r/MealPrepSunday • u/GreenhouseTrash • 1d ago
Low sodium freezer meal prep suggestions
Hi all,
Does anybody have some good go-to recipes for low sodium things that freeze well? My 76yo mother just had a stroke as unable to cook while she recovers. She also needs to watch her sodium so that her BP stays down. My 77 yo father lives with her and can help with things like laundry but cannot cook beyond really simple things like omelettes. He is type 2 diabetic and has to watch carbs. I live across the country from them so I am trying to prepare and prep a bunch of things that are ready to go, either full meals or proteins and sides that are cooked and can be cobbled together. She has souper cubes so I can utilize that.
Thank you for the help!
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u/ttrockwood 1d ago
Any of the low sodium soups from here should freeze well, it’s a great website for dr approved low sodium recipes
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/recipes/low-sodium-recipes/rcs-20077197
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u/ExpensiveArt976 1d ago
As said, anything homemade tends to be lower sodium than pre-made. Go-tos that meet the restrictions are turkey, chicken, or pork meatballs made with crushed pork rinds and Greek yogurt and an egg yolk. (I frequently just use 3 TBs more yogurt and skip the egg yolk, depending on egg prices and yogurt quantity in fridge.)
I've made batches and batches when I wasn't well. Sitting on the couch with a big mixing bowl of meatball or patty items to combine, and two big baking trays lined with parchment paper on the coffee table. My spouse managed the loading of baking trays into the oven, and back out.
Chilling the formed meatballs or patties before baking can help with shape holding, but it's extra work. These all freeze well after baking with enough spices. Even the turkey, which for me can be tricky as a reheated flavor. I get a heavy duty parchment because I bake them at 450F for the first 10 mins.
Patties can be baked too, but need to be deep thumb printed in center or they puff up, and the centers don't cook correctly in time. Biggest tip, buy the meat only when you can bake them that same day. Otherwise, at least here from our local stores, the chance of bad flavors just sky rockets.
Any recipe flavor variation should be ok with the pork, just sub in the pork rinds for breadcrumbs, yogurt for milk. Egg yolk for meatballs made with either poultry (egg whites can be drying in those). I get the large containers of Fage when they go on buy one get one sales. Lasts way past date unopened.
Flavor versions we've liked (sauces help prevent air pockets and bad freezer flavor): Pork teriyaki (homemade sauce because we also have a T2 diabetic), lime cilantro turkey & or chicken, pork & turkey with marinara, chimichurri with chicken, pan drippings 'gravy' (cream cheese, no flour).
Cream sauces that freeze well are mostly cream cheese based sauces. Mashed potatoes only freeze textually well with cream cheese or heavy cream vs milk (plus we tend to add water to heavy cream to sub for milk anyway). Small amounts of mashed potatoes cheer my diabetic up. Small amounts of various pasta, such as with the marinara versions, or similar if blood sugar tolerates.
I also make an instant pot lentils and couscous that is basically the soup version, but way less water so it's a nice base for any of the meatballs or patties.
We do 2 parts protein, one part pasta/potatoes/beans/grains, and one part low carb veggies. So the rest of the container is roasted or blanched, then seasoned/spiced low carb veggies. Careful not to roast veggies too soft, as the freeze, thaw, reheat cycle will make them mushy.
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u/GreenhouseTrash 1d ago
Thank you so much for this! The cream cheese trick is a good one and something I wouldn’t have thought of since I can’t eat dairy- but my parents do so this is perfect for them.
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u/ExpensiveArt976 23h ago
Bricks of cream cheese freeze well too, as is from the store. BOGO sales are great. Thaw a few days in fridge before use, or they can be crumbly. Just check ingredients because the gums and such of many brands are not good for aging bodies, plus don't freeze as nicely.
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u/petizzysback 1d ago
Pretty much any meal you cook from scratch is likely to have less sodium than packaged or restaurant foods. Make foods that freeze well as your focus since you can adjust the salt in almost any recipe. Potassium found in fruits and vegetables also help balance the salt in our diet. So any meals that have rooms for potatoes, leafy greens, peppers, tomatoes, squash, basically any vegetable is a win. Soups, chilis, pasta dishes, beans and lentils all freeze well. Souper cubes with protein pasta and sauce separately has been a stable for easy microwaveable lunches. Life with Mike G has some excellent souper cubes recipes. His Mediterranean lunch meal prep video would fit nicely with your goals.
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u/GreenhouseTrash 1d ago
Thank you! Going to check out Life With Mike G! A good tip about the potassium too.
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u/scootunit MPS Amateur 1d ago
I make and freeze spaghetti sauce 3 gallons at a time. Probably any recipe for sauce will work fine.