Has your freezer become the middleman between your stove and the trash? Do you groan at the thought of fitting another big casserole into the frozen abyss? It's time to rethink how we use our freezers! Read on for tips on foods you never even knew could be useful frozen, and other tips.
Melissa Clark put together 27 freezer tips over at Real Simple and more than a few of them are worth noting.
• Freeze Ingredients: When freezing, think of what you'll use for cooking, not necessarily the foods themselves. Take wine, for example. Why freeze wine? Think of making tomato sauce and realizing half way through that you could really use a few splashes of red wine. Hello frozen wine cubes!
• Think Small: Not only does portion control mean faster freezer-to-plate time, freezing in small portions results in fresher dishes. The larger the dish, the longer the entire thing takes to freeze and the less fresh it can taste.
• Yes, Eggs!: This was a revelation for me - Melissa explains that eggs can be frozen as long as you remove them from the shells and beat them a bit. Again, these are going to be better used in baked goods than fried up on their own.
• Marinate in the Freezer: Save time by adding marinade to meat and poultry before freezing. The liquid will help keep freezer burn at bay and once thawed, the meat is ready for cooking.
• Read more: Freezer Fundamentals at Real Simple
Related: Make 46 Freezer Meals In 4 Hours
(Images: Nicholas Piccillo/Shutterstock)
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i love the idea of frozen wine cubes, but when i actually attempted it, i got frozen wine slush that i couldn't easily removed from the tray. has anyone else had better results?
I have 2 plastic containers in my fridge- one for egg yolks and one for egg whites. I bake so much and more often than not am left with a yolk or white here and there I don't want to waste, so I just dump it in the right container and when I need to use them, let it thaw and scoop out what I need (you can find conversions online for how much 1 white or 1 yolk would be since the freezing breaks them down)
I, too, came out with wine slush. What's the freezing wine trick?
I also freeze stock. And I make concentrated stock that I freeze in ice cubes
Hmm... I've frozen wine before in ice cube trays just fine. Maybe it has to do with your freezer setting??? Otherwise, you might try freezing it in a small ziploc to make it easier to scoop out the slush?
I use my food processor to puree a bunch of ginger. I freeze in dollops and store in a bag. Great for quick ginger for stirfries etc. I used to freeze in one big chunk but it's really hard to break off pieces (gets pretty sharp edges) so I switched methods.
@queenofthefall @katethesnake - Freezing wine coming out slushy has to do with the alcohol content, and perhaps even the sugar content of the wine you're using.
We always make huge batches of turkey or chicken stock after roasting a bird and freeze it all in little leftover sour cream or yogurt containers. It's perfect for throwing into recipes throughout the year.
I think to get wine to freeze you'd have to use pretty low-alcohol content, cruddy wine. I like to cook with wine that's good enough to drink, so it wouldn't really be worth it. I'm definitely on the stock freezing bandwagon, and I also have huge stockpiles of frozen berries and stone fruits from the summer.
My one major beef with the article is the cheese suggestion. As a cheesemonger, I would NEVER advise someone to freeze cheese. Cheese is alive; freezing it would kill all the flavor, and so does pre-grating.
egg yolks are best frozen with sugar or salt, depending on their final usage. this helps keep them intact and better for baking. weigh your yolks and mix in 10% salt or sugar, then freeze. just remember to adjust your final recipe when using these salty/sugary yolks.
Thanks for this totally informative article Stephanie. It opened up my eyes as to properly freezing nuts, cheese, eggs, tenderizing...and so much more. I have a side by side and love it because I can keep foods verities separate and everything is easy to view. I use ice cube trays to freeze caramelized onions and when frozen, transfer the cubes to zip lock bags. I love this because caramelizing onions is time consuming and it's so nice to some ready to pop into recipe.
I do have a problem that's not really so much related to the article though. I have a Maytag side by side and every now and then I find water leakage on the floor. I know it's coming from the freezer, but don't know why. I've adjusted the temperature over and over and no positive results. Any clues as to what is causing this?
I make breakfast omelet muffins constantly and freeze them. They're so easy to change up (sausage, veggie, whatever) and always have on hand for a quick breakfast on the go. Before I discovered them, I never would've thought I could freeze eggs, but now I can't go back!
Like QuirkyJessi, I also make omelet muffins. Mine have no bread crust, but I just mix eggs, toss in a bunch of chopped veggies, and maybe some cheese, spoon them into silicon baking cups, bake, and freeze. I live on those during busy times.
Merilynch, some freezers have a pan that needs to be emptied. Does it have a waterline for ice? Perhaps it has a leak.