Can be frozen. Cauliflower and broccoli

Useful tips

If you only use your freezer to store processed foods and ice cream, you are missing out on a lot.

It turns out that some products , which do not occur to us to store in the freezer, tolerate low temperatures perfectly, without losing their beneficial and taste properties.

We will share with you our knowledge about these products.

What foods can be frozen

1. Nuts

If you have purchased too many nuts and want to protect the oil they contain from spoilage, you can freeze them. When stored in a warm place, the oil in them becomes rancid. Set aside as many nuts as you plan to eat and freeze the rest. If necessary, remove the nuts from the freezer; they will thaw quickly at room temperature.

2. Boiled rice

Have you cooked too much rice? Well, don't throw away the excess. Place it in a container with a lid and freeze. If necessary, reheat in the microwave or on the stove, adding a few tablespoons of water. This method is also convenient for saving time. You can boil the rice in advance, freeze it, and then simply reheat it.

3. Grated cheese

Many recipes call for only a small amount of grated cheese. If you frequently sprinkle cheese on your dishes, grating it every time can be tiresome. Be smarter. Grate all the cheese, divide into portions and freeze. Freezing will keep the cheese fresh for a long time. This method is only suitable for durum varieties.

4. Ripe bananas

Frozen ripe bananas are good for milkshakes. They are easy to puree in a blender and make a great addition to fruit smoothies and add a creamy flavor. You don't even have to add ice.

Is it possible to freeze wine

5. Wine and champagne

If there is some wine left in the bottle after a party, do not throw it away. Freeze the wine in ice cube trays. Frozen wine cubes can be used to prepare various dishes, such as stewing meat and fish. When making sangria, frozen wine cubes can be added to a jug of fruit and regular wine. Frozen champagne cubes can be added to cocktails.

6. Fresh bacon

Bacon thaws easily at room temperature, so store it in the freezer, covering each piece with parchment paper. Fried bacon cannot be stored this way.

7. Butter

Frozen butter is a chef's secret weapon. It is easy to grate when preparing dough and more. Freeze it directly in the package, either by placing it in a bag or wrapping it in foil.

8. Fresh herbs

Wash and dry the greens. Finely chop, place on a tray and freeze. After the greens are frozen, transfer them to a bag. There is another option. Mix chopped greens with water and pour into ice cube trays. Frozen ice cubes with herbs are convenient to add to pots when preparing soups or other dishes.

9. Baking dough

Not only store-bought frozen dough can be stored in the freezer. The principle is the same with a home test. Divide the dough into pieces, roll into flat cakes, place on a tray and freeze. Then place portions into bags and store in the freezer.

10. Bread

Storing leftover stale bread in the freezer is not a good idea. But fresh ones can be frozen. If you have excess fresh bread, cut into slices and wrap in foil. These slices can be easily defrosted in the microwave or in the oven at 150 degrees.

11. Egg yolks and whites

Just like wine and herbs, egg yolks and whites can be frozen in ice cube trays. If you are going to add them to the dough, defrost them at room temperature. For an omelet, you can add it directly to the pan.

12. Whipped cream

Of course, it is better to eat the cream right away. But you can also freeze them. Spoon the cream onto a tray lined with parchment paper and place in the freezer. Place the frozen cakes in a container and return them to the freezer. This is a great garnish for hot chocolate, coffee or cocoa. The whipped cream will melt right into the cup.

This is not a complete list of products that can be frozen. Every modern housewife, in order to save money, should be familiar with this list. If all principles of freezing and storage are followed, the taste of the products will not suffer at all.

What can you freeze?

Here are foods that freeze well:

• young and fresh vegetables, boiled vegetables, vegetable purees

• ripe fruits (except bananas and fruits with high water content). freeze the berries on a tray, covered, then transfer to a bag

• almost all types of fish; oysters, scallops and clams. Wrap the fish first in foil or wax paper and then in a plastic bag.

