When Chicken Is Cheap, I Fill My Freezer — The Old British Trick That Feeds Me All Winter

Key lifestyle + cost-saving idea (“the old British trick”)

• Buy chicken only during cheap periods (when whole birds drop to around £3.50–£4).
• Then stop buying chicken until the next cheap window.
• The aim is to build a full freezer for winter through smart purchasing and preparation—not gadgets or hoarding.

The core chicken plan (what to buy + how to process it)

#20 Cheap whole bird

• Avoid the expensive habit of buying breast trays when chicken is pricey.
• When whole birds are cheap:
  • Buy 2–3 birds instead of 1.
  • Treat each bird as multiple meals: roast + leftovers + broth made from the bones/carcass.
• Claimed benefit: two low-priced birds can feed the household for about a month (if packed properly), instead of buying pricier breast portions.

#19 Cut it yourself

• Don’t freeze chicken as one big piece.
• Cut it in about 10 minutes:
  • legs, thighs, two breasts, wings
• Freeze in portion-sized packages, for example:
  • two thighs together
  • breasts separate
• Keep the skin on until cooking to help prevent drying.

Using bones/carcass (no waste “soup base”)

#18 Carcass for supplies

• Don’t throw away bones, wing tips, or skin scraps.
• Simmer gently (avoid strong boiling) for about 2 hours with:
  • 1 onion
  • 2 carrots
  • 1 bay leaf
  • water to cover
• Then:
  • cool
  • strain
  • freeze in portions to start soup/gravy/risotto later
• Common failure warnings:
  • Boil too hard → cloudy/runny stock
  • Freeze in a shape that thaws too slowly (e.g., a tall tub)

Freezer packing system (space, labeling, defrosting)

#17 Freeze it flat

• Flat packs (“like books”) save drawer space and thaw faster.
• Steps:
  • press filled bags on a tray for about 2 hours
  • then stack flat
• Label the edge so you can see contents without digging.

#16 Date on the package

• Write:
  • what it is
  • the month
• Use the oldest first.
• Avoid “mysteries in the back of the freezer.”

#15 Cheap root vegetables (October)

When cheap, buy and freeze:

• carrots, rutabagas, parsnips, onions

Method:

• peel/chop what you won’t use that week
• roots go in raw, frozen/chopped
• blanch greens for about 2 minutes before freezing

#14 Yellow label meat

• Buy discounted meat (yellow label / reduced minced meat / cheap sausages) and freeze the same day.
• Either:
  • freeze raw if cooking later, or
  • cook first if close to the expiration date

#13 Double the stew

• When cooking (casserole/chili/minced onion), make two pans:
  • freeze one completely cooled pan for later
• Warning:
  • don’t put food in hot/warm—cool first to avoid warming the freezer

#12 Sunday portion cooking (“the big freezer day”)

Run a “batch day”:

• put bird in the oven at ~10:00
• start stew on the stove + veg sheet pan
• by about 4:00 PM: eat dinner + fill 3 freezer boxes
• Use warm kitchen time efficiently (e.g., wash dishes while working)

#11 Friday market oversaturation

On Friday afternoons (when stalls start clearing):

• buy extra produce for freezing, not just tonight’s meal
• handle leftovers promptly:
  • turn excess fruit/veg into sauces (freeze in bags)
  • repurpose/recycle the same evening

#10 Portions (freeze per person)

• Freeze stew/dinners in single-serving portions, not big family blocks.
• Use smaller containers (about ~400 ml mentioned) for single servings; larger ones for bigger meals.
• Example:
  • leftover stew in a muffin tin, freeze then bag → easy single dinners

#9 Leftover gravy

• Don’t throw gravy away or pour it down the sink.
• Freeze gravy in an ice cube tray (~2 hours), then bag cubes.
• To use:
  • drop in 2 cubes + a little water to revive dry leftovers

#8 Pies with mashed potatoes

• Shepherd’s pie, fish pie, and meat pie freeze well if chilled and wrapped.
• Bake two pies Sunday:
  • eat one
  • freeze one
• Frozen pie reheats in about 40 minutes
• Freeze mashed puree:
  • cool, wrap tightly
  • it “flattens/folds” and reheats with a splash of milk

#7 Anti-burn wrap (prevent freezer burn)

• Freezer burn is blamed on air exposure.
• Press bags against the surface; double wrap for meat.
• Use within 3–4 months (not “three years”).

#6 Defrosting in the refrigerator (health + texture)

• Best method:
  • move next day’s portion to the fridge on a plate
  • thaw over about 12 hours
• Avoid:
  • thawing on their side in a warm kitchen
  • hot tap/fast warming (edges may cook while center stays frozen)
• Backup method (if needed):
  • sealed bag into cold water, thaw on its side for about 30 minutes
• Framed as “one day ahead” planning.

#5 Soup in containers

• Freeze soups (vegetable/chicken/lentil) for about a two-week lunch supply.
• Leave headspace (~2 cm) for expansion.
• Heat from frozen in a pan with a little water (~20 minutes).

#4 Packages with leftover roast

After Sunday:

• slice leftover roast
• pack portions with a spoonful of gravy
• freeze the same night
• Later meals idea:
  • thaw overnight
  • turn into pies, sandwich filling, quick curries, etc.

#3 Freeze list

• Keep a fridge list of:
  • what’s in the freezer
  • the month it was packed
• Update when adding/removing items so nothing gets forgotten.

#2 Freezer bread

• Freeze marked-down bread at closing time:
  • slice and freeze
  • toast from frozen through winter
• Don’t let reduced loaves go stale—freezing nearby is treated as the fix.

#1 The freezer is full during cheap weeks

Everything ties back to:

• buy cheap whole birds → cut/portion → freeze
• simmer carcass for broth
• prepare other cheap autumn foods using the same approach

Claimed outcome: no need to pay “later” prices (e.g., the “£8 chicken” problem).

Notable locations / products / people mentioned

• Speaker/person: Grandmother Margaret
• Website/product mention: nanmargaret.shop (for “old ways” and mixtures)
• Food price references / products:
  • whole chicken (~£3.50–£4)
  • yellow label meat (reduced/discounted meat)
  • ice cube tray for gravy
  • vacuum bags/gadget ads (called unnecessary)
  • bouillon cubes (she says she doesn’t buy them in winter when carcass is available)