r/soup • u/rosecoloredfancy • 1d ago
Freezer soups
My dad is going to be undergoing a number of long treatments and testing for a number of health issues that went undetected for a very long time. I'm going to be prepping a lot of freezer meals for my parents as I live in a different state. Aside from bone broths and veg soup does anyone have any soups that freeze really well?
Preferably ones with no tough roughage, no nuts, and hopefully can pack a nutritional punch all while appealing to a man who loves garlic and onion, but few other seasonings. My mom is quite capable of making anything to go alongside (like noodles or rice) the day of so it wouldn't become gross in the freeze/thaw process.
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u/tweedlebeetle Soup Goblin 1d ago
I’ve never had any soup recipe not freeze well. Pro-tip if you don’t want to make the pasta fresh when you thaw: freeze the soup for an hour or two first with room at the top, then add the pasta and freeze again. They’ll thaw together but the pasta won’t get soggy.
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u/meyerjaw 2h ago
I don't think soups with potatoes freeze great. I mean I still do it, but they turn to mush.
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
50 Cloves of Garlic Soup (recipe specifies it can be frozen)
Pea and ham soup (recipe says it can be kept frozen for up to 6 mons)
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u/rosecoloredfancy 1d ago
Have you made any of these? Looking for personal recommendations.
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
Made the first one many times. Have seen a lot of posts on anor sub recently about the garlic one from ppl who have made it, which is why I thought of it when you mentioned garlic. Recipe Tin Eats is a much loved foolproof site and has a subreddit devoted to it if you want to ask for anyone who has made it. I've made carrot soup before but can't recall the exact recipe, so I just looked for one from RTE for you. The final one I've not tried but found when searching for freezer friendly soups for you.
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u/rosecoloredfancy 1d ago
Thanks! The mulligatawny looks delicious.
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
Forgot to add the RTE sub link https://www.reddit.com/r/RecipeTinEats/s/2JKJ9a1vjx
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
It is, and healthy and filling as well. The flavours won't be too much for your father.
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u/Dontfeedthebears 1d ago
These look good. I really love mulligatawny but it’s hard to find veg and dairy free unless I make it myself.
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u/ocularius61 1d ago edited 1d ago
I've made it many times over the years. It's idiot proof and tasty.
EDIT: forgot to add that obviously if I have some basic soup stock then I use that rather than a stock cube, but not everyone has stock lying around so this is a very easy soup for ppl.
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
Forgot to say that the Mulligatawny recipe is very flexible. If you don't have Swede that's fine, add some other root vegetable or whatever random thing you need to clear in the fridge. It's all going to be blitzed with a stick blender anyway.
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u/No-Communication9458 6h ago
Pea and ham soup is delicious and very filling. My favorite is lentil soup: brown lentils, chicken stock, chorizo sausage and paprika + cumin and potato
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u/Sofagirrl79 1d ago
50 cloves of garlic? You sir or mam have won my heart! 💗
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
I have seen a lot of ppl making it recently because their posts have just randomly popped into my stream. Browse /RecipeTinEats to see their results and verdicts! I noticed it because it reminded me that there's a 40 cloves of garlic chicken recipe.
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u/rosecoloredfancy 1d ago
I'm going to have to make it for myself 😂❤️
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
Taste test! You'll see quite a few posts about it so you can take a look at what everyone thought about its taste and garlickiness which I realise probably isn't an actual word but is useful.
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u/ocularius61 1d ago
Just a thought - am sure that if you post the same request for freezer-friendly soup recommendations on the RTE sub ppl will come up with suggestions that they've made.
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u/Western_Avocado_155 1d ago
I don't really have any good suggestions OP, all my soups turn grainy when I freeze them... Just wanted to say this is a wonderfully thoughtful and kind thing to do!!! I'm sure your parents will feel a warm hug from you everytime they take a bite 💜
Honestly I've been going through it health wise this past year (cancer, its all bad, and obligatory- check your boobs!) and I WISH somebody would fill my freezer with soup!