• shrimp - pre-clean and trim the head

• lobster and crab - separate the meat first

• dairy products, cheese, butter, margarine, lard, heavy cream, although most hard cheeses crumble a lot after freezing, and cream will not be whipped well. milk can only be frozen for a month or so

• leftover wine - pour it into ice-freezing trays, and use the cubes in sauces and goulash

• poultry and game - do not stuff it in advance, freeze the liver and giblets separately; veal and hare; all other meat - first remove as much fat as possible

• bread, buns, cakes, cheesecakes - preferably without cream

• dough - but it is very fragile and must be packed in rigid containers

• almost all cooked dishes - eg goulash, curry, although their flavor may be enhanced

• broth - first you need to remove all the fat. Gravies and other fat-based sauces can be frozen, but they may separate during thawing and will need to be remixed or blended before use.

• fresh herbs

• broths

• nuts and seeds

• flavored butters

• citrus juice and zest

We already wrote how to freeze ready-made food last time.

And this is not worth freezing:

• vegetables with a high water content cease to be crispy - for example, green salad, radishes, peppers, celery, cucumber, etc. but they all freeze well as purees. Onions and celery stop being crunchy and become soft, but they can be used in goulash.

• low-fat cream and homemade yogurt.

• hot and warm foods and dishes - need to be cooled well first

• eggs in shell. although they can be frozen in a slightly beaten state, or with the yolk separated from the white. Boiled eggs become rubbery in the freezer.

• mayonnaise, hollandaise sauce and custard, as well as all sauces thickened with starch - they are separated.

• pieces of boiled potatoes - subsequently turn black and become slimy. Always freeze it as a puree.

• bananas, as well as tender fruits and berries, such as melon, strawberries, avocados and citrus fruit slices. Juice and zest freeze well, as do most berries if you handle them carefully. Apples, pears and peaches should be sprinkled with lemon juice.

• jelly - sweet and unsweetened - gelatin crystallizes in the freezer, although many gelatin-based desserts store well.

• canned fish and other canned foods, unless they are first mixed with other ingredients.

Tools:

Labels

Used to sign packaging. If you plan to use the packaging several times, then you should get these. They should not fall off in the freezer, so check their strength in advance.

Marker

Optimally - a permanent thin marker.

Duct tape

Use special freezer tape.

Kitchen board, notepad

A notepad is needed to record the amount of frozen food and other information. Well, it’s not hard to guess about the board :)

Freezing packaging

Strong plastic freezer bags

Sold in supermarkets in hardware departments. They differ in density.

Foil

Foil is also used with a higher density.

Containers

You can use plastic ice cream boxes, plastic yogurt and dessert jars, but they cannot be heated in the microwave or oven. It is advisable to cook straight from the freezer, so it is better to freeze in forms that are suitable for the freezer, oven, and microwave. Make sure your glass and ceramic pans are both freezer and oven safe. Foil containers with thick paper lids are great for the freezer.

Preparing food for freezing

In addition to “wash, dry, cut, grate,” there is also such a preparation stage as blanching. To blanch means to quickly parboil or scald any food item, causing it to change color. In our case, this is done in order to partially remove the air; this will help better preserve the vitamins during freezing and further storage. In addition, the taste of certain types of vegetables (spinach, cauliflower, asparagus, etc.) will improve. Blanching time should not exceed 1-2 minutes from the start of re-boiling the water, and the sooner the water boils after the product is immersed in it, the better.

I’ll tell you separately about freezing greens and mushrooms, and instructions for freezing everything else are presented in the form of a plate.

About greens. Dill, parsley, sorrel, onions, cilantro, celery, etc. Before freezing, you need to rinse, dry and cut. Place in bags, remove air, and seal as tightly as possible. Or you can freeze it in water like ice cubes. To do this, press wet greens tightly into ice trays, add water and freeze. Then pour the cubes into a bag and store in the freezer. Use without defrosting, throwing 1-3 cubes into the finished dish.

