The Quick Guide to Cooking and Freezing Foods by
Making use of your freezer is a great way to save time when there are so many other things going on in your life. The team at Huggies, with the help of Susan Austin from Frost Bite, have put together a quick guide to freezer food to get you reacquainted with your freezer again.
Top 10 foods to freeze 1. Casseroles and curries 2. Soups and pasta sauces 3. Pasta bakes or lasagna 4. Homemade pizzas 5. Tarts and quiche 6. Meatballs and meatloaf 7. Bread, scones, and muffins 8. Sweet and savoury pies and pastries 9. Cakes, biscuits, slices and brownies 10. Sandwiches for the lunchbox
Top 10 foods to avoid in the freezer 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Lettuce Tomato Avocado Vegetables such as green beans, cucumber, snow peas, etc Potatoes sometimes freeze well, sometimes not so well. For example, in a curry Mayonnaise Cottage cheese Boiled eggs Strawberries
10. Garlic can get stronger after freezing so use less of it
Top 10 Tips for defrosting 1. Freeze quickly and defrost slowly 2. Plan ahead and allow plenty of time for food to defrost in the fridge 3. If you need to defrost in the microwave use the defrost feature, don’t blast your food on HIGH 4. Small or thin foods can be cooked from frozen: pizza, cookie dough balls, canapés, sausage rolls, etc 5. Store food in usable-size portions before freezing 6. Use lots of ziplock bags in different sizes, even for wet foods like soup or casseroles 7. Other food can be stored in plastic containers or foil trays 8. Spread the food in the ziplock bags so that it’s thin - it will freeze and defrost quickly 9. Slice loaves such as banana bread before freezing 10. Keep balls of uncooked cookie dough in the freezer for baking for unexpected guests
Top 10 ways your freezer can make your life easier 1. Make a double batch of dinner and freeze one portion for another day 2. Freeze lots of dinners before the arrival of your baby 3. Freeze lots of dinners before having surgery or moving house 4. Prepare one or two courses in advance for a dinner party if your Saturday is already too busy 5. Make some yummy meals to take to the beach house, ski lodge, farm, camping trip, etc 6. Freeze lots of delicious finger foods for your next cocktail party 7. Make the cake, cupcakes, sausage rolls, etc, in advance for your children’s birthday parties 8. Cook and freeze a meal for a friend who is struggling: new baby, chemo, divorce, etc 9. Freeze lots of sandwiches for kids and adults’ lunchboxes to make mornings easier 10. Freeze leftover cakes, biscuits and slices so you don’t pig out!
Recommended freezing times chart in months Fruits Raspberries / Strawberries
24
Peaches, Apricots, Cherries
18
Fruit Juice Concentrate
24
Vegetables Asparagus
12
Green beans
15
Broccoli and Brussels sprouts
15
Carrots
18
Cauliflower
12
Corn on the cob or corn kernels
12
Mushrooms
8
Peas, green
24
Capsicums (peppers), red and green
6
Spinach, Chopped
18
Onions
10
Leeks, blanched
18
Meats and poultry Beef steaks/cuts
18
Minced meat (ground meat)
10
Veal steak/cuts
12
Lamb steaks
18
Pork steaks/cuts
10
Sliced bacon (vacuum packed)
12
Chicken, whole or pieces
18
Turkey, whole
15
Seafood Fatty fish
5
Lean fish
9
Lean fish, single fillets
9
Lobster, crabs, prawns in shell (shrimps) (cooked)
6
Clams and oysters
6
Milk and dairy Butter, unsalted
18
Butter, salted
12
Cream
12
Icecream
6
Bakery and confectionery products Cakes
15
Breads
3
Note: The standard operating temperature of a domestic freezer is -18°C (0°F). If your freezer is not as cold as this, your food won’t last as long as the times shown here.