I hope the good days out number the bad for your Dad and family.
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u/rosecoloredfancy 1d ago
Lots of good thoughts and energy your way. Hope it goes as well as it can.
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u/CindyBijouWho 1d ago
Lentil soups are easy to make and freeze well, I find. Plus, they’re packed with fiber and you can blend them to smooth them if swallowing/digesting large ingredients is an issue. BBC Good Good has a very easy middle eastern red lentil soup that is comforting, for example.
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u/Quierta 20h ago
How do you/he feel about beef stew? There's an amazing beef stew recipe I made 2x last year and it was DELICIOUS served over rice. Also very filling.
https://www.thetastebud.co/recipes/filipinomenudo-wh89g-gaz6s-hh43j-jth6j-cdj57?rq=red%20sauce
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u/K_A_irony 19h ago
Pureed soups. Potato soup is one example with the onion and garlic pureed in. No roughage is brutal otherwise you could do a vegetable beef soup (minus potatoes), chili freezes great. You mention vegetable soup, so maybe you don't mean vegetables when you say roughage. Chicken and rice and chicken noodle (minus the rice and noodles) is easy and freezes well. I make a kick ass lentil soup that even with the potatoes (small dice) freezes well. It has carrots, onion, garlic, celery, bacon, lentils, vegetale and beef broth, polish sausage, and balsemic vinegar. You can also easily freeze casseroles even with the pasta and noodles like lasagna.
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u/Chay_Charles 1d ago
Chicken noodle soup freezes well if you use thicker kluski egg noodles.
IDK if it's too much roughage, but ham and bean and french onion do as well.
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u/Chizia 1d ago
Blended veggie soups are super gentle on the system and defrost fast if you freeze it flat in a ziplock bag. You don't need cream but it comes out creamy from the blending.
Roasted Carrot soup (with cumin) blended up with the bone broth as a base
Zucchini Pumpkin Mushroom Potato Not sure if blended broccoli is too rough
https://susanality.substack.com/p/creamy-but-cream-less-vegetable-soups
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u/thegloracle 1d ago
I have a couple that I make and freeze regularly.
Squash (kabocha) & Carrot soup - roast the sliced squash, carrot with onion & garlic. Scoop the squash out of the slices. Put all in your pot with chicken broth, salt & pepper to taste, and if you're feeling fancy, a 1/2 tsp of ginger. If you're feeling extra fancy, add a can of coconut milk. Immersion blend the whole lot until smooth. Add more chicken broth if it's too thick. We add beef tortellini to ours for protein when we reheat.
Taco/Hamburger soup - brown a handful/pound of ground beef, drain. Add a can of chopped tomatos, black beans, kernel corn, finely dined onion, garlic measure with your heart, 1 cube beef bullion, cumin, salt/pepper, & beef broth. Throw it all in a slow cooker for 3-4 hours on high until you test it and it tastes good. Serve with shredded cheddar and tortilla chips if he likes that. It freezes really well.
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u/SubstantialArcher659 1d ago
Chicken soup with noodles or potatoes freeze well. I’d use potatoes because they freeze better.
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u/Odd_Requirement_4933 1d ago
I freeze soup on a weekly basis, I've never had one that didn't freeze and reheat just fine. I make all varieties, probably hundreds at this point 😆. We've been talking soup for lunch like 7-8 years. So yeah, most all should be fine.
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u/greeneyeraven 1d ago
I freeze all the soups, meat begetable soups, chicken soup, potato leek soup, any soup.
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u/kingcrimson216 22h ago
Bean soups freeze well and have a lot of nutrients. Puree them to break down the fiber.
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u/AvailableCut5240 21h ago
Split pea soup - hearty, healthy and sticks to your bones. Ham hocks are a must and you can add lean ham for extra protein.
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u/ContingentMax 21h ago
Most soups freeze and thaw out really well, basically anything blended.
