charlys-room: Easy Big Batch Beef Recipe

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of working with both Canadian Beef and Safeway grocery stores, where I took a tour of the meat department at my local store and learned a lot of wonderful things about Canadian beef. One of the things I was able to come away with was this FANTASTIC recipe for BIG BATCH BEEF. This is a recipe that I think every family should have and let me tell you why.

As a mom of a busy family, just like you, I know how rushed it can be to get dinner on the table sometimes. I like quick and delicious meals for my family, as well as dishes that don't take a lot of time or steps to prepare. I think this recipe is brilliant because the basic concept is this: you cook a big batch of beef once a month, divide the beef into bags for the freezer, and then you have a 'meal starter' for at least 7 different healthy meal options for your family. How easy is that? I would even suggest cooking as much beef as you can for the freezer to last a month or two. {I cooked and froze over 8 pounds of beef for the freezer at our house.} And to make that grocery budget rock, I would watch the grocery flyers for a ground beef sale to capture savings in money, as well as time!

Ingredients:
4 pounds {2 kg} Ground Beef
4 Each onions and cloves of garlic, minced {or if you don't have time for all that chopping, add in 1 envelope of onion soup mix}.

Directions:
1. Cook ground beef in large, deep skillet or Dutch oven using medium high heat for 9 to 10 minutes, breaking large chunks into small chunks with back of spoon, until browned and completely cooked. Drain in colander. Return to pot and add onion and garlic and simmer until onion and garlic are softened. {Skip cooking onion & garlic if adding onion soup mix.}

2.Spread mixture in a single layer on foil lined baking trays. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until meat is firm. {About 1 hour.}

3. Loosen frozen beef into small chunks. Scoop meal-sized portions into freezer bags or sealable containers.{I used medium size Ziploc bags. They hold 2-3 cups each.} Freeze for up to 3 months.

Please remember: Cook all ground beef thoroughly to an internal temperature of 160 F or 71 C. Test temperatures with digital instant read thermometer.

Never eat ground beef rare.

Now you have the base for at least 7 meals that are easy to prepare, kid-friendly, and delicious. I will be sharing more recipes in upcoming posts, but to get this little BIG BATCH BEEF Party started, here are the first 2 recipes for family-friendly food made with BIG BATCH BEEF from the freezer.

Sloppy Joes.