About mushrooms. Strong, non-wormy porcini mushrooms, boletus, aspen, champignons, honey mushrooms, and chanterelles are suitable for freezing. Mushrooms should be stored on the same day they were collected. Before freezing, the mushrooms are carefully sorted, cutting off damaged parts, and washed in several waters. The prepared mushrooms are dried on a towel. Mushrooms can be frozen raw, fried, boiled or in the form of ready-made soup. For the “raw” method, large mushrooms are cut into several parts, small ones are left whole, placed on a baking sheet and frozen. Frozen mushrooms are transferred to a container or bag. If you are afraid to freeze raw mushrooms, you can first boil, fry or stew them. The boiled mushrooms are drained in a colander, cooled and placed in containers. Do the same with fried mushrooms. Stewed mushrooms can be frozen along with the aromatic liquid in which they were cooked. Or you can prepare semi-finished mushroom soup: boil light mushrooms, pour the cooled broth along with the mushrooms into containers containing food bags, and freeze. After this, remove the bags from the containers and store the soup in neat briquettes.

Product	Blanch 1-2 m, dry, cool	How to freeze	Peculiarities
cucumbers	--	Cut into circles/slices, place tightly in molds, seal tightly.	Store them for no more than six months, using them for salads.
Tomatoes	--	Cherries - whole, large ones - like cucumbers, or make tomato puree and freeze it.
Bell pepper	1-2 min	For stuffing, they are frozen whole, cleared of seeds, placed one inside the other and frozen. For other purposes, cut into cubes or strips, blanched, frozen, compacted tightly into an airtight package.
Eggplant	1-2 min	Blanch, cut, freeze.
Green beans	--	Wash, peel, dry, cut into pieces 2-3 cm in size and freeze.
Polka dots	--	Clean, wash, dry and freeze in bulk, pour into a bag and store in the freezer.
White cabbage	4-6 min	Cut into strips, seal hermetically and freeze.
Cauliflower	3-5 min	Divide into inflorescences, blanch, and pack.
Broccoli	--	Separate, package, freeze.
Brussels sprouts	1-2 min	It is frozen in bulk on a tray and packaged.
Zucchini and squash	1-2 min	Cut into cubes, remove seeds, blanch, package, freeze.	After defrosting they look unpresentable.
Carrots and beets	--	Wash, peel, cut into small cubes/grate on a coarse grater, and pack in small batches. Or, before peeling, blanch beets for 20-25 minutes and carrots for 7-12 minutes, coarsely chop, and freeze.
Pumpkin	1-2 min	Cut into cubes/tinder on a grater, removing the seeds, blanch, and pack in small batches.
Apples	--	Wash, peel, remove the core, cut into circles/slices and immerse in acidified or salted water for no more than 20 minutes, freeze on a tray, when they freeze a little, take out the tray, quickly separate the slices from each other and put them back in the freezer for the final freezing. Pack ready.	Sweet and sour varieties of apples are suitable.
Strawberry, raspberry, blackberry	--	Wash thoroughly, dry and freeze in bulk on trays. The berries are poured onto a tray in one layer.	It is best to store in containers - they will not wrinkle and will retain their shape when defrosted.
Currants, gooseberries, etc.	--	Wash, dry and freeze, scatter on a tray and pack.
Apricots, peaches, cherries, plums, etc.	--	Peel and freeze in flat containers along with the extracted juice. The resulting briquettes are placed in bags.

Rules for freezing food

1. Choose fresh (firm) produce to freeze that is ripe but not overripe.
2. Choose suitable packaging and pack correctly.
3. The temperature in the freezer should not exceed -18 o C.
4. If possible, use the “Super Freeze” function of your freezer.
5. It is recommended to place no more than 1 kg of food in the freezer for freezing at a time, because... the temperature in the freezer will rise sharply, which is bad for already frozen products, and the process of freezing what you just put in will take longer. You need to throw a lot at once - put it in the refrigerator to cool, and then throw it in the freezer.
6. Thawed food cannot be re-frozen. If you have prepared something from defrosted foods by thermally treating them, then you can freeze the finished dish. This rule is explained by the fact that after repeated freezing, bacteria and microorganisms multiply very actively in the product, and the product deteriorates much faster, even when frozen.

