Bulk Cooking Ground Meat | Easy Meal Prep for Freezer Meals

What’s Inside: In this article, I share a much easier way to bulk cook ground meat. It works for any kind of ground meat, such as ground beef, ground pork, or even things like ground turkey sausage. Bulk cooking ground meat comes in handy if you’re cooking for a crowd, or if you want to more easily prepare some freezer meals for just you or your own little family.

Today, I’m spilling the beans on a clever kitchen trick that’s going to revolutionize your relationship with bulk cooking ground meat. This is all about making your life easier, your meal prep more efficient, and of course, keeping those taste buds happy. Get ready to say adieu to the hot, sizzling stovetop and hello to the comfort of your oven!

The Oven Method: A New Approach to Bulk Cooking Ground Meat

Picture this: you’re standing by the stove, breaking up chunk after chunk of ground meat, trying to get it all to brown, all while trying to manage a mountain of other meal prep tasks. Sounds too familiar? Well, I’ve got news for you – there’s another way, and it involves your trusty oven.

Bulk Cooking Ground Meat In Your Oven (Video)

In the video above, I show you step-by-step how to bulk cook ground meat in the oven. In the video, I cook up three pounds of ground Italian turkey sausage. Since I was only cooking three pounds of ground meat, I used my countertop oven.

Step-By-Step Instructions for Bulk Cooking Ground Meat in Your Oven

Here are the step-by-step instructions for bulk cooking ground meat in your oven.

Choose the Right Size Baking Sheet

When bulk cooking ground meat, including ground beef, ground pork, and ground chicken or turkey, it's important to choose a pan that is large enough. — Since I was only cooking 3 pounds of ground meat, I chose to use my countertop oven. The pan that came with that oven is just large enough for 3 pounds. If I wanted to cook more, I would have needed a larger pan – and larger oven.

Keep in mind, the size of your baking sheet (and your oven) will determine how much meat you can cook at once. For example, when I was cooking 3 pounds of ground turkey sausage, I used the baking sheet that comes with my countertop oven. But, if you’re dealing with about 10 pounds of ground meat, you’ll need two large baking sheets and a full-size oven.

Prep Your Baking Sheet and Preheat Your Oven

There are just two simple steps to take to set the stage for success.

to make clean up easier, line your baking sheet with foil.

First, let’s set the stage for an easy clean-up. Line your baking sheet with foil. Trust me, your future self will thank you!

Next, preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Break Up Your Ground Meat

Use a ground meat chopping tool to break the meat into smaller bits before baking it. — I used a meat chopping tool to make the process of chopping up the ground meat easier. Note that ground turkey is harder to work with since it’s so finely ground and smooshed together, it wants to stick to the chopping tool, but overall, it still makes the task easier.

This is what the meat looked like before I put it into the oven. As you can see, there are still some pretty big chunks of ground meat. That’s okay, because as you’ll see, there are more opportunities to break the meat into smaller bits.

Now, spread your ground meat onto the prepared baking sheet. A ground meat chopping tool is perfect for this job, but if you don’t have one handy, a good old spatula or wooden spoon will do just fine.

Our Pick

Meat Chopper

Ground meat chopping tools are inexpensive, and don’t take a ton of space. Because of that, I recommend grabbing one to help you in both your everyday cooking and meal prep.

Check Price on Amazon

But really, the meat chopping tool makes the job easier, and costs just a few bucks, so unless you’re standing there with a ton of ground meat you need to cook up today, it’s worth grabbing one of these handy dandy meat chopping tools on Amazon.

Cook, Drain, and Repeat

After 10 minutes in the oven, the ground meat was starting to cook, but still had a lot of pink. I drained off much of the grease, and then used the chopping tool to break down the meat into smaller bits. It was actually easier to chop up when it was partially cooked, compared to when it was raw.

Next, pop your ground meat into the oven and let it cook for about 10 minutes. After this, take it out, and drain off some of the grease by tilting the sheet pan at an angle.

Next, break up the meat a bit more with your meat chopping tool (Amazon).

Pop your ground meat back into the oven for another 10 minutes. After round two, drain any remaining fat.

The Last Step in Bulk Cooking Ground Meat

It takes about 20 minutes to bulk cook ground meat such as turkey, pork, or beef, in the oven. — After 20 minutes in the oven, the ground meat was completely cooked. I drained off the rest of the grease, and used the ground meat chopping tool to break it into nice fine crumbles.

At this point, your meat should be fully cooked. Use your meat chopping tool one last time to break the ground meat into smaller bits, and voila! You now have a ton of ground meat ready to go for a big party, or if you’re like me, for freezer meals.

Why Switch to the Oven Method for Bulk Cooking Ground Meat?

So, what’s so great about this oven method? Here are a few reasons why it’s a game-changer:

Efficiency

While your meat is happily cooking in the oven, you’re free to tackle other meal prep tasks. For instance, you can chop onions and other vegetables, get out your freezer bags, measure out spices, and more. No more juggling between stirring meat and slicing veggies!

Quantity

The oven method of bulk cooking ground meat lets you cook a large amount of meat at once. The deal is, if you’re like me and are working in a normal kitchen, with normal size skillets, when bulk cooking ground meat, you have to cook your meat in several batches. This is time consuming and tiring. Bulk cooking ground meat in the oven makes it possible to say goodbye to time-consuming stovetop batches.

It’s Just Plain Easier

Whether you’re hosting a party or bulk cooking freezer meals, this method is a lifesaver. With this method, you can whip up enough ground meat for 10 freezer meals in just 20 minutes. And during that time, you can get all of your other ingredients ready. Talk about a win-win!

So, there you have it – a stress-free, efficient way to bulk cook ground meat. Go ahead, give it a try and tell us how it went. Happy cooking, folks!

Recommended Resources

I’m always on the lookout for anything that makes my life easier and more efficient in the kitchen. Here are a few of my favorite resources that I like for bulk cooking, especially for freezer meals.

1st Pick

Souper Cubes

Souper Cubes are one of the niftiest inventions when it comes to freezer cooking. They freeze your food into “cubes” ranging in size from 2 tablespoons to 2 cups. You can store the frozen food in the trays (they come with a lid), or after they’re frozen, you can remove them and put them into a zippered bag. One thing I love about them is that they are designed in such a way that a single tray of frozen cubes fits perfectly into a gallon size freezer bag.

Check current price on Amazon

2nd Pick

Baggy Racks for Meal Prep

I may just be more messy and klutzy than others, but a problem that I have when preparing freezer meals is stuff spilling out of the bags as I fill them. These baggy racks hold your freezer bags into position, while you fill them. They’re like having another set of hands that never get tired.

Check Current Price on Amazon

3rd Pick

Seriously Good Freezer Meals Book

One of the biggest problems with freezer meals is that not everything freezes well. So you can’t always take one of your favorite recipes, prepare it, and stick it in the freezer. It may work, it may not. That’s where cookbooks such as this one come in handy. This book teaches you a lot about how to properly freeze meals, and gives you a lot of recipes to get started.