What to make in advance

amother

Magenta

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 8:42 pm

This is my first year having a pesach kitchen. Any advice how to utilize it so I maximize it's benefits? It's really small with in sink, a tiny 12 inch counter and fridge and stove. I could set up a folding table to help. How early do you start cooking? What kind of things you make first, second...? What freezes well? I also have a little baby that takes my attention so I probably can't accomplish more than one thing a day. Sorry for the long explanation, but I wanted to describe the whole situation so I can get better advice.

amother

Brunette

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 8:44 pm

Soups, meatballs, frozen desserts and cookies freeze well. So do kugels, though I prefer to serve freshly roasted vegetables.

abaker

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 8:49 pm

Pureed veggie soups freeze well imo. I like to have soups portioned out into 2lb containers so anytime we want soup we dont have to heat up a whole pot. (I think I have one giant soup pot in my pesach stuff so I cook it and then put it in smaller containers for easy use)

Last edited by abaker on Mon, Mar 11 2019, 9:00 pm; edited 1 time in total

rachel6543

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 8:54 pm

The foods I make and freeze ahead are:
Chicken stock, matzah balls, pureed carrot soup, brisket, meatballs, apple Kugel, chocolate chip cookies, brownies.

subee

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 8:56 pm

Last year, my first year making pesach on our own, I started after Purim, that's when the stores had everything out. I started with compote, chicken soup and roasts. I froze the roasts, sliced in their juices, in tins with heavy duty silver foil and then inside a challah bag. Chicken soup and compote I stored in plastic takeout containers. Nothing was freezer burned.

ra_mom

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 9:03 pm

Start with cakes and cookies. I like to get them out of the way and into the freezer because it's "extra" and I know I'll find time for the food.
Then stock freezer with the things that make a mess whole cooking so you get over it like chicken soup and compote.
Egg lokshen can be frozen rolled up and then you can just slice into "noodles" before dropping into soup and serving.
Roasts that can be sliced and frozen.
Marinate chicken and freeze. Form meatballs and burgers and freeze.

dankbar

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 11:12 pm

First pareve stuff like cake & cookies.
Then chicken soup, veg soup, blended butternut squash soup.
Compotes. Meats.
Kugel like apple kugel, these you can freeze.
Falshe fish balls you can freeze.
Then you do things that that need to be fresher like salads, juices if refrigerated, veggies. Egg lukshen if not freezing.
Squeezed juice you can freeze. Fish needs to be fresh. Then seder stuff.

dankbar

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 11:14 pm

I do all pareve stuff first for oven even kugel then the meat in oven so oven is not fleishig first for pareve stuff

dankbar

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 11:20 pm

Also before you start cooking any recipe, boil up bunch of potatoes you might need it in recipes to hold together stuff instead of breadcrumbs like chicken patties.
Boiled potatoes you can use in potato latkes, mashed potatoes,shepherd's pie.
Also to first saute bunch of onions is a good idea.
Cooked eggs you can also use in diff recipes like chopped liver, avocado salad,layered potatoes & eggs.
So when you cook potatoes & eggs for seder make more of it.

dankbar

Mon, Mar 11 2019, 11:22 pm

Above advice is for Hungarian non gebrokts minimal ingredients cooking

amother

Seashell

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 12:22 am

I make all my soups in advance and freeze, except for chicken soup for the sedarim. I also freeze applesauce, rhubarb compote, and ratatouille, meatballs, brownies and blondies. A few days in advance I start on things that don't freeze well - roasted asparagus, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, cauliflower kugel, and noodles, plus roast chicken, and turkey roast. Last minute I do salads, any fish I am making, and chicken soup. Divided up that way, it's all surprisingly stressfree.

amother

Khaki

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 7:27 am

My kitchen is tiny too but I love it anyway! I bought a big convection/ toaster oven (fits 2 9x13) for milchigs: I made some veg milchige dishes and cheesecake