These common mistakes could lead to food waste, foodborne illness and more.
Learn how to solve them so you might make the most of your freezer.
I used to believe that your freezer was connected to your fridge, full stop.
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Suddenly, a whole new world opened up to me.
But there are also lessons to be learned when you begin to really lean into freezing.
Other ingredients that should stay out of the freezer include soft cheese and raw eggs, which can explode.
For more foods that are not good to freeze, check out theNational Center for Food Preservation.
A fluctuation between 1F and -1F is safe, but for best results, err on the colder side.
If possible, use the FIFO system (first in/first out) to organize your freezer.
Whenever you add something new, put it behind or underneath an older identical or similar item.
This way, you’ll use the oldest items first when you go looking for food.
Or opening a container to find a solid brick of meatballs.
Individually freezing these items is key to having them work for you once frozen.
The items will stay separated, and become much easier to use straight from frozen.
This works well for slices of cake or other baked goods as well.
Food needs to be between 0F and 40F to be safe.
If you need a protein thawed quickly,the USDA suggeststhawing it in cold water or in the microwave.
For the cold-water method, place food in a zip-top bag and immerse it in cold water.
Change the water every 30 minutes until the food is thawed.
For the microwave method, defrost in 1- minute intervals until thawed.
If using either of these methods, plan to cook the food immediately.
If your power is restored within 24 hours, you should be totally fine.