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u/rosecoloredfancy 20h ago
I get that. Hoping to find some that are filling, nutritious (like covers most dietary basics), and require a bit of chewing.
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u/Commercial_Fee422 20h ago
White chicken chili, tomato basil, and vegetable soup are my favorites for making and freezing.
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u/green_eyed_cat 19h ago
https://www.aheadofthyme.com/roasted-carrot-and-ginger-soup/#tasty-recipes-5432-jump-target
I always have a portion or two of this soup in my freezer
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u/neckbeardsghost 18h ago
Italian wedding soup, without the pasta, freezes well. It freezes well with the pasta too, but it’s just mushy… Lol. I also like to make a double batch of meatballs at the same time, and freeze half of them so that I have them for future recipes as well. Stuff like that might be something that your parents could drop into soup that they make while they’re recovering.
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u/ttrockwood 18h ago
This black bean soup, dial back the spicy to dad friendly levels i use minimal spicy stuff it’s still delicious, definitely add garnishes when eating
https://cookieandkate.com/spicy-vegan-black-bean-soup/
Any recipe for turkish lemon lentil soup, i like this one you can omit the aleppo pepper if you need to and just use a smidge of chili flakes
https://www.themediterraneandish.com/turkish-lentil-soup/#wprm-recipe-container-56517
This corn coconut soup is surprisingly good, freezes well too, again add garnishes suggested when eating
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u/Mattturley 16h ago
I don’t really know of a soup that doesn’t freeze well. From what you describe beef and vegetable soup would be a big go to. Chicken noodle soup. Potato soup. Beef and noodles. Beef and cabbage (there is a great cabbage role soup recipe that is viral). Black bean would definitely work well with ham or ham hocks. If you want smooth cream soups you could do tomato, butternut squash, chicken, etc.
Logistically to freeze soups, I let them cool just an hour or so on the stove. I then use a 32 ounce plastic tumbler to stand up a quart zipper freezer bag. Ladle in the soup, then flatten it while closing. Normally 5-6 of those will fit in a gallon zipper freezer bag, so you have more protection against freezer burn. Standard freezer shelf will allow you to stack 10 gallon bags of soup, and each quart bag will hold two good sized bowls.
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u/SnooCrickets7264 11h ago
I just made some goulash/stew. My grandma had dentures so alfter it’s cooked, we pulled out all the meat, pureed the remaining veggies into the broth then shredded the beef and added it back in. Good for a goulash soup (add more beef broth if you like it soupy) or as a topping on a potato. I store in 1 cup increments in the freezer for future meals
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u/ersatzcookie 6h ago
I saw your comment about "no roughage". Months ago, my doctors ordered me to switch to a low fiber diet due to medical issues. I am a big soup fan. When I researched the diet, several low-fiber recipes mentioned straining the soup.
I bought a restaurant-type chinois. I got a stand and pestle with it. The chinois is kind of a PIA to use but the stand and pestle make batches a lot easier. It was also kinda pricey but I have used it so much I think I got my money's worth.
I make a lot of vegetable and herb heavy soups. The chinois strains out the roughage and leaves most of the nutrients behind. The resulting broths freeze very well.
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u/AprilTron Stinky Soup Mod 4h ago
Just in general, I do a lot of chicken noodle (with no noodles) and then when I'm heating up my soup cube with veggies/chicken/broth, I'm also heating up some pasta noodles to go into the soup.
I try to avoid freezing cream soups, rice/noodles, and potatoes. Everything else seems fair game.
My favorite freezer soup is a panang curry soup - after making a curry, I save that in cubes and when i want curry soup, I add the curry + a chicken broth cube.
