doing all of your tips from the envelope budgeting, shelf cooking month why not I'll just throw this in as well. I have saved $1,500 so far! Okay it's addicting thank you thank you thank you for everything your channel is about!!!!!
It seems like everyone I know is digging into their freezers and using what they have to beat these crazy gas and grocery prices. Watching you do it too is helping to keep me motivated!
@@TheCartayas I don’t know a whole lot about that but I figured I’d offer what I know- farmers markets seem to be a really good place to find farmers to buy from.
We found a farmer at the local farmers market then used the local butcher to process it. We have a 14 cu ft chest freezer and it takes up about 2/3 of it
Use your air fryer for frozen items like the orange chicken. They come out super crispy and in less time than the oven. I have the exact same one and I love it!!! Perfect for busy nights.
I would throw all of the Mexican type foods in a deep skillet with cheese and half of the hash browns on top like a Mexican style Shepard's pie and serve it with the tortillas. The bread and cinnamon rolls would make a nice cinnamon roll bread pudding with the other half of the hash browns as a side. Maybe a surf n turf style pasta with the shrimp and chicken. The veggie burgers or chicken could go with the stir fry veggies and rice for, well, stir fry lol. Chicken nuggets for chicken parmesan with the croissants on the side, or chicken croissant sandwiches might be yummy.
Yesss I love a good chopped-style clear the freezer/pantry challenge:) just did this with our freezer a few weeks ago once I found out I was pregnant to stock up on fully put together dinners (instead of ingredients) because I knew once 6 weeks rolled around, I’d have zero energy! Weirdly today is 6 weeks and I still have enough energy to cook so just gonna keep stocking the freezer space with dinners until there’s no more energy left 😆
When you live out in the middle of no where like i do, you do shelf cooking all the time! I'm personally glad to have a freezer full of meat. I have chicken breasts for .88 a pound. Hamburger for under $3 a pound and rib eye steaks for under $6 a pound. Try doing that today!
So far I would say: Breakfast: Biscuits & gravy with bacon Egg, cheese & ham croissant Lunch/dinner : Chicken tacos Chicken fried chicken Grilled chicken and stir fry vegs Tomato soup & grill cheese sandwiches Hope that helps 🙂 Love your videos Jordan ♥️
So helpful to see a real freezer and your actual thought process in real time as you go through it and decide what to make. There are a bajillion recipes out there I could look up with the ingredients I have, but it’s most helpful to see your thought process and how you make certain choices (eg: what should I defrost for tomorrow? Could I slow cooker it or do i have the time to cook on the stove? Etc…) And hot dog buns French toast? GENIUS. Thanks Jordan!
My family just bought a small 5 cu deep chest freezer and we love it. We live in an apartment so space is limited but now that we have our small freezer we have a small stockpile of meats and veggies that we can do more shelf cooking! Happy you guys got 1/4 of a cow and showing how you are using your freezer stuff! Can't wait for the next video!
I LOVE THIS! I have moved 14 times in the last 7.5 years (with another move on the horizon) and this is one of the hardest parts for me--going through my freezer and getting creative so I don't have to waste any good food! Thanks for the inspiration!!
Have a few of your friends/neighbors go through and pick out any remaining frozen food you have left by the week of your move. I know it sounds weird but it's doing 2 jobs for you: helping you clear out your freezer, and you're not having to throw all that good food out.
Thanks for the motivation to eat what we have on hand. I'm always shopping/adding to our freezers, and there's rarely much room to add anything. It's hard to balance between wanting to have at least 3 mo food on hand for the family vs. using up what we have.
You have inspired me for years! I/we have spent the last 3 months rotating the foods we buy and now have a great supply of everything we need for, at the very least one full month, as we're coming in to our next "food budgetary" month. I've enjoyed being able to work my finances this way, but you've caused me to think about food (and other things) in the same way. When I turned 30, I thought I couldn't re-learn how to be productive and have my home be functional. This is my 35th year and I am truly starting to enjoy life.
Love it! We are organic farmers mostly cash crop. But we do do pork, beef, and chicken just enough for our family and a couple of family friends. It’s legit the best way to go and the cheapest. Plus we know what goes into our meat!
Love your channel!! I truly admire all that you do, and all that you work so hard to accomplish each day - you are am amazing woman, mom and a true inspiration!!
