13 Freezer Hacks That'll Make Your Life Much Easier

If you don't care for the texture of instant oatmeal but don't have time to cook steel-cut oats on weekday mornings, simmer up a big batch of oatmeal over the weekend, divvy it up among the wells of a muffin tin, freeze, then transfer to a resealable freezer bag. The pucks of oatmeal can be reheated in the microwave.

Overripe bananas can be saved by freezing chunks on parchment paper. This way, they're ready to be tossed in a blender for smoothies, thawed and mashed for banana bread or oatmeal, or blitzed into "ice cream."

The next time you're baking a pie or a pizza, prep a double batch of dough. Tightly wrap the extra batch of dough in plastic wrap, transfer to a resealable freezer bag, and freeze. To use, defrost overnight before rolling out.

Few foods elevate the everyday more dramatically than homemade stock does, but simmering up a batch every time you want to cook soup or stews isn't realistic. Instead, slowly cook a big batch when time permits — be it chicken, vegetable, or beef — and allow it to cool completely, then divvy it up into small portions. We typically freeze some in an ice cube tray (each well of a standard ice cube tray holds about two tablespoons), and some in one-cup portions (carefully fill a resealable freezer bag).

Whole grains like farro, quinoa, brown rice, and wheat berries bring plenty of flavor and fiber to the table, but they aren't the quickest options. When you have extra time, simmer or steam a big batch, let it cool, and then freeze it in preportioned quantities in resealable freezer bags for future meals to come.

Instead of pouring leftover wine down the drain, save it for future use by freezing. Freeze wine in an ice cube tray (each well of a standard ice cube tray holds two tablespoons), transferring the frozen cubes to a resealable freezer bag. It's important to note two things. One, don't wait until wine is past its prime to freeze. Two, while drinking thawed frozen wine certainly won't do you harm, flavor-wise, it's only suitable for cooking.

Freeze homemade dough in premeasured portions. That way, when a craving hits, it's easy to bake off one or two cookies at a time.

In the middle of Summer, many gardeners and CSA share members might curse the explosion of productivity zucchini plants have, but not smart cooks. Grate and freeze extra zucchinis in preportioned resealable freezer bags so that zucchini bread and zoats can be yours, even in the dead of Winter.

Freeze sliced bread to keep it fresh for up to six months.

Control exactly what goes into your frozen burrito by filling and freezing the tortillas yourself before reheating.

Many berries like raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries are readily accessible in the freezer aisle of your supermarket, but others like blackberries, boysenberries, and tayberries are less common. Consider freezing some of these seasonal delights for a rainy day; while they'll lose some of their structural integrity once thawed, they're perfect for adding to pies, oatmeal, crisps, and cobblers, or for making jam.

Fill ice cube trays with cold-brew coffee and freeze. Add these coffee cubes to coffee instead of ice for full-strength iced coffee.

Instead of buying premarinated chicken breasts, flavor chicken with your favorite seasonings in a big batch, divvy up the breasts into resealable freezer bags in servings that'll suit your household (two for couples, more for families), and freeze. Simply defrost and cook for an easy dinner.