Chicken Noodle Soup
Nothing is more comforting than a big bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup with tender chicken pieces, providing nourishing support for your immune system during the colder months. But here’s the twist that’ll change how you freeze this classic forever.
Egg noodles don’t freeze well in soups and tend to soak up liquid naturally, taking on a mushy texture when defrosted, so for best results, follow the recipe as is but omit the noodles. It’s easy enough to make fresh noodles when you’re ready to reheat your soup, cooking them separately and adding them right when you’re ready to serve. This way, you get perfectly textured noodles every single time.
Split Pea Soup
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Split Pea Soup is the perfect comfort food that is delicious, satisfying, and so easy to make. This hearty soup practically begs to be made in giant batches because it gets even better after sitting overnight. Split pea soup is among the soups that freeze well, including broth-based soups, chili, bean soups, and other soups made without dairy and noodles.
The secret lies in its thick, creamy texture that develops naturally from the split peas breaking down during cooking. Allow soup to cool completely before transferring to a ziploc bag or freezer storage container, then freeze for up to six months. When you reheat it, you might need to add a splash of broth or water to thin it out, but the flavor remains absolutely divine.
Minestrone Soup
Minestrone soup is a classic to keep on hand for lunch or dinner, full of vegetables, pasta, and cannellini beans with bold tomato broth that makes it extra cozy. This Italian masterpiece adapts beautifully to freezing, though there’s one important caveat about the pasta.
For noodle soups, make the entire soup without adding the noodles, then freeze and add in the cooked or uncooked noodles while reheating for fresh, tender pasta every time. The vegetables and beans in minestrone actually improve in flavor after freezing, as the extended time allows all those Mediterranean flavors to meld together perfectly.
Lentil Soup
Lentils are an inexpensive but nutritious power food, and these days, a hot, filling and flavorful family meal at a great price is a real comfort, and lentil soup freezes well. Broth-based soups, bean or lentil soups freeze well, and chilis also tend to freeze very well, as do soups that are loaded with vegetables and a protein source.
Lentils maintain their structure beautifully through the freeze-thaw process, unlike some other legumes that can turn mushy. Bean soups utilizing lots of beans, whether blended or whole, tend to freeze very well and the beans hold up well frozen and reheat nice and creamy. Red lentils create a naturally creamy texture, while green and brown lentils add hearty substance that satisfies even the biggest appetites.
Vegetable Soup
Think of broth-based soup recipes like chicken soup, vegetable soup or beef barley. Winter soup is chock-full of vegetables like potatoes, parsnips, cabbage, and spinach, with cannellini beans for a plant-based protein boost. The beauty of vegetable soup lies in its incredible versatility and forgiving nature.
Undercook vegetables a little as they will cook more during reheating, so slightly undercooking them helps prevent mush. Root vegetables like carrots, parsnips, and turnips freeze particularly well, while leafy greens should be added fresh when reheating. This approach gives you restaurant-quality texture every time you thaw and reheat.
Butternut Squash Soup
There’s nothing like a bowl of butternut squash soup on a brisk fall day, blending comfort food with wholesome ingredients for one satisfying meal with butternut squash, root veggies, celery, chicken stock, and butter, and this soup lasts in the freezer for up to 4-6 months. Any blended soup such as butternut squash, potato, or carrot will freeze and thaw beautifully, and you can always just run them through the blender again once reheated.
The natural sweetness of butternut squash actually intensifies slightly during freezing, creating an even richer flavor profile when reheated. If you notice any separation when thawing, a quick whisk or immersion blender brings it right back to silky perfection. Some people add cream, but try freezing the base first and adding dairy when reheating for better texture.
Chili
Even heartier options like chili, lentil and bean-based soups freeze beautifully. From the ground beef to the stock, every component freezes well, plus, you don’t even need to defrost it – just heat it on the stove, and dinner is ready. Chili might just be the ultimate freezer soup because it’s virtually indestructible.
Wendy’s Copycat Chili is a fabulous hearty copycat chili packed with beef and beans! The thick consistency means it doesn’t separate during freezing, and the robust flavors actually improve with time. Beans become more tender, spices meld deeper, and that signature chili richness develops beautifully. Many chili enthusiasts swear their frozen batches taste better than fresh ones.
Chicken Tortilla Soup
With a base like that, you know it has to be good – selected smoky spices and fresh chicken and jalapeños help create a fabulous base for the petite tomatoes, black beans and red bell peppers, and this soup is ready in 30 minutes and freezes perfectly. This Mexican-inspired favorite brings serious flavor to your freezer stash.
The key to successful freezing lies in the broth-based foundation and sturdy ingredients like black beans and chicken. To reheat, simply defrost, reheat in a saucepan over medium heat and add chicken broth or water as needed, until desired consistency is reached. Add fresh toppings like avocado, cheese, and crispy tortilla strips when serving for that authentic restaurant experience at home.
White Chicken Chili
One of the favorite quick-and-easy soups, White Chicken Chili, goes even faster when you can just toss a frozen container into the fridge in the morning and then reheat the soup on the stove that evening. This lighter alternative to traditional chili offers the same satisfying comfort with a completely different flavor profile.
White beans provide excellent protein while maintaining their texture through freezing better than many other legumes. The creamy white base comes from the beans themselves rather than dairy, making it naturally freezer-friendly. The mild heat level appeals to more palates, making it perfect for family meals where spice tolerance varies.
Italian Sausage and Pepper Soup
Thirty-Minute Italian Sausage and Pepper Soup is a broth-based soup packed with hot Italian sausage and colorful bell peppers in a scrumptious tomato broth that makes this fabulous hearty dish completely hit the spot, and this soup is a perfect freezer meal. The bold flavors hold up incredibly well to freezing.
Just let it cool and pack it in plastic containers or resealable plastic bags and freeze, and when you are ready to enjoy simply thaw and reheat on the stove top or in the microwave, as the soup will keep for 2-3 months in the freezer. The combination of savory sausage and sweet bell peppers creates a satisfying meal that tastes like you spent hours cooking when you actually spent minutes reheating.
Turkey Soup
Learn how to make turkey soup from a carcass – old fashioned turkey soup from a carcass is easy, delicious, and so comforting. This traditional soup represents the ultimate in resourceful cooking, transforming leftover holiday turkey into liquid gold. The rich, gelatinous broth that develops from simmering turkey bones creates an incredibly flavorful base.
Turkey soup freezes exceptionally well because the natural gelatin from the bones acts as a protective coating for other ingredients. Soups are the perfect freezer meal because they’re primarily liquid, they’re at low risk of getting freezer burn and are easy to package into freezer-safe containers. The meat stays tender, vegetables retain their texture, and that homemade taste remains intact even after months in the freezer.