Yes I had to learn the hard way that kids just want something simple and tasty. I have learned so many different ways to do things with a few meats it's crazy. I used to try fancy too
I can't wait to see part two! I hope you still show us how you ate your way through the igloo freezers and clean/reorganize for the beef. I absolutely love the idea of eating through my freezer to eliminate food/money waste! Things get lost in the frozen abyss.
Jordan Dear, I think you've just given me the motivation I've needed for a looong time. I must go through my freezer‼️😇Thank you!!! Your such a Momma, not only preparing dinner for everyone, but having it all ready for them. It would've been so easy to take the easy card, I admire you. God bless you & Yours 💪✝️
Jordan you are an inspiration. Simple things can make a meal that your family will love. Please make more like this. It helps when you are creative with it and you are a champ!
In an effort to be more frugal, less wasteful and organised, I bought clear plastic tubs (k-mart) and labels (Etsy) to sort my fridge and freezer. This has made it so much easier to see what’s in there and to help manage food usage. I also plan my meals around those foods so they get used before they go off. The bonus is not having to think about what’s for dinner because I’ve planned it!
I love how creative you are! Shelf cooking is such a good idea. I always take inventory of my food prior to grocery shopping, it has helped me save so much money! Thanks for the video and tips Jordan! 😁
I love that jordan repurposes food right away. So much better than it getting lost in the fridge and you have to remember how long it was there. I have started making my husband freezer lunches especially when we only have enough leftovers for 1 or 2 meals.
I have the exact same air fryer and I love it. My little mini oven when I don’t want to heat up the house. I would recommend laying tinfoil down on the bottom to help clean up messes that spill
Try serving random things in different cups of a muffin tray (or a few)and letting your kids help themselves! Its such a fun way to do a clean out the fridge/freezer night!
Hi Jordan, All your meals look so amazing! You gave me some great meal plan ideas. Shelf cooking is a must lots of days. The babies are getting so big, so adorable.
We have been trying to keep a use up bin on top left shelf. Then put a basket for jan, feb, mar (3 mo)etc for meats use by dates. It has really helped so food isn't wasted. Hope someone can use this idea. Turkeys and hams go in bottom basket. Also, use up stuff gets moved to regular frig freezer.
Besides the typical whole meals you can make it might be fun to have a “Freezer foods mash-up/buffet” dinner where everyone chooses from random leftover items cooked up all at once 😁
I never gave my family choices when I pulled out freezer items 😂 I just cooked what I had, one choice 😳😬 but doing a couple at a time sounds fun! Now my son has a toddler, so I’m pretty sure, it’s a buffet of 🐓 nuggets and 🍉 🍌 🍓🥚🥪🥓🥞🥔🍜
First thing I would do is get out anything you can use for snacky lunches! The croissants and the pretzel bites with the lunch meat, guacamole and salsa etc!
I watched this, then an hour later, my husband found some SUPER stale hot dog buns in the freezer and was going to throw them out. I was like, “💡! No, I’ll make French toast!!” NEVER would have thought of that without you, and my kids loved it. Thank you!
We take our hot dog buns , butter the inside, sprinkle with dried parsley or favorite herb. Cut halves in half (having 4 pieces per bun length wise). Bake on cookie sheet in oven at 400 degrees for 5-10 minutes or until they are lightly golden brown. I like mine crunchy...you now have some really nice, cheap breadsticks.
This may sound gross to some- my childhood school cafeteria ladies would take leftover hotdog buns, brush with olive oil, sprinkle with mozzarella and add pepperoni. They would bake and serve with pizza sauce and call them pizza dippers. We loved them as kids!💜🌵🍕🌭
I’m so greatfull for you! One of my biggest stresses in life is food! I hate cooking and figuring out what to have for dinner everyday is such a sole sucking job to me most of the time. I’m hoping to put all your great advice to good use so that I can free up a lot of my kitchen time. 😊
Love it! I always use up all the food from our chest freezer before our summer vacation trip. Then I unplug it and defrost it during vacation and I clean the whole freezer out with vinegar spray, then restock it when we come back home. We also like to buy a quarter cow from a local farmer!
Also I keep a list in my planner of everything in my freezer. One column is store bought items (meat, fries, etc) and the other column is home cooked items (casseroles, bread). I try to use older stuff first.
