15 Surprising Thanksgiving Leftovers That Freeze Perfectly

Turkey is always the start of the Thanksgiving show, but there are so many side dishes that deserve to shine, too. Like casseroles! To freeze leftover casserole, divide the casserole up into smaller portion sizes to easily thaw and reheat what's needed.  Betty Crocker's tip? Take off any crumb or fried topping first, as it will just get soggy when reheated.

Savvy Eats shares three ways to freeze Thanksgiving turkey. For all three methods, the key is making sure the turkey is completely cooled before freezing.

Mashed potatoes is life, honestly, and having leftovers in the freezer can turn a bad day into a good one. Thankfully, they freeze pretty well and thaw out deliciously. The Yummy Life has two methods for freezing mashed potatoes. One is by the single serving, another by the batch. Both sound perfect for Thanksgiving leftovers.

Leftover veggies are a great eat-now, freeze-for-later side dish. That means, if there are any left from Thanksgiving meal, they can be stored, frozen, and used later on, which can be a huge help. Nevermore Lane uses the frozen veggies as easy additions to new meals like dinner boils but they can also be thawed as part of a stew, caserole dish or soup.

It might not be intuitive, but gravy is something that lasts very well when frozen, and it can be really handy to have some readily available.The Kitchn suggests pouring leftover gravy into muffin tins before popping that into the freezer. When the gravy is good and solid, they can be removed from the tray and placed in a freezer bag to be pulled out as needed.

Opened too many bottles for dinner? No need to let them go to waste when there's a freezer nearby. Frugally Blonde suggests filling ice cube trays with leftover wine from Thanksgiving dinner. This tip works for both red and white wines, and they can be used later on for recipes like stews, soups, and gravies.

Thanksgiving was made for cranberry sauce -- it does something to turkey that's out of this world. But if you've got extras, it can be enjoyed at any time of the year. Mira at Cooking LSL freezes not only her leftover cranberry sauce, but her extra cranberries, too. The frozen cranberries are easy to use in future baking and jam recipes.

Stuffing is one of the best parts of Thanksgiving meal, and making extra to eat later is never a bad idea. Stuffing easily freezes in airtight containers and can stay good for up to three months. Or, the stuffing can be turned it into freezable stuffing muffins with a recipe from Budget Bytes.

Leftover rolls and bread freeze easily and last for months in the ice box which is a good thing for anyone who loves to stock up. There's nothing different that has to happen than if we were freezing a regular loaf of bread. The Balance suggests thawing by relocating the frozen loaves into the fridge a day before using.

According to Everything Pie, pie is something that can be saved in the freezer to be enjoyed later. It's better to freeze in slices instead of the pie in one piece. Cooked pie that's been frozen as a leftover can last up to a week in the freezer -- any longer than that and the texture of the crust may change a bit.

To save space, store soup in freezer-safe bags instead of bowls. Soups with a cream or high-fat base -- think chowder or bisque -- aren't ideal for freezing as they tend to separate when defrosted. Broth-based soups, though, like veggie and minestrone, are perfect for saving and a great quick lunch later on.

Fresh herbs can be expensive, so it makes sense to save any leftovers we have from Thanksgiving meal prep. Herbs can be turned into leftovers by chopping them up and mixing with oil, then pouring the mixture into a standard ice cube tray, like Diethood does. This makes it easy to defrost exactly what's needed to season a recipe later on.

It's hard to imagine why there are leftover potatoes after Thanksgiving because it's arguably the best part of the meal. But if someone finds themselves in that situation, Whole potatoes are great for freezing. Thrifty Fun has a great method: Let them cool, wrap in foil, and pop in the freezer.

If a spiral ham is a Thanksgiving tradition in the family, the good news is that ham can be frozen, too. Leftover ham is slightly trickier to freeze than turkey since it dries out quicker. Ham freezes best when sealed in vacuum pack storage first. Our Everyday Life separates leftover ham into portion sizes for easy meal making.

Seasonal veggies like brussels sprouts can be frozen easily in storage bags or freezer safe containers. Livestrong suggests freezing them on a cookie sheet first, then placing the frozen veggies into storage bags for maximum freshness. The site suggests you place the vegetables in an ice bath for 30 minutes first, to allow them to cool, and pop into the freezer.