Tacos

Well it's just before 7 in the morning and this is the time of day I typically look at my schedule and my menu. I ask myself, "Does tonight's dinner match my schedule?"
Today My schedule is moderately busy and I have beef tacos on the menu.
To feed my army, I have to think ahead. On Monday of this week I browned all my ground beef. I used some for the spaghetti sauce we enjoyed, and I froze the rest.

One big tip ( that I learned from a friend who also has 5 children) is to pre-brown a few pounds of meat and then freeze it in portions that your family will use. Just the simple fact that my meat is "done" except re-heating has saved me from ordering take out many times.

To pre-brown/freeze:
Brown as much meat as your largest pan will accommodate, or bite the bullet and make a couple of batches. ( I do this in the morning as mt children are eating breakfast and running through their morning chores).
Drain the fat off the meat (rinse it with hot water if you want the beef to be even more lean).
Spread a sheet of parchment paper on a flat cookie sheet or cake pan.
Freeze.
Once frozen, break off into serving sizes. and freeze into zip lock bags.


Extra tip: I always add my onion when I brown my beef. Every dish I make with ground beef also calls for onion.

Duh factor:
I know you may roll your eyes at the simplicity of this pre-browning tip. It revolutionized my cooking. I cannot tell you how many times I reach 5 o'clock in my day before I was ready. The simple fact that I have beef prepared means I can have spaghetti, tacos, or beef quesadillas on the table in less than 15 minutes. Since my hungry boys can become very grumpy, this is more of a survival tactic than a cooking tip.