Shelf life of frozen foods at -18 o C

• vegetables, fruits and berries - from 3 to 12 months
• raw meat - from 5 to 12 months
• turkey, chickens and game - up to 9 months
• ducks, geese - up to 6 months
• minced meat, sausages - up to 2 months
• home-cooked meat dishes - from 3 to 4 months
• small fish - from 2 to 3 months
• large fish - from 4 to 6 months
• home-cooked fish dishes - from 3 to 4 months
• boiled crayfish, crabs and shrimp - from 2 to 3 months
• bread and milk - 4−6 months
• cottage cheese, cheese, butter - 6−12 months
• , if you haven't found the product above, take a look

Defrosting rules

1. The slower the defrosting, the more beneficial it is. This is the main rule.
2. Without defrosting you can cook: soups, goulash, fish, seafood (add them to the pan at the end of cooking), pasta dishes, vegetables and fruits for filling pies or for boiling bread, small cubes of meat and fish, but large pieces must be defrosted first.

The freezer is one of the best inventions of the 20th century. Berries picked in the summer, boxes of herbs, and meat purchased for future use are stored in it at a temperature of −18 degrees Celsius. Even soups and broths are frozen by zealous housewives. But very often, irreparable mistakes are made during long-term storage of products. We tell you what not to do when storing frozen food.

Boxes

There is never enough freezer. And I really want to cram more berries into it for winter fruit drinks, another portion of cutlets and several large fish. But remember not to stuff the drawers so much that they can barely close. Food in the freezer should lie freely, and there should be free space in the drawers for air circulation. Otherwise how to cool?

Package

Regular plastic bags and cling film will not work. In the freezer they will crumble and break from the cold. We need dense polyethylene. These can be special bags, such as these are now sold, or simply dense bags, for example, soft milk packaging often gets a second life in the freezer.

Lots of air in the package

You can't just stick a piece of meat in a bag and put it in the freezer. First, you need to pack it tightly so that as little air as possible remains in the package. Then the product will freeze faster and be stored better. Tightly sealed packaging ensures that your meat will not absorb the odors of the frozen fish lying nearby.

Large portions

It is best to pack food for freezing in small bags and containers. Then you will be able to get the amount of greens you need for a dish, for example, rather than defrosting a large package in order to take just a little.

Wrong Products

Not all foods can be stored in the freezer. Some only deteriorate due to frost:

Strawberries, watermelon, melon, papaya and all fruits with high water content. Firstly, in the cold they can crack (after all, the liquid expands). Secondly, after defrosting they will lose their taste, shape, and aroma.

Cabbage, celery, lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, parsnips, chicory, radishes, radishes. They also contain a lot of liquid and only lose their taste when frozen.

Potato. Raw root vegetables become limp, watery and sweet after defrosting.

Eggs. After freezing, they acquire an unpleasant taste, and bacteria penetrate inside through the cracked shell, which makes this product completely unsuitable for consumption.

Kefir, yogurt, cheese. The beneficial properties and pleasant taste of fermented milk products deteriorate, and due to low temperatures they can curdle.

Cream, sour cream, milk sauces, custard, mayonnaise. Once frozen, you can throw them away - they will separate and become watery and lumpy.

Ready-made pasta, spaghetti, rice. These side dishes lose texture and flavor when frozen. Cunning

Shelf life

And finally, the most important point. The fact is that no product can be stored in the freezer for many years. The maximum is 1 year. And in most cases even less.

