A Guide on How to Freeze Foods

Are you making the most of your freezer? If you don't freeze food regularly, you're probably spending more time and money on meals than you need to. To unlock your freezer's full potential, you should know what to freeze and how to freeze it.

What Foods to Freeze
From a safety standpoint, all foods can be frozen, but that doesn't mean that all foods should be frozen. For example, mayonnaise, onions, celery, lettuce, cooked pasta, cream-based sauces and soft cheeses just don't hold up well in the freezer. But you can freeze meats (either cooked or uncooked), most fruits and vegetables, breads, prepared dishes, cookies, pies and even dough.

Preparing Foods for the Freezer
If you want your foods to come out of the freezer tasting as good as they did when they went in, they need to be prepared properly. Since freezer burn is enemy number one, make sure that all foods are adequately packaged. Follow these rules:

• Package all foods while they are at peak freshness.
• Allow foods to cool completely before freezing.
• Store foods only in plastic bags, containers, wraps or papers that are designed for freezer use.
• Squeeze all air out of containers or bags before placing them in the freezer.
• Label all packages with the date and contents.
• Repackage meats that you intend to store for more than a few weeks.
• Remove eggs from their shells before freezing.

Food-Specific Preparations
Most vegetables need to be blanched before being placed in the freezer in order to destroy the enzymes that are responsible for ripening, and to preserve their freshness and color.

To blanch vegetables, simply submerge the vegetables in a pot of boiling water for several minutes. Then remove, and allow them to cool fully before freezing.

Planning to freeze apples, avacados or other foods prone to browning? Then be sure to give them a splash of citric acid or lemon juice to preserve their natural color.

Placing Foods in the Freezer
The process of freezing food means more than simply throwing everything into the freezer and promptly forgetting about it. To preserve the quality of your food, you should also:

• Make sure the freezer is set to 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower.
• Leave space around any new foods that you add to the freezer to allow for adequate air circulation while they are freezing.
• Stack foods only after they have frozen completely.
• Avoid overfilling the freezer.

Thawing and Using Frozen Foods
When you are ready to use your frozen foods, you must thaw your foods in a safe manner. Frozen foods can be thawed in a bowl of cold water, in the refrigerator or in the microwave, but they should never be thawed on the counter, where they are vulnerable to bacteria growth.

Thawing foods that you plan to use later in the week? Just make sure you use them within a reasonable amount of time. Once thawed, your frozen foods will deteriorate at the same rate as fresh foods.

Also, since many fruits and vegetables lose their crispness when frozen, you may find that they work best as ingredients in prepared dishes, rather than being served on their own.

Storage Time
From a safety standpoint, frozen foods can be stored indefinitely. From a quality standpoint, frozen foods should be used as soon as possible. Try to rotate the foods in your freezer, and consider tossing any foods that become severely freezer burned.

More Food Freezing Tips

• Freeze foods in their intended serving sizes for ease of use.
• Freeze cooked foods for quick and easy meals on the go.
• Flash-freeze berries and other soft foods on cookie sheets to avoid clumping. Then, transfer the frozen fruit to bags or containers once they're frozen.
• Use an ice cube tray to freeze homemade baby food, broth, sauces or eggs. Then, once the cubes are frozen, pop them out and store them in freezer bags.
• Leave headspace in all containers to allow for expansion.
• Keep a list of the foods in your freezer to ensure nothing is forgotten.