We got a half a cow last year…. So glad we did!! We also got a deer gifted to us that I use basically like beef so only been buying chicken and fish. Has saved us a ton of money for our family of 8.
i love my slow cooker i prep everything the evening before and mix and switch on in the morning along with making the dough for your rustic bread to pop in the oven just before dinner
I’m literally doing the same with my chest freezer, we’re moving across the country and I’m determined to use this all up! Most of it Is meat, and my husband is stoked to get to use his smoker
I got rid of my deep freezer years ago just cause food will get buried and forgotten. 😅 I find that biweekly shopping trips with lots of fresh produce and fresh meat saves me the hassle of accidentally forgetting what I have! But I do want a upright freezer, been looking into buying half a cow also good luck on your challenge!
Getting an upright freezer was the smartest thing we ever did. Lost about $300 meat one time when electric was out for a week, but overall it has saved us so much!
We had to get rid of our old chest freezer (about 25 yrs old) right after a wildfire hit my home county and the power was shut off for about 30 hrs. The upright freezers take up less room for sure, just don't put them in the garage because they can get warm really quickly and shut off if anywhere near the vehicles.
Buying bulk direct from the farmer not only is awesome for you…it’s great for the farmer! You reduce middleman costs and help them make a better living! As a farmer myself, I love to see this happening!
It may be the chef in me but be careful reheating things more than once. Too many passes through the temperature danger zone makes it easier and easier to get food poisoning. I only reheat once. Also, I never would’ve thought about using my waffle iron for cinnamon rolls! That’s completely genius.
@@XEveryoneLovesEmilyX It’s the temperature a food hits where bacteria growth happens. The more often you pass through it or the longer a food sits in it, the more likely foodborne illness is to occur.
Chicken: crockpot BBQ, with salsa, stir fry, fried rice, chicken noodle soup; breakfast croissants, shredded BBQ beef or pork burritos (whatever was in that one bag.). 😁
My husband and I are getting a quarter of a beef from his parents in a week we did this last year and love it yes it's a lot $ up front but alot cheap in the long run .
Shelf cooking has been happening for a 100 years. Our Grandmothers used to can everything as well as dry things for storage in the summer and fall. They also bought flour and dry goods in bulk...this is not a new idea for lots...perhaps for people who are used to just weekly shopping and not storing anything?
I think people are so used to processed pre packaged food, and buying each days groceries on their way home from work. Very expensive and not at all good for your health! I shop weekly, but I do buy meat in bulk (got half a cattle beast coming at Easter time), and also seasonal veges when they are on special. I also buy the biggest containers of dry ingredients as possible. The savings really add up (I've saved $3000 per year the last two years simply by changing our grocery spending habits) and it's so much better for our health to be eating better.
Last month I challenged myself to use only half of my budget for groceries allowed and I succeeded I plan on doing it again this month reinventing my l/overs to totally different meals is what I did
The stop motion feel to some of the segments was really cool! Also, ice been trying to do the same thing, and today is my first store visit in a month. 😊
Not feeling very confident but I’m gonna try this . I am such a recipe follower and like to color in the lines, so the thought of this seems overwhelming to me. But at the same time I need to try because my freezer is full of food and it needs to be cooked up. Thanks for making this video Jordan
You got this! You can also go to a site like All Recipes and type in the ingredients you have to find a recipe that matches what you have in your home!
We bought a 1/2 cow for our family of 9, about 6 months ago. I loved having fresh beef on hand so much that we just bought another 1/2 cow! It is awesome to have so much farm fresh meat. We are also buying 2 whole pigs.
Self cooking is exactly what I'm doing right now, I always doing that from 1st January until the freezer is empty to restart, its a challenge when you start to come to the end of food :) We are now starting to see the end of food in our freezer and pantry :)
This is perfect timing because we also bought a cow and I need to do the same. I'm also nursing and pumping tons of milk that I'm trying to find space for in the freezer too.
As empty nesters we don't buy a lot of bulk meat other than ground beef, but we do have two freezers that are basically full. We get our meat from a local processor so we know it will be good.
I love all your videos and wish I'd found you years ago when my 6 kids were younger! Here's a tip for your enchiladas: brush a thin layer of oil on your filled tortillas with a pastry brush before pouring the sauce on top. The sauce won't absorb as much into your tortillas and the texture is so much better!