It must be remembered that during storage, even in a frozen state, the quality of the product deteriorates. This is especially true for fatty foods - fatty fish, for example, loses a lot of taste if stored frozen for more than 2-3 months.

To avoid mistakes with shelf life, you can stick labels on each product with the date of freezing. It is best to also sign what is in the package so as not to unwrap the package again.

So, the maximum can be stored:

Bird- 9 months

Beef, pork, lamb, horse meat— 4-6 months

Fish: oily - 2-3 months, everything else - 6 months

Seafood— 3-4 months

Semi-finished products(dumplings, dumplings, cutlets, pancakes, cabbage rolls, minced meat, etc.) - 3-4 months

Ready meals, including broths and soups, sauces, cutlets - 2-3 months

Vegetables and fruits up to 1 year, except for tomatoes (2 months), peppers (3-4 months), zucchini and pumpkins (10 months), apples (4 months), apricots (6 months), peaches (4 months)

Mushrooms: boiled up to 1 year, raw - 8 months

Berries Usually stored for six months.

Greens and herbs— 6-8 months

Ice cream stored for 2 months

Margarine and butter- about 9 months

Bread and other baked goods— 2-3 months

Olga Nikitina

Reading time: 13 minutes

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Once upon a time, our grandmothers and great-grandmothers prepared for winter by stocking up on jams and pickles. There were no refrigerators in those days, and you couldn’t save anything in the cellar except canned food and potatoes. Today, housewives solve the problem of preparing for the winter with the help of the freezer (although, of course, no one has canceled jam and pickles).

So, how to properly stock the freezer, and what to consider?

The main rules for freezing vegetables, fruits and herbs - how to prepare for freezing?

The most primitive and easiest way to prepare “pantries” for winter is freezing. Thanks to her, all vitamins are preserved in products, their taste is not lost, money is saved (in the summer we charge for pennies, and in the winter we eat with pleasure).

Another advantage - no need to add sugar or salt etc. (as with pickles and preserves).

Well, no special skills are required. In addition, stocks can be stored in this form for a long time - up to a year.

The main thing is to freeze foods correctly without violating the technology:

• Temperature. For long-term storage of your supplies, the temperature in the freezer should be minus 18-23 degrees. If your freezer is capable of more, that’s great (in this case, you can store supplies for longer than a year). At temperatures around minus 8 degrees, shelf life is reduced to 3 months.
• Container: what to freeze in? If the freezer volume is small, the best freezing option is the simplest cellophane or vacuum bags. As well as mini-containers with airtight lids or even plastic bottles/jars with a wide neck. It is important to remove air from the packaging of supplies so that the food does not taste rancid later.
• Volumes. It is not recommended to put 1-2 kg of berries or mushrooms in a bag in the freezer. Remember that you can defrost them only once, so immediately lay out the supplies in portions - exactly as much as you will later need to prepare the dish.
• What to freeze? It all depends on your family's preferences. The range of products for freezing is limited only by the size of the freezer. Exceptions: raw potatoes, watery vegetables like cucumbers, salad greens, cheeses and dishes with mayonnaise. There is no point in freezing these products, since they will completely lose their appearance, taste and texture.
• Allocate space in the chamber separately for fruits, vegetables, semi-finished products so that the smells do not mix.
• Prepare food thoroughly for freezing , removing garbage, sorting, etc.
• Be sure to dry your supplies before freezing. so that later they do not turn into a large piece of ice.
• Label the freezer date on each package. , don't rely on your memory.
• Before putting supplies in the freezer, turn on the “turbo freeze” button , or turn down the appliance regulator to the lowest possible temperature.

How to prepare supplies for freezing?

