Learning how to freeze chicken breasts and divide them for meal prep is an easy way to save time, reduce food waste, and make dinners stress free.
With food prices continuing to increase, it’s more and more important to reduce food waste. Meal prepping and portioning off your meats can help stretch food and you save money by wasting less. Now that it’s just my husband and I at home, we really try to make meals that are small enough for two people. Or, that can be frozen and eaten at a later date. We also have a daughter in college locally. To save on her grocery cost, I like to buy chicken and other meats in bulk and portion them off individually or by the pound so they are easy to thaw quickly.
I buy fresh chicken breast in a large pack at Costco then freeze them individually in freezer safe baggies. I used to use a vacuum sealer, but found it to be a little to clunky, slow and also the refills were expensive. This method only takes a few minutes and once the chicken is frozen in individual portions, it’s super easy to grab one or two (or as many as you need) and thaw them in cold water within two hours. I’m able to use less for lighter meals, give our daughter what she needs weekly for meal prepping, and keep track of exactly how much we have left.
If you don’t have a Costco membership, no worries! Grocery stores like Kroger, Meijer, Aldi and more sell chicken in larger family packs as well, and you can watch for when they are on sell to get the most bang for your buck.
Chicken Breast Recipes
Here are a few recipes I use chicken breast for meal prepping!
What You’ll Need:
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How to Freeze Chicken Breasts
Start by getting your supplies ready. Since we are dealing with raw chicken here, we want to do our best to prevent the spread of salmonella. I like to place my colander in the kitchen sink along with my kitchen sheers, place my tongs within arms reach, grab the amount of freezer baggies I will need and open them, and have soap at the ready for hand washing.
Next, I cut open my package of chicken and pour it all in a colander. DO NOT WASH your chicken! This can cause cross contamination and the spread of salmonella according to the CDC. I like to place it in a colander so that any juices can run off of the chicken and straight down the drain. If your chicken breasts are pretty dry, you can skip this step.
Using your tongs and place one chicken breast into it’s own freezer baggie. If you are using chicken tenders instead, place 2-4 in each baggie, depending on how much you think you’ll need at a time.
Once the chicken breasts are in the baggies, take each individual baggie and squeeze out as much air as you can, then seal/close the baggie. Each chicken breast should be as flat as it possibly can and you should be able to fold the baggie over.
Make sure to clean your sink, prep area and utensils thoroughly with a disinfectant cleaner.
Store your individual baggies of chicken in your freezer. Be sure to write the date on each baggie. Boneless, skinless chicken breast can last in the freezer for up to 9 months if they are stored in airtight packaging. I like to stack mine together in a plastic file organizer so I can always see exactly what I have left and can easily grab as many pieces as I need for a recipe or meal prep.
I like to portion all of my meats this way and keep them in individual file organizers (I found these at Target for $5 each) to keep everything nice and organized. If you’d like to see exactly how I keep my refrigerator and freezer clean and organized, check out How to Clean a Refrigerator and Organize it HERE!
How to Thaw Frozen Chicken Breasts Safely
To thaw chicken breast from frozen safely, place them in their baggies in cold water for 2-3 hours depending on the thickness of the chicken breast. The thinner, the shorter thaw time you will need. Do not thaw chicken on the counter or in warm water. Bacteria can start to grow quickly when chicken starts to get warm without being cooked thoroughly.
The average cost of chicken breast at this time is a little over $4 per pound.
Yes. At Sam’s and Costco, the average price of boneless, skinless chicken breasts is around $3 per pound.
Raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts can last up to 9 months in the freezer if wrapped tightly.
Yes! Follow the same instructions for freezing chicken breasts to freeze other meats as well.
Wondering how long you can store chicken breasts and other foods in your freezer safely. Check out my Freezer Storage Charts that you can download for free and keep on your phone or print out for quick reference.