Ramadan is such a special time of year, but if you’re responsible for feeding a family, there can also be a lot to do! One thing that makes Ramadan a little easier in our house is preparing some of our favourite foods in advance.
In this Ramadan meal prep, I spent a day making a selection of homemade snacks, starters and freezer-friendly foods that we could enjoy throughout the month.
I made mince and potato samosas, chicken and potato spring rolls, kebabs, chicken tikka, mini sausage bites, cheesy vegetable pasties and pakora mixture.
It was definitely a busy day in the kitchen, but having all that food prepared and waiting in the freezer made it worthwhile!
Getting Ready for a Big Ramadan Meal Prep
I actually started my preparation the day before by chopping a large batch of onions.
I knew I’d need onions for several of the recipes, so rather than repeatedly peeling and chopping them throughout my meal prep day, I did them all at once in my mini chopper and stored them in containers ready for the following day.
If you’re planning a big Ramadan food prep day yourself, this is something I’d recommend. Look through everything you’re planning to make and see which ingredients you can prepare in bulk.
Now onto the food!
Homemade Mince & Potato Samosas
I started with the biggest job of the day: homemade samosas.
For the filling, I made a traditional mince and potato mixture.
I boiled chopped potatoes until tender and then browned the mince before adding onions, garlic and ginger paste, salt and spices. I also added tamarind sauce, which gives the filling a lovely tangy flavour.
Once the mince was cooked, I added the potatoes and some coriander and mixed everything together.
Homemade Samosa Pastry
I also made my samosa pastry from scratch using:
- Plain flour
- Oil
- Water
- Salt
- Coarse black pepper
I kneaded everything together into a smooth dough and left it to rest for around 30 minutes.
One trick I’ve used for years is to part-cook the samosa pastry before filling it.
I roll the dough into chapati-style rounds and very lightly cook each side on a tava or frying pan. I then cut each one in half and form my samosas while the pastry is still slightly warm, as I find it much easier to work with that way.
To seal them, I simply make a paste from plain flour and water.
This batch made approximately 36 rather generously sized samosas!
Chicken Tikka
Next was a very simple one: chicken tikka.
Rather than cooking it straight away, I prepared and marinated the chicken so that it could go into the freezer.
I used cubed chicken breast with Greek yoghurt, spices and lemon juice, mixed everything together and transferred it to a freezer bag.
This is a really versatile thing to have prepared because you don’t necessarily have to serve it as a traditional Ramadan starter. It could become part of a main meal, go inside naan or wraps, or be served alongside other foods as part of a mixed grill.
Chicken & Potato Spring Rolls
Spring rolls are another favourite in our house, particularly with the kids.
For these, I made a filling using chicken mince and potatoes.
I cooked the chicken mince with a little oil before adding garlic and ginger paste, tomato purée, salt and spices.
Once the chicken was cooked, I mixed in the boiled potatoes along with sweetcorn and spring onions.
I then used ready-made spring roll pastry sheets to form the spring rolls, sealing them with the same simple flour-and-water paste I’d used for my samosas.
Definitely one worth making in bulk!
Homemade Lamb Kebabs
It wouldn’t really be one of my Ramadan meal preps without making kebabs!
For these I used lamb mince combined with:
- Red onion
- Garlic and ginger paste
- Tomato purée
- Egg
- Gram flour
- Spices
- Salt
- Lemon juice
- Coriander
Once everything was thoroughly combined, I spread the kebab mixture onto greaseproof paper.
Instead of shaping every kebab individually by hand, I placed another sheet of paper over the mixture and used a rolling pin to flatten it into an even layer.
I then used a round cookie cutter to cut out my kebabs.
It’s a simple little trick that makes producing a large batch of evenly sized kebabs much easier.
Mini Sausage Bites
After all that cooking, it was time for something incredibly easy!
These mini sausage bites only need sausages and puff pastry.
I wrapped mini sausages in puff pastry to create little bite-sized snacks. If you can’t find mini sausages, you could simply cut ordinary sausages into smaller pieces instead.
Sometimes the simplest Ramadan snacks are the best ones to have waiting in the freezer.
Cheesy Vegetable Pasties
I also wanted to make a meat-free option, so next up were cheesy vegetable pasties.
I boiled potatoes and frozen vegetables together until soft, then added salt, spices and garlic and ginger paste before mashing everything together.
I then made a simple cheesy white sauce from butter, plain flour, milk and cheese and mixed this through the vegetables.
The filling went into puff pastry to make individual pasties.
These can be frozen uncooked and then, once you’re ready to bake them, brushed with egg wash before going into the oven.
Make-Ahead Pakora Mixture
Finally, I made something I hadn’t always thought to prepare ahead of time: pakora mixture.
I love pakoras, but sometimes when you actually want them, you can’t be bothered making the mixture from scratch!
So this time I prepared a big batch in advance.
For my pakoras I used potatoes, carrots and onions along with garlic and ginger paste, tomato purée, eggs, spices and gram flour. I added a little water when I found the mixture was too thick.
I divided the finished mixture between two large freezer bags so that I could take out a batch when we wanted fresh pakoras during Ramadan.
And of course, after spending all that time preparing food, I had to fry a few pakoras to enjoy with a cup of tea!
What I Prepared for Ramadan
By the end of my Ramadan meal prep, I’d made:
- Homemade mince and potato samosas
- Chicken tikka
- Chicken and potato spring rolls
- Lamb kebabs
- Mini sausage bites
- Cheesy vegetable pasties
- Pakora mixture
That’s a pretty well-stocked freezer!
Ramadan Meal Prep Tips
If you’re planning your own big Ramadan preparation day, there are a few things I’d suggest.
Prepare ingredients in bulk. If several recipes need onions, garlic, potatoes or other vegetables, prep them together rather than starting from scratch for every recipe.
Start with the biggest job. For me, that was the homemade samosas. Getting those finished first meant everything else felt easier afterwards.
Don’t only prepare fried snacks. Things such as marinated chicken tikka, kebabs and vegetable pasties give you more options for meals throughout Ramadan.
Prepare versatile foods. Chicken tikka and kebabs, for example, can be used in several different meals rather than only being served as starters.
And most importantly, prepare what your family actually eats. There’s no point filling the freezer with dozens of different foods simply because they’re traditional Ramadan foods if your family won’t eat them.
Making Ramadan a Little Easier
Ramadan meal prep does take some effort upfront, especially when you’re making things like samosas from scratch, but I love the convenience of knowing that I’ve got homemade food waiting in the freezer.
It means there is less preparation to do later and hopefully a little more time to focus on the things that really matter during Ramadan.
You certainly don’t need to prepare everything in one enormous session either. You could choose two or three favourites and prepare a batch whenever you have some spare time in the weeks leading up to Ramadan.
I hope this gives you some inspiration for your own Ramadan meal prep and freezer preparation.
Ramadan Mubarak! May you and your family have a peaceful and blessed Ramadan. ❤️