So, having selected stocks and their quantity, we do the following:

1. We select quality products , removing all debris, leaves, tails, spoiled berries or vegetables.
2. We thoroughly wash stocks (note – after freezing they cannot be washed) and dry them on a towel MANDATORY.
3. Next we have 2 options. 1st - preferable: place chopped vegetables (or berries) on a tray in bulk, cover with film and hide in the freezer. After freezing the supplies, you can already scatter them into containers or bags. 2nd method: immediately scatter into bags and containers (minus - the blanks may stick together).
4. Products with cracked skin, as well as wrinkled or rotten – cook immediately; they cannot be frozen (shelf life is extremely short).
5. You don’t have to remove the seeds from the selected berries. , but seeds and stalks of vegetables are a must.
6. Blanching will help kill germs in your supplies. and prolong frozen freshness. To do this, you should bring the water in the pan to a boil, then, lowering the heat, lower the colander with the ingredients into it for a certain time (note - each vegetable has its own blanching time, from 1 to several minutes). Next, cool the workpiece and dry it.

Recipes for freezing greens

Almost any greens, except perhaps salad greens, retain all their vitamins, aroma and color after freezing. In the summer we buy it cheap, in the winter we get fresh (after defrosting) greenfinch for lunch. Convenient, profitable, useful.

• Parsley (as well as dill and cilantro). Sort through, soak in a colander placed in a bowl of cold water, after half an hour remove the colander, rinse the greens under the tap, remove all excess, including the roots, dry on a towel for a couple of hours, shaking the bunches periodically. Next, chop the greens and pour them into bags, remove the air from them, and put them in the freezer. You can also fold them in whole bunches.
• Salad. It is better not to freeze it in the usual way (read above), but there is a method in which the shape and taste will not be lost. After washing and drying the salad, it should be wrapped in foil before the freezer.
• Black Eyed Peas. We take only young shoots, wash them, cut off the stalks, and cut them into pieces. Next follow the pattern for freezing parsley.
• Rhubarb. We take juicy young stems, remove the leaves, wash them thoroughly, remove coarse fibers, and chop them. Next - according to the diagram.
• Basil. We choose a fresh plant with soft stems, wash it, remove the stems, dry it, grind it in a blender (not to dust - into pieces), spray it with olive oil, put it in containers.
• Sorrel. Take good leaves, wash, chop and blanch for 1 minute. Next, cool in a colander, dry and continue according to the scheme.

Can be done assorted greens(in winter it will be very nice to throw it into borscht).

• In addition to preparing finely chopped greens in bags, there is another method: We take ice molds, finely chop the greens, compact them into molds, and fill the free areas with olive oil or water on top. After freezing, we take out our green cubes and pack them in the usual way - in bags or boxes. Ideal for soups and sauces (added at the end of cooking).

Remember portion sizes! Divide the greens into bags so that you don't have to defrost the entire large package. That is, in portions.

By the way, a very convenient way– finely chop the greens and pack them in plastic with a narrow tube (it doesn’t take up much space, and 1 tube is enough for 1 dish).

Freezing berries and fruits

To create these blanks there are also rules:

1. We use plastic containers instead of bags.
2. We place the blanks as tightly as possible so that less air remains in the container.
3. Before freezing, be sure to wash and dry the pieces thoroughly, placing them in one row on a towel (not in a pile!).
4. If you plan to remove the seeds after defrosting, do it right away - you will save yourself time and increase the volume.
5. Sprinkle individual fruits with lemon juice to prolong their freshness.
6. We select only ripe fruits, removing leaves, as well as products with rot, damage, overripeness and underripeness.
7. If the berries and fruits are from your plot, then it is ideal to collect them 2 hours before freezing.

Freezing options:

• In bulk. First, scatter the berries onto a tray, freeze them, and after 2 hours pour them into small bags or containers in portions. Ideal for berries that release juice.
• Massively. Just pour portions into bags and freeze (note: cherries, gooseberries, cranberries, currants, etc.).
• In sugar. Pour berries into a container, add sugar, then another layer of berries, another layer of sand, etc. Next we put it in the freezer.
• In syrup. The scheme is the same as in the previous paragraph, but instead of sand we take syrup. The recipe is simple: 1 to 2 (sugar/water). Or fill it with juice (natural - from berries or fruits).
• In the form of puree or juice. Prepare using the usual method (grind in a blender or use a juicer), add sugar/sand, mix thoroughly, pour into containers in portions.
• Convenient freezing method - in briquettes (to save space and in the absence of containers). We put the berries in a bag, then put them in a mold (a cut-off juice box, for example), and after freezing, take them out and put them in the freezer without a mold.

