Freezing food is one of the best ways to combat food waste production and waste, which can make food available for a long time. They can be fresh treats, or some of the daily meals. Of course, knowing the tips and tricks that lead to the right way to freeze can preserve the taste and freshness of these foods for a longer period of time and teach you when the best time to take out these frozen foods is.
Freezing the food and ensure health and freshness
How to pick food in the freezer
For each item, check your freezer temperature to show a temperature of -17 Celsius degrees or less. For this purpose, you need to have a specific thermometer for the freezer, or this temperature will be displayed by itself.
However, freezing or freezing process does not result in the killing of food bacteria, but it slows down their ability to proliferate and thus prevent freezing. After you take the food out of the freezer and the ice melts, the bacteria wake up again and start working. So it means you have to eat or cook food at this time.
Ingredients for the freezer
Most nutrients remain intact in the home appliance for about two to three month, but the instructions and maintenance tips vary depending in the type of food. Of course, the month of time spent of freezing food is more likely to be associated with the quality of food than they are in contact with their health.
Freeze nutrient
Use plastic containers or freezer bags. Glass containers are not suitable for this purpose, as they crack when exposed to sudden temperature changes. Remember that freezer bags (zipper) and sandwich bags are not the same. The freezer bag is made of thicker plastic with an additive composition that does not break in the freezer, but ordinary sandwich bags or some other storage bags do not have this feature.
If possible, place food in smaller sizes in the freezer. This, in addition to increasing its speed, wastes away the waste of food and nutrient. For example, instead of pouring stew or soup into a large container, keep it in small quantities and separate containers.
To freeze berries, banana slices, green beans and similar small foods at the same time, you can separate them on a metal tray and then put them in the freezer. Once the ingredients are completely frozen, transfer each one individually to the freezer bag or container.
Instead of looking at freezing food as just a way to prevent spoilage, look at it as a way to keep food fresh. When frozen foods are at their freshest, they will have the best results after thawing. For example, when you freeze the blueberry fruit in a loose and pasty state, after taking it out of the freezer, you will also encounter a pasty and loose blueberry.
It can be said that it is almost impossible to get all the air out of your freezer holder or zipper, so freezing burns on food will be inevitable after a period of time in the freezer. Of course, if your food intake is high, the instrument vacuum that leaves all the available air can remove the problems of freezing the food.
Wait for each food to cool completely before placing it in the freezer, if you put hot food in the freezer. In addition to endangering its health (the longer it takes to cool down puts the food in the so-called food temperature danger zone), placing a hot object in the freezer can heat up the rest of the food, which endanger their health as well.
In some cases, you can use frozen food directly. For example, frozen berries can be used directly in a smoothie, or you can add frozen tomato paste directly to soups or sauces. Of course, you can also put frozen chicken breast directly on the heat and cook, but it is not an approved and preferred method for cooking.
Defrosting meat
In some other cases, you may need to completely freeze the food. The safest way to do this especially in the case of protein foods such as meat, poultry and fish, is to refrigerate them overnight. If these substances are defrosted at room temperature or placed in hot water to melt the ice, they may cause food poisoning.
Freeze meat and seafood
Meat in the freezer
The important thing about these foods is that you put them in the freezer as soon as you get home. Raw meat should not be refrigerated for three days and then transferred to the freezer. Remove the meat from the plastic containers. Divide the minced meat before freezing. If you pack these materials in to layers (two layers of freezer bag or one layer of zipper and one layer of freezer bag), their shelf life will be increased and freezer burns will be prevented.
Put meat and seafood in the coldest part of the freezer (farthest point from the door) for two to three month. Before cooking, put the meat in the refrigerator for a few hours (night to morning) until the ice is completely melted.
Freeze fresh vegetables
Blanching
The best way to freeze fresh vegetables is to blanch or simmer them. There are several ways to blanch vegetables:
You need to cut the broccoli into small pieces from the umbrella-shaped part, separate the carrot skin and cut it into smaller pieces, cut the bell pepper into thin slices, and cut the green bean branches. The most important thing about vegetables is to make them the way they are eaten after defrosting.
Freezer vegetables
After slicing the vegetables, boil them with water for one to two minutes and then quickly place them in the water and ice bath to stop cooking. Once the excess water has drained out and is completely dry (wet vegetables cause fine frost), spread the vegetables on a metal tarry, place in the freezer, and after freezing, transfer to freezer bag or storage container.
Freezing the fruit is done in the same way, but you can skip the blanching step. Remember that bananas can be frozen whole with the skin. Of course the skin turns brown when frozen, but the fruit inside remains fresh and bright. The fruits are stored in the freezer for two to three month.
Food that can be frozen
Leafy vegetables such as lettuce and cabbage, tomatoes and other high-water products do not freeze well. But you can chop fresh leafy vegetables, mix them with a little water or olive oil and then pour them into ice cube trays and put them in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer the ice cubes to the zipper.
Freeze dairy and eggs
The main problem with eggs is that expansion and freezing break the shell. Whole boiled eggs also become rubbery after freezing. The best way to freeze eggs is to break them in a bowl, mix them with a small amount of sugar or salt (depending on whether they are frozen for sweet or savory consumption) and place them in storage containers in the freezer. Of course you can also put the yolks and whites separately in the freezer.
Milk is also completely freezable, but freezing causes it to fragment and separate its components, which affects its quality after thawing. Of course you can still use it for baking or cooking, and you will feel the difference in quality only when you drink the milk alone.
Sour cream
The thick cream freezes well, but it is 50%likely that this will not happen. Place the small pieces of whipped cream on a tray and place in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer them to the bag.
Put the cheese in the freezer when you cut it into small pieces and warp them in two layers. Homemade cheese and sour cream become granular after freezing. Sliced butter freezes well, but not so with shredded butter.
Freezing soups, stews and snacks
Types of freezer stews
When freezing soups, stews and snacks that are watery, first make sure they are completely refrigerated. Wait at least until the food fat has hardened and is visible on the surface of the material. Remove these fats from the surface of the food and discard. Then transfer the oral liquid to the container and place it in the freezer.
Freeze casserole and lasagna
Freeze cooked food
You can almost always frees uncooked casserole or lasagna in a baking dish, but in this case, you most cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil. Before you try to eat this food, take the dish out of the freezer to be defrosted in the night until morning. Of course, after taking the dish out of the freezer, you can put it directly in the cold oven, then turn on the machine and cook the casserole or lasagna. Wait a little longer to make sure the food is cooked enough, then remove the foil from the surface of the pan for the final 20 minutes of cooking to make the food crispy.
Casserole
Casserole and lasagna can be stored in the freezer after cooking and reheated at the desired time, after freezing. Remember that cooking in these conditions should be done a little less than usual, because it will be re-cooked in the heating process. In this case, you should see bubbles, sauce and boiling liquids in the food. Make sure the temperature in the food center is at least 70 Celsius degrees.
Freeze bread, cakes and pastries
Freezer bread
Wrap the baked bread, cake and pastry in two layers of bags after they have cooled completely and then store them in the freezer for two to three month. Unlike many perishable food, bread, cakes and pastries can still be placed in bags and containers at room temperature to melt the ice. Of course pastry dough can also be stored raw and uncooked in the freezer. In this case, it is recommended to divide them into small pieces and separate balls so that you can put them directly in the oven after taking them out of the freezer