What meats should I always have in my freezer?

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December 26, 2021

Life is crazy! The kids just got home and they’re all hungry. You have to take them to practice in an hour and you haven’t even had time to think of dinner!

Don't let time take away the chance to eat well with your family. Have these staples on hand and avoid dinner dilemmas in your home.

Easy Dinner Saves

Not sure what to make for dinner later in the week? Always have these versatile items pulled for an easy dinner save.

Ground Beef - Tacos, spaghetti, casserole, sloppy joe, burgers - the possibilities are endless! We ALWAYS have some ground beef thawed and ready to go in the fridge.
Bacon - When in doubt, BLTs, baked potatoes, breakfast, and more....bacon is always good to have on hand.
Burger Patties - Another quick and easy dinner fix that everyone can love.
Breakfast links - Who doesn't love breakfast for dinner anyways?
Italian sausage - Perfect for spaghetti, casserole, pizza, and more! Another quick dinner save.
Ham steak or Smoked pork chops - Cured, all you have to do is heat over the stove and you're set to go!
Pork Chops - Sear on the stove top with some simple seasoning for a juicy and delectable favorite.
Turkey breasts and tenders - Season and cook with your family's favorite recipe - casseroles, skillet dishes, sheet bakes, and more.

Slow Cooker Savers

Keep these items on hand for a quick dinner fix. Throw them in the slow cooker in the morning and have a delicious dinner that evening. Minimal work needed! And no oven required in the heat of summer. :)

Chuck roast - Serve with potatoes, carrots, and onions for the traditional pot roast.
Whole chicken - Chicken broth + wild rice, potatoes, or noodles + carrots, onion, and celery = the perfect chicken soup!
Shoulder roast - Set on low and cook slow with a little bit of water and BBQ sauce for the perfect pulled pork.
Stew meat - Beef broth, carrots, onions, and potatoes make for a warming, traditional stew.
Ribs (Country, Spare, and Short) - Get your napkins and BBQ sauce ready!
Chicken breasts - Cook with your favorite BBQ sauce, salsa, or traditional roast vegetables for a classic meal.

Simple Snacks

Snacks and simple school lunches are important, too. Enjoy these healthy, ready to eat favorites that your kids (and hubbies) will love!

Ham sandwich slices - Eat straight from the fridge or sear in a skillet.
Beef sticks - Which flavor is your favorite?
Summer sausage - Slice up and serve with cheese.
Salami - Perfect on a sandwich or on its own!

We hope this list helps you combat your kids' favorite question - "Mom, what's for dinner?"

No more, "I don't knows!" :)

Is there another freezer staple you keep that we missed? Let us know - comment below. Thanks!

Home Tips

Recipe Ideas

Where to Find Riemer Family Farm Eggs!

Just look for the PINK carton at a grocery store near you! The egg business has been crazy lately to say the least! It seems like every third news story is about the price of eggs and shortages and even thievery of eggs! Who knew there could be so much drama around the humble chicken egg? We partner with a young farm family to produce our seasonally pastured eggs. These hens have a pretty posh life, non-GMO feed, plenty of space, never any cages and are out and about during the growing season. The bird flu outbreak is just another bit of evidence that the industrial food system is very broken! One of the solutions is MORE farmers on the land raising livestock at a family scale and not more concentrated factory agriculture in the U.S. Barns of tens and even hundreds of thousands of chickens are the ones primarily affected by the bird flu for all the obvious reasons! When 150,000 or more birds are together in a barn when one or a few get infected it's a matter of hours before the whole flock is infected and all must be destroyed. Family farms came through for customers during Covid and are proving to be resilient during this current egg problem too! While we are still learning and don't claim to be perfect, we are more sustainable and adaptable than the factory model of farming. Thank you for standing by our farm and other regenerative farms in your area! If you would like to purchase (or dine on) our eggs you can find them at many stores and restaurants! Including: South Central WI: Brodhead Piggly Wiggly Gempeler's Market-Monticello Roy's Market-New Glarus Evansville Piggly Wiggly Oregon Hy-Vee Fitchburg Hy-Vee Cadre restaurant (and others through a distributor) Sunrise Cafe-Monroe N. Illinois: Bull Valley General Store Daily Project Cafe-Algonquin Duck A Diet, Ready to Eat Meals-Huntly Forest Green's Juice Bar-Lake Bluff Just look for the PINK carton. With all the egg shortages from the industrial farms and spiking prices from a fragile industry, our eggs are quite affordable. We will never price gouge. We seek to provide a fair price for both our customers and us. As always you can pick up your eggs on the farm. Please place an order on our website and we will have them ready for you within a day. Make sure that you have Riemer Family Farm as your pickup location.

What meats should I always have in my freezer?

Easy Dinner Saves

Slow Cooker Savers

Simple Snacks

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Where to Find Riemer Family Farm Eggs!

11 Ideas for Cozy Winter Dinners

Madison Locally Sourced Article

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