Home freezing vegetables and mushrooms

• Zucchini, eggplant. Wash, dry, cut into cubes, put in bags. If the pieces are for frying: cut into circles, place on a tray, on top - polyethylene and 1 more layer, then again polyethylene and 1 more layer. After freezing, you can put them in portions in bags.
• Broccoli. We make this preparation in the middle of summer. We choose dense and bright inflorescences without spots or yellowness. Soak in a salt solution for half an hour (approx. - to drive out insects), wash, remove hard stems and leaves, divide into inflorescences, blanch for 3 minutes, dry and then follow the usual procedure. We cook cauliflower in the same way.
• Peas. It is frozen as quickly as possible immediately after collection. We clear the pods, blanch for 2 minutes, dry, and freeze in portions.
• Bell pepper. We wash, remove seeds, dry, and put into bags in portions.
• Tomatoes. You can cut them into slices (like zucchini) or, if they are cherry tomatoes, freeze them whole. Be sure to remove the skin.
• Carrot. These root vegetables can be frozen in 2 ways. Wash, peel, blanch for 3 minutes, then cut or grate.
• Mushrooms. Soak for 2 hours, wash, cut off excess, chop (note - if the mushrooms are large), dry, pack in portions. You can also fry sliced ​​mushrooms in vegetable oil and then freeze them (their cooking time will be shorter).
• Vegetable mix. When assembling such a set for freezing, first check which vegetables need blanching and which do not. After washing, drying and cutting, mix them in bags.

Recipes for freezing semi-finished products

Such simple techniques as freezing semi-finished products will be extremely useful during sudden visits from guests, or when you don’t have time to stand at the stove for 2 hours.

Semi-finished products can be anything (it all depends on preferences and imagination):

• Meat. We cut it up as you will later need it during cooking (straws, cubes, pieces), and put it into bags in portions.
• Ground meat. We make it ourselves, lay it out in portions (into meatballs, cutlets, etc.), remove it. You can immediately form meatballs or cutlets, freeze them on film (on a tray), and then hide them in bags (breaded after defrosting!). Dumplings/manti can also be made immediately.
• Fish. We clean its scales, gut it, cut it into fillets or steaks, and put it in containers.
• Boiled vegetables. Boil, cut, dry, put into containers. Convenient when you need to quickly make a salad in the evening - you just need to defrost the finished products in the microwave. You can also fry them and put them in a glass jar with a lid (soup dressing, for example).
• Pancakes. Many people's favorite dish. We bake pancakes, stuff them to taste (with meat, cottage cheese or liver), and freeze them in a container.
• Side dishes. Yes, yes, and they can be frozen too! It’s very convenient when you don’t have time or all the burners are busy and the family is waiting for dinner. Cook rice (barley, buckwheat), cool, put in a container.
• Fruit and vegetable puree etc.

No one will argue that preparations make our lives much easier. We spend several Saturday hours preparing supplies - and then we are not tormented by the question of what to cook and where to find so much free time.

Perhaps the only problem is the small freezers. Even large, rugged refrigerators usually have a maximum of 3 compartments in the freezer. And stocking up for the winter with such limited space is, of course, very difficult.

The ideal option is a separate large freezer. A very useful thing in the house when you have a large family and spend most of your time at work.

The site site thanks you for your attention to the article! We will be very pleased if you share your recipes for home freezing and semi-finished products in the comments below.

