How to properly freeze food? Automatic translate

The simplest and most effective way to preserve the beneficial properties and taste of food for a long time is freezing. Below are tips that will help you cope with this task as quickly and effortlessly as possible.

What foods can be frozen

To avoid disappointment when defrosting, you need to freeze only those foods and dishes that can withstand low temperatures well. These include:

• fresh and boiled vegetables (with the exception of vegetables with plenty of water);
• fruits and berries (with the exception of bananas and fruits that contain a lot of water);
• butter and margarine;
• meat, lard and poultry;
• any offal;
• wine;
• ready-made dishes from meat, fish and poultry (cutlets, goulash, zrazy and many others);
• vegetable, mushroom, fish and meat broths;
• any fresh herbs;
• nuts and seeds;
• citrus juices and zest;
• bread and pastries without cream or filling.

All these products can be safely stored in the freezer and defrosted as needed. But you need to remember that after defrosting their taste may increase slightly. At the same time, there are foods that are not recommended to be frozen uncooked at all. For example, mussels and snails should be cooked first and then frozen for best results. Have you heard about eating snails in our area? It’s already here - here’s a real store of edible snails: snail-market.ru.

What foods should not be frozen

Unfortunately, not all products tolerate freezing well. Some of them, after exposure to low temperatures, lose the desired structure and rich taste. Do not store in the freezer:

• vegetables and greens with a high water content (radish, cucumber, green salad, celery stalks, onions, sweet peppers) cannot be used fresh after freezing, but they can be added to various first and second courses, and also made into purees and then freeze it;
• milk, cream, kefir, yogurt;
• boiled eggs - after freezing they become “rubbery”;
• fresh eggs in the shell - if you want to freeze them, lightly beat the white and yolk with a fork and freeze in a container; mayonnaise and sauces with starch - after defrosting they fall into layers;
• creams - they also lose their desired texture when frozen and then separate;
• pieces of boiled potatoes - after defrosting they become slippery, but potatoes can be frozen in the form of mashed potatoes;
• jelly - dishes with a high gelatin content crystallize in the freezer and change their structure;
• bananas and fruits that contain a lot of water (melon, watermelon, citrus fruits) - it is better to make juice or puree from them and only then freeze them.

Even if you’ve already frozen something on this list, don’t worry. Most products are not suitable for fresh consumption, but you can still create various culinary masterpieces from them.

How to properly freeze food and dishes

In general, the freezing process is not particularly difficult. You need to carefully pack the food in a suitable container and put it in the freezer. But some tricks will help optimize this process and preserve the taste of the food as much as possible.

Freeze food in small portions. The amount of product in one container must correspond to the amount of food eaten by the family at a time, otherwise the leftovers will have to be re-frozen, and this will spoil the taste and deprive the food of many beneficial properties.

Buy containers of different sizes so that you can freeze both a liter of broth and 100 grams of sauce. It is best to choose rectangular or square containers: they are more convenient to place in the freezer.

Choose blast freezing. The faster a product is frozen, the fewer ice crystals will form inside it. This allows you to maintain the desired structure of the food. If your freezer not only supports a standard temperature of -18 degrees, but also has a blast freezing function at -30 degrees, use this opportunity.

Pack food tightly and remove excess air from container. Thanks to this trick, products will lose less moisture during storage. If possible, wrap food in cling film: this way you can freeze cutlets, chops, cheesecakes, and casseroles. Containers with dishes and products can also be wrapped in film: it will not only help retain moisture, but also protect food from foreign odors.

Do not fill containers to the top. You probably remember from your school physics course that when water freezes, it increases in volume. If you fill the container all the way to the top, the lid may lift off after freezing. This will break the seal of the container.

Sign frozen foods. On the container or packaging, be sure to indicate which product was frozen and when, and also indicate the approximate shelf life. This way you will always know where to find the right container and which products to use first.

At first it may seem that proper freezing of food is a rather labor-intensive process, but this is just the first impression. You will quickly get the hang of it and will spend no more than 10-15 minutes preparing food.

Features of freezing different dishes

Many prepared meals can be frozen. They will help out when there is absolutely no time to prepare fresh food. In order for food to retain its taste, aroma and desired consistency, you need to know some nuances.

Chicken . Chicken dishes tolerate freezing well and do not require any preliminary preparation. Simply cool the baked or fried chicken to room temperature, wrap in cling film and freeze.

Cutlets and meatballs . Minced meat dishes are also easy to freeze. The cutlets must first be wrapped in film so that they do not stick together. It is better to store them in small portions and defrost as needed. The meatballs can be placed together with the sauce in a container and frozen as is.

Dumplings and dumplings . These dishes are frozen in two stages. First, they are laid out in one layer on a tray or cutting board covered with cling film. And when the dumplings and dumplings freeze, they are put in a plastic or canvas bag and sent for long-term storage.

Soup base . You won’t be able to freeze the finished soup, but you can make a tasty base for it. Freeze broth, roasted vegetables and fresh herbs in a container. All that remains is to combine the preparations in a saucepan and add some potatoes, pasta or cereal.

Base for pilaf . If you often cook pilaf, you can freeze the base for it. Cut the meat into pieces of the desired size and fry in oil along with carrots and onions. Cool and freeze them. When you want to cook pilaf, place the base in a cauldron, add rice, spices and water.

Pancakes . Pancakes with and without filling tolerate freezing well. But remember that it is best to fry them immediately without defrosting them first.

Side dishes . Most side dishes can be frozen, but be aware that they will change texture and taste once defrosted. Mashed potatoes retain their original properties best.

Remember that all food that you plan to freeze must first be cooled to room temperature. Also, ready-made food has a pronounced aroma, so it is frozen only in airtight containers, otherwise the odors will mix in the freezer.

How to defrost food correctly

It is not enough to freeze food correctly; you also need to know how to defrost certain foods and dishes so that they do not lose their properties.

The most correct way to defrost food and dishes is slow and gradual. It is best to transfer frozen food from the freezer to the refrigerator and wait until it thaws naturally. It is in this case that not only the beneficial properties will be preserved, but also the taste, aroma and desired consistency of the product.

It is important to avoid common mistakes when defrosting food.

Do not defrost food under hot water. In this case, the upper layers defrost quickly, but the deeper layers remain frozen for a long time. This situation significantly degrades the taste and texture of any product.

You should also not leave frozen food at room temperature. The top layer will thaw much faster than the deeper ones, and pathogenic bacteria can multiply in it.

It is not recommended to defrost fish and seafood in the microwave. The speed of their preparation is quite high, so while the deep layers are thawing, the proteins of the upper layers will coagulate and lose their taste, desired density and many beneficial properties.

Frozen fish and meat should also not be thrown into boiling water. They will become dry and significantly reduced in volume, and the broth will be cloudy. It is better to use completely defrosted products for its preparation.

Many dishes can be cooked without defrosting. This applies to dumplings, dumplings, spring rolls, vegetables, small seafood, small pieces of meat and poultry.