In Praise of the Lowly Chest Freezer

In Praise of the Lowly Chest Freezer

It’s hard to imagine an appliance that has the same economic benefits of a chest freezer.  I like chest freezers because they can come in some very small sizes – sometimes under 2 cubic feet.  At that size they can fit on the counter of your kitchen.  That means that you don’t have to own a traditional house with a basement or laundry room to enjoy the savings that this unassuming white box can provide you.

And we’re not going to fill it up with frozen pizzas or any kind of microwaveable meals, no sir.  We’re going to fill it with meat, bread, bagels and frozen vegetables that we purchased on sale.  We’re going to buy several yards of sausage at sale prices, take them home, cook them all, then put 3 or 4 each in baggies to freeze.  And we’ll do the same with those chicken thighs that we found on sale.  We’re going to make a football field sized lasagne then cut it into individual servings and put them in generic plastic food storage containers.  Then we’ll make a rain barrel full of chilli and do the same thing.  So, there’s no need to call for delivery or pick-up drive-through, you already have a chest full of fast-food.

If you live alone, a chest freezer can help you save money and eat healthier.  When I lived alone I found that eating vegetables was difficult because they were always going bad in my fridge.  Access to a good sized deep freeze means that you‘ll never have to worry about your vegetables going bad ever again.

You can get a medium sized chest freezer for around $150.   At that price you’ll probably find that it’ll pay for itself in grocery savings in 3-6 months.   You’ll also enjoy the benefits of lower grocery bills and fewer grocery excursions. 

So, while you might not be cool, at least you can always be chillin’.