Frozen foods are stored for a long time and can help out in a situation where there is no way to go shopping at the store. But not all foods are subject to freezing, as after thawing they will be unsuitable for food.
A few decades ago, housewives could only see frozen food on store shelves, and then it was considered an unusual innovation, but now everyone can freeze food in their refrigerator. The principle of most home freezers is the same, but there are rules for freezing food that every housewife must follow.
Frozen food has a shelf life
Although the shelf life of a frozen product is usually ten times longer than that of a fresh product, it is still there. Products that lie longer than the specified time must be disposed of, otherwise there is a risk of poisoning. The maximum shelf life for different products varies:
meat (pork, lamb, beef, horse meat) - up to six months; whole chicken - up to a year, in parts - up to 9 months; ready meals (including soups) - no more than 3 months; oily fish - up to 3 months, the rest - up to six months; fresh mushrooms - up to 8 months, boiled - up to a year; seafood - 3-4 months; berries - up to six months; nuts - up to two years; greens - no more than a month; bakery products - no more than three months.
You can also freeze vegetables with fruits, but they also have different shelf life:
most fruits and vegetables - up to a year; tomatoes - up to two months; pepper - 3-4 months; apples - 4 months; apricots and peaches - 4-6 months; pumpkin - up to 10 months; cabbage, cucumbers, celery - it is not recommended to freeze.
In order to maximize the shelf life of frozen food, you need to maintain a constant temperature in the freezer and avoid even partial defrosting. You need to store food in portions so as not to defrost a large volume each time.
To extend the shelf life of meat, you need to freeze it unwashed. Water cuts the storage of meat products in half.
Before freezing the whole chicken, the offal must be removed from it, since the chicken and offal have different shelf life.
The packaging in which the frozen products will be stored must be airtight.
Frozen food does not kill bacteria
There is a myth that freezing can kill disease-causing bacteria, but scientists have long denied it. The same bacteria were found on the surface of fresh and frozen products, only in the second case they become inactive. With prolonged thawing, bacteria are able to activate and develop further, causing spoilage of the product.
In order for bacteria to have fewer opportunities for development, food must be defrosted correctly. To do this, the frozen products must be removed from the freezer, put on a plate and placed on the lower shelf of the refrigerator until they are completely defrosted. This method is considered the safest. Defrosting in the open air is not the best option, as it is in this case that bacteria can become active, especially on meat, fish and poultry.
Frozen foods contain the same amount of vitamins as fresh ones
Another common misconception is that frozen foods lose most of their beneficial vitamins and substances. One can both agree and argue with this. For example, "shock" freezing (used in large industries) is really capable of destroying a certain amount of nutrients, but not all. But the home freezer retains most of the vitamins at all.
In order for the products from the freezer to be as useful as possible, you need to buy them for freezing in season (for example, winter fruits will probably be full of nitrates, and summer ones will not), and defrost with a steam bath, then the necessary vitamins and minerals will not go away with water …
Thawed food can be re-frozen
Re-freezing is not permissible, since this is not only harmful, but also has a strong effect on the taste of the food. But there are situations when defrosting occurs independently of the person (for example, when there is a power outage in the house). In this case, it is acceptable if the product has been left in the air for 2 hours before returning to the freezer. The exception is meat, fish and poultry, these products are best cooked right away.
Not all foods can be frozen
It is believed that you can freeze anything, but in reality it is not. There is a list of foods that cannot be frozen:
- Eggs in shell. In general, you can freeze eggs, but not in the shell, since the liquid in the protein expands during freezing and the shell cracks, from which, when defrosting, the pieces can get into the dish. It also makes no sense to freeze boiled eggs, as they will become "rubbery". It is best to freeze fresh eggs by breaking them into a container.
- Milk products. When frozen, milk, sour cream, mayonnaise, yoghurts change their structure and curl up when defrosting. You can freeze such products in case they are not going to be used in their pure form in the future.
- Breaded cooked food. When defrosting, the previously crunchy breading will turn into an unsightly unappetizing porridge.
- Watery fruits and vegetables. When frozen, the liquid in these foods crystallizes, which will turn them into an inedible puree when thawed. The list of such vegetables and fruits includes: zucchini, cabbage, cucumbers, pear, eggplant and some others.
- Cheese. When thawed, the cheese will become crumbly and begin to fall apart into small pieces.
- Canned food. The liquid will expand when frozen, which can cause the jar to burst. It will take a long time to clean up after that, and you may have to throw out other products that were next to the canned food.
- Alcohol. Nothing terrible will happen with strong alcoholic drinks in the freezer, but with champagne, beer, wine the same thing can happen as with canned food.
- Boiled rice. If there is a large amount of rice left, then it is better to use it immediately, rather than freeze it, since after thawing it will turn into a sticky porridge.
The freezer is a real salvation for housewives. But it is important to know which foods can and cannot be frozen, as well as the shelf life of certain frozen foods.
