15 Easy Freezer Meals for $75

Want a freezer full of easy dinners without spending a fortune? I used simple ingredients and budget-friendly staples to prep about 15 freezer meals for around $75.

I love having homemade meals ready for the nights when I am tired, busy, or just do not feel like starting dinner from scratch. This freezer meal prep includes homemade pizzas, casseroles, burritos, burrito bowls, and easy family dinners that can go straight from the freezer to the oven, microwave, or stovetop.

If budget-friendly cooking is helpful for your family too, my $25 Grocery Budget Meals and 3-Ingredient Recipes roundups have even more inexpensive meal ideas to save for later.

Watch Me Make These Freezer Meals 🙂

In the video, I’ll show you exactly how I batch prep the ingredients, assemble the freezer meals, and get everything ready to store for later.

1. Homemade Freezer Pizzas

Homemade freezer pizzas are one of my favorite things to have ready because pizza night can get expensive fast. This batch makes four pizzas, and you can change the toppings so they do not all feel the same.

I made cheese, pepperoni, barbecue chicken, and pepperoni with peppers and onions.

Full recipe: Freezer Pizza Meal Prep

These would be great with something fresh from my Pasta Salad Recipes roundup when you want to make pizza night feel a little more complete.

2. Taco Rice Casserole

This Taco Rice Casserole uses some of the ground beef and rice we already batch cooked, then turns them into an easy cheesy dinner loaded with beans, corn, tomatoes, and taco flavor.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups cooked ground beef
• 2 1/2 cups cooked white rice
• 2 tbsp taco seasoning
• 1 can pinto beans, drained
• 1 can black beans, drained
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 can Rotel
• 1/3 cup diced onion
• 1/3 cup salsa
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

1. Add the cooked ground beef, cooked rice, and taco seasoning to a 9×13-inch baking dish.
2. Stir until the beef and rice are evenly coated in the seasoning.
3. Add the pinto beans, black beans, corn, Rotel, diced onion, salsa, and shredded cheddar cheese.
4. Stir everything together until well combined.
5. Cover the baking dish tightly and freeze.
6. When ready to make dinner, bake covered from frozen at 350°F for 45 to 60 minutes, or until completely heated through.

If taco-style dinners disappear quickly at your house too, Chicken Taco Rice, Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet, and Fajita Bowls over Taco Rice are good ones to save for another week.

3. Simple Meatloaf

I made two meatloaves during this freezer prep, which gives me two separate family dinners without having to make the recipe twice.

This is also one freezer meal I prefer to thaw in the refrigerator before baking instead of cooking it directly from frozen. It helps the center cook more evenly.

Full recipe: Simple Meatloaf

Mashed potatoes are always an easy choice with meatloaf, but Easy One Hour Dinner Rolls or Easy Baked Potatoes would work well too.

4. Baked Ziti

Baked ziti is one of my favorite freezer meals because it is inexpensive, filling, kid-friendly, and reheats really well. This one uses only a handful of simple ingredients.

Ingredients

• 1 lb ziti pasta, cooked
• 1 lb ground beef, cooked
• 24 oz pasta sauce
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Instructions

1. Add the cooked ziti to a 9×13-inch baking dish.
2. Add the cooked ground beef, pasta sauce, and diced onion.
3. Stir until the pasta and beef are evenly coated in the sauce.
4. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese evenly over the top.
5. Cover tightly with foil and freeze.
6. When ready to serve, bake covered from frozen at 350°F for 45 to 60 minutes, or until completely heated through.

Serve this with Cheesy Garlic Bread (with Crescent Dough) or Mozzarella-Stuffed Garlic Breadsticks and dinner is basically done.

5. Freezer Burrito Bowls

These freezer burrito bowls are one of my favorite ways to use batch-cooked rice and rotisserie chicken. They work for an easy dinner, but they are also really convenient for lunches.

Ingredients

• 3 to 4 cups cooked white rice
• 2 to 3 cups cooked rotisserie chicken
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 can pinto beans, drained
• 2 cups fajita vegetables
• 2 tbsp taco seasoning
• 1/2 cup salsa

Instructions

1. Add the cooked rice and rotisserie chicken to a large bowl.
2. Add the corn, pinto beans, fajita vegetables, taco seasoning, and salsa.
3. Stir until everything is well combined and the rice is coated in the seasoning and salsa.
4. Divide the mixture between freezer-safe individual containers.
5. Cover and freeze.
6. When ready to eat, remove the lid and microwave until completely heated through.
7. Add your favorite toppings such as cheese, sour cream, avocado, or extra salsa before serving.

For another inexpensive dinner built around rice, One-Pot Teriyaki Chicken and Rice, Italian Chicken and Rice, and Hawaiian Chicken and Coconut Rice are all worth adding to your meal plan.

6. BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

This freezer BBQ chicken could not be much simpler. I like freezing it in a loaf pan because it takes up very little freezer space.

Ingredients

• 3 to 5 cups cooked rotisserie chicken
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce

Instructions

1. Add the cooked rotisserie chicken to a loaf pan.
2. Add the red onion and barbecue sauce.
3. Stir until the chicken is evenly coated.
4. Cover tightly and freeze.
5. When ready to serve, transfer the chicken to a microwave-safe dish and microwave until heated through, or reheat it in a saucepan on the stove.
6. Serve on hamburger buns.

You could serve these sandwiches with one of the recipes from my Not Boring Side Dishes roundup when you want an easy comfort-food dinner without adding much extra work.