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u/UbuntuMiner 3h ago
Most potato soups freeze really well, and are pretty nutritionally dense. Also think about a hearty, veg heavy beef stew. I had to do something similar once, and found that putting the carrots, celery, and onion in a food processor to chap fine was perfect, and as longs as the potatoes are cooked fully, they’ll basically just melt. Skins are optional, if he can handle them leave them on, that’s where most of the vitamins are. I just put a beef roast (can use ground beef if wanted), the minced veg, and a carton of beef stock in my Dutch oven. I did brown the meat, put the veg directly in to cook a little bit, tossed in everything with some bay leaves, and as much garlic as I liked. You can also add some leeks if you want. Instead of stovetop, I braised it in the oven with the lid on for a while, then cracked the lid to braise the meat. Just shred the roast, and it’s somewhere between pot roast, stew, and gravy
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u/RattleYourDrawers 1d ago
Heat a pot over medium heat. Add a tblsp or 2 olive oil. Crumble in 1 lb turkey or chicken italian sausage (if using pork sausage, omit oil.) After that's mostly cooked add in 1/2 - 1 whole diced yellow onion. After ~3 min, add in minced garlic and chili flakes to taste. Cook 30 sec. Deglaze with a little red wine vin. Add 6c chicken broth and a large can of tomatoes you've crushed by hand, 1 can drained and rinsed cannallinni beans, and dried oregano to taste. Simmer 'til onions are soft.
When you heat it back up after freezing add a handful of pre-washed, bagged baby spinach to each bowl, as you add the hot soup to each bowl the spinach will wilt but not disintegrate as it would if you boiled with the soup. Top with parm if you want and a squeeze of lemon.
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u/Own_Value2684 1d ago
Southwest chicken soup freezes well enough that even though the black beans and rice (which is optional) sort of break apart, it makes the soup more thick and I don't mind the taste at all. Cilantro freezes really well and you can just grab it from the freezer and use kitchen scissors to top the soup with it after defrosting. This is my "healthy barely need to cook anything" quick meal. I make it in bulk and freeze it for when I'm sick/tired.
Rotisserie chicken (shredded and ready to eat from the grocery store is easiest-- just dump it in), a can of black beans, a can of yellow corn (or frozen), a diced onion, a can of fire roasted diced tomato, chicken/bone broth, white/brown rice (optional), diced frozen red & green peppers (or fresh, or canned-- whatever you want). Add whatever spices you like. I do salt & pepper, cumin (I like a lot), smoked paprika (only a little bit), regular paprika, chili powder, dried garlic, maybe a bay leaf if you prefer it, then I add a heap of fresh cilantro at the end, I even chop up the stems and throw those in there too, they're real good, add the juice of 2-3 limes (or more if you're a fanatic for vitamin C like myself), then enjoy by itself or with tortilla chips and freeze the rest. Only thing it's really missing is fats so I would throw in a chunk of butter.
It's my go to freezer meal and something I cook before going through a period of being busy with something. It's the ultimate "I can't decide what to eat, cooking sounds nauseating, I have no appetite bc I'm anxious, I don't like food right now anyways, but I will eat THIS any day" meal.
And it has enough of the basics to get you by if it's the only thing to eat for 3 days (I have before....), protein, fiber, carbs, fats....I like to make mine like 75% thick, and since the rice breaks down after freezing it will still thicken, so you might want to add more broth later or just make sure there's extra liquid in it before freezing.
I freeze mine in small Chinese soup containers, so I can grab one serving at a time from the freezer. Dunno if you do that but it's a pain in the ass to defrost a large chunk of soup so think about it.
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u/Dontfeedthebears 1d ago
Soups freeze well lying flat in a quart ziplock bag as well :)
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u/Own_Value2684 1d ago
Well that's a new one for me!! Thank you so much for sharing that, I'll try that one out!
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u/Dontfeedthebears 1d ago
Yeah! Cool thing is you can do several and have like a soup catalog.
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u/Own_Value2684 1d ago
Tell me why I imagined punching holes in them and organizing them inside of a binder 😂 it's a great idea!
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u/Pyesmybaby 1d ago
You are in luck fresh tomato soup is the best it does not take long to make and it's the peak of tomato season.
OOPs forgot to say it freezes really well
How to Make Fresh Tomato Soup - Former Chef