Right now I think I am in the same dilemma as you. I have meat separated into ziploc bags by type (a bag for bone-in chicken, a bag for beef, a bag for lamb etc) and I randomly grab 2-3 days worth of various proteins to thaw in a bowl. I also don't have much freezer space, and it is starting to become cumbersome as I accrue more meat varieties. I am fairly happy with my system for now though, so I might keep it the same way and just switch from bags to containers.

 

I started using containers from walmart, and stacking them in the freezer/fridge. When I used ziplocks, I had a problem with leaking as meat thawed. Containers stack, and save room. I got two new sterilite ones for like $2.00 at Walmart. I got the idea from Natalie when she posted a picture of their freezer. Its much more organized.

 

I don't know how much ice cream you eat, but I have started saving our gallon sized ice cream containers (are they a gallon?), they make good containers for holding meat. They stack nicely too. You could always ask people on freecycle if they have any ice cream containers to spare...it's a cheap instead having to buy containers. I also save yogurt, sour cream, cottage cheese, etc. type containers to hold liver and organs.

 

Thanks TylersMom for asking this, I too am interested in what everybody does!

 

I buy everything in bulk, so I take out a box at a time and let it all get to the point that I can break it apart. It doesn't have to be completely thawed. From there, I put it into gallon or quart sized freezer bags. I like quart size for most things b/c I can fit 3 items like chicken backs & turkey necks in those bags. Gallon size I use for pork ribs & chicken quarters. I label each bag as to what it has in it.

I pull out meals for the next day by bag. I usually feed boneless in the morning and bone in at night. So, I pull out a boneless hunk or ground or whatever it happens to be and that along with their bone in dinner sits in the sink to thaw all night. From there, the bone in meal goes in a large tupperware on the bottom shelf of the fridge for the day. This keeps any spills contained to the tupperware.

This system works well for us, as long as I remember to pull everything out the night before!

I also keep all of my organ meat frozen! Its a little time consuming, but I make "organ muffins!". I take out their organ and cut it up still partially frozen and put it into my silicone muffin trays. Each "muffin" weighs anywhere from 3-6 oz. depending on what it is. I put the muffins in a plastic baggy labeled with the name according to weight for which dog needs what. I empty that bag by the end of the week and that way I know they get their weekly amount of organ meat. They also like eating them frozen compared to thawed.

 

I buy 1 month worth of food at a time. Once I get home I cut up anything that needs cut up and divide it. I store 5-7 days worth of meals in a big glass food storage container. Then I put all of the containers but 1 in the big upright freezer in the basement. I take out the next container and put it in the fridge a day before I need it so it can thaw.

It was more expensive to get glass containers, but it was worth it to me. I don't like plastic and only use glass or ceramic food storage/plates/cups/mugs etc.

 

Oh cool. So it's ok to thaw a whole weeks' worth of food at once? So long as it all gets used that week?

This is really helpful!

 

These ones don't pop their lids or crack in the freezer. I found this out the hard way after spending money on a few other brands. I believe they are 9.5 cups each and they come in a 2 pack for less than $2.50 :nerd:


Food - Non-Food - Containers - Organization - Ziploc® Brand Containers

 

I pack enough meat/bone/organ for 2-3 days in quart sized containers and feed through it then feed a big bit and repeat. He just gets such a small amount of food that putting a couple pounds of round steak in the frig and feeding through it means he is getting stinky stuff for a couple days. It is fine but why? A whole chicken is enough food for a week and he cannot just eat that anyway as it is far too much bone. So thaw a chicken, partly thaw some sort of organ so most goes back in the freezer, thaw a pack of boneless stuff and divvy it all up. It takes up less room than freezing individual bits of bony stuff and organ anyway and I don't deal with all the big lumps of stuff in one big messy divvy up. I like the tubs better than baggies as they ought to last longer and no leaking when thawed. Then I can use chicken feet if I guessed wrong on how much bone he needs. They are great left in the big bag as a little slam will break off a couple every time.

I find not handling the plastic bins until the contents are partly thawed keeps them from breaking. My original Gladware, 4-1 quart tubs for $3, has been in continuous use for 3.75 years now. One lid has lost part of the tab is all. Amazing stuff.

 

This really isn't a "freezer" suggestion; but more of a fridge suggestion. I use primarily have all 3 of their food in storage bags. I would pull from the freezer a few days at a time to thaw in the fridge. It was driving me crazy because an entire shelf was a sea of baggies that I could not keep "neat" (my OCD was kicking in :nerd Anyway, I ended up finding some drawer separators that all 3 of their storage bags fit into. I can line 4-5 days of baggies in each one. No more sliding bags. It also helps if you do have a "leaker" all you have to clean is the container. It lets me utilize that shelf for human food if I need to since the baggies are now "stackable".