There is hardly a housewife who would dispute the assertion that using a freezer is not only convenient, but also profitable. But while everyone agrees with its benefits, few people know how to effectively use the resource of their freezer. This is explained simply: our grandmothers and mothers could not afford refrigerators with large freezers consisting of several compartments (not to mention separate freezers). Accordingly, we had no one to pass on the invaluable experience of using them, to teach us how to properly freeze, store and defrost food, to show us what and how to freeze. Therefore, you have to master this useful skill through experience, learning from your own and others’ mistakes.

Why be friends with the freezer?

First, using the freezer saves time. For example, you can prepare a large batch of home-made semi-finished products (dumplings, dumplings, cutlets, cheesecakes, etc.) at one time, and then for several days do not waste time on cooking, but only on heat processing of existing supplies.

If a dish is not eaten completely, its leftovers can also be frozen and used next time. For example, leftover soups, main courses, desserts and sauces.

Secondly, using the freezer saves money. The price of the same products may vary significantly depending on the time of year. For example, greens cost pennies in summer, but in winter their cost can cause mute surprise. The family budget will experience significant savings if you freeze vegetables, fruits, berries and herbs in their season (peppers, zucchini, eggplant, parsley, dill, spinach, cherries, currants, etc.).

Choose where to send you the table:

What the family does not have time to eat fresh can be kept frozen. This is much more effective than simply throwing food in the trash.

Third, use the freezer helps you become a good housewife, which always has a “strategic reserve” of food in stock for any emergency. For example, if the housewife does not have time to prepare dinner herself (or is too lazy), then her family can simply open the freezer, take out the finished dish and heat it up. And unexpected guests will never be a problem, since in the “bins” there will be something specially stored for tea for such an occasion (cake, pie, cookies, candy, etc.).

Finally, using a freezer allows diversify our diet. For example, the strawberry season is very short, but friendship with the freezer allows you to enjoy this berry at any time of the year.

What and how can you freeze?

– It is better to freeze any food in portions, in small batches. This is not only convenient, but also avoids re-freezing, which significantly degrades the taste and nutritional properties of the food.

– The faster the freezing, the smaller the ice crystals are formed in the cell walls of the product and thus the latter remain intact. The standard temperature of home freezers is minus 18 degrees. Meat pre-cut into small pieces will freeze faster (and will be tastier) than meat frozen in the same freezer and under the same conditions, but in a larger piece. Ideally, the freezer has a “shock freezing” function.

– The best way to freeze most foods is on flat cutting boards. This way, the food will freeze evenly and quickly, preserving its quality as much as possible. But you shouldn’t leave them on storage boards.

– Frozen food should be stored in special containers or bags, folding the food tightly and removing excess air. The more densely the products are “packed”, the less moisture they will lose during storage. A little trick: food will be preserved better if you wrap the containers with 1-2 layers of cling film or cling foil.

– Any storage containers should not be filled to the top. Water, turning into ice, will take up more space and will “lift” the lids, breaking their seal, or “explode” glass jars.

– Containers and bags must be hermetically sealed. This will preserve food as much as possible and prevent odors from mixing in the freezer.

– If possible, it is better to allocate a separate shelf for each type of product. Then the muffins will not be saturated with a fishy smell, and the meat will not smell like strawberries.

– It is highly advisable to sign the frozen document: what exactly is frozen, the date and shelf life. This will avoid guessing situations, for example, what kind of broth is stored in this jar: chicken, meat or vegetable? Or what kind of meat is it: ham or tenderloin? As a rule, freezer bags are sold with special stickers. For containers, such stickers can be purchased in the office supply department.

These rules and principles apply to all types of products. Tables indicating the rules for freezing, defrosting and using ready-made dishes can be downloaded here. – . During menu creation trainings, participants also receive free tables on vegetables, fruits, herbs, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products and dough products.

I hope this topic will help you make friends with your freezer and make the cooking process even easier and more efficient.
Being a good housewife is easy!