Written by: Kirby Stanton, RDN, LDN Food City Dietitian 

Working to prepare balanced meals typically takes time for planning, prepping, and cooking. Finding options that are convenient and shelf stable can help support the habit of making flavorful and nutritious meals at home. Aim to simplify meal planning by keeping your freezer stocked with delicious, high-quality options that are ready to use.

For those of us that find it difficult to get more vegetables on the plate, frozen sides are a great solution. Frozen foods last longer than their fresh counterparts, making it convenient to just take out what you need and store the rest for later use. Freezing is one of the best methods of preserving food. Today’s processes select fresh produce at peak harvest and freeze foods in just a few minutes, which maintains the quality, taste and nutritional value. This makes it easy to enjoy your favorite fruits and vegetables all year round.

There are plenty of versatile vegetable options that can be cooked by simply microwaving, sautéing on the stovetop or even air fryer ready options. Try featuring elevated vegetable sides that make it easy to fit in more nutrients. 

Frozen Vegetable Picks:

   - Food Club Stir Fry Vegetables

   - Food Club Fajita Vegetables

   - Birds Eye Rotini Marinara

   - Birds Eye - Power Blend, Quinoa & Spinach

When short on time, frozen ready-to-heat meals can be a fast and convenient lunch or dinner option. A dietitian tip for selecting frozen meals is to look for those that feature more vegetables, whole grains and lean protein, while limiting added sugar, fats and sodium. Find a variety of inspired flavor choices to make switching up your meal plan easy with no prep required.

Frozen Meals

   - Full Circle Market Power Bowl, Moroccan Style, With Chickpea & Spiced Cauliflower

   - Healthy Choice Power Bowl, Mediterranean Style Shrimp

   - Healthy Choice Power Bowls, Spicy Beef Teriyaki

   - Healthy Choice, Chicken Linguini

Aiming to vary your protein routine to include different animal and plant-based options is a great way to ensure a balance of nutrients in your diet. Shop lean protein choices with less saturated fat and sodium. Frozen protein options typically require little cooking time and make preparing balanced meals stress free.

Frozen Proteins

   - Full Circle Market – Swordfish 

   - Realgood Foods Co. Chicken Strips

   - PictSweet Farms Steamable Edamame

   - Gardein – Crispy Tender 

When it comes to shopping better-for-you choices in the frozen aisle, let Food City’s Pick Well tags do the work for you. The color-coded shelf tags, like Dietitian’s Pick and Heart Healthy help to quickly identify frozen foods with less saturated fat, sodium and sugar. Learn More about Pick Well.