Today I learned I can freeze food to make it last longer.

[All-Rounder]

It seems counter-intuitive, but you can rehydrate some breads like French bread and other breads with a hard exterior crust by squirting/misting them with water, or just quickly dunking them under cold water from the faucet, then wrapping them tightly in foil and putting them in a low oven till they get warm and moist. I call it resurrection bread, LOL. It works with stale, hard crusted bread as long as the bread hasn't started getting moldy.

lol we sually just cut it to pieces and make croutons to eat or put in soup, but heck if i can eat that with my TMJ issue. Your idea seems better. What kinda oven do you have?

 

[Varzar]

lol we sually just cut it to pieces and make croutons to eat or put in soup, but heck if i can eat that with my TMJ issue. Your idea seems better. What kinda oven do you have?

Or make your own breadcrumbs for breading chicken, fish, or veal.. Dry the bread out until it's solid, and throw it in the food processor.

I also make a home made baked Macaroni n' Cheese that uses essentially croutons on top.. Another use of bread that's starting to get a little dried out..

 

[Progster]

I have just realised there are ZERO magnets on the 2nd freezer.

Yes, you have just one... I guess you'll just have to cut it in half and stick one half onto each fridge

I have two freezers too, and one thing that I do is buy freezable meals and other items from the supermarket which they have reduced because they are near their sell-by-date - save some money that way. I also batch cook meals and freeze them.

 

[Mary Terry]

lol we sually just cut it to pieces and make croutons to eat or put in soup, but heck if i can eat that with my TMJ issue. Your idea seems better. What kinda oven do you have?

I have a regular oven - convection, I guess. I set the oven at 250 degrees F to resurrect the bread wrapped in foil.

I usually just make bread crumbs or croutons with old bread, too, and freeze them for later use.

 

[Mary Terry]

Like others said, cheese doesn't freeze very well, with one exception - I always save the rind from Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and freeze it - I add a chunk of the rind to homemade soups and marinara sauce (spaghetti sauce) to add a cheesy taste. It's perfectly edible and very chewy.

 

[Streetwise]

Just another tip if the food is very watery like berries for some reason most of the berries apart from strawberries freeze very well you would have to preserve strawberries in a solution instead and if the skin of the fruit or vegetable is thin it is better to cook it then to preserve it raw in a freezer for example mushrooms, courgettes (zucchini).

 

[oregano]

Foodsaver is a wonderful invention, I bought mine nearly new (no packaging) off Ebay, I bought a nearly new old style electric countertop grill (not the clamshell grills, but the old 1970s style grill that is no longer made) there too. Sometimes nearly new electric cooking appliances will pop up on Ebay. Using small electric appliances to cook is better than using a whole huge oven.

As for Foodsaver, the basic idea has been around since the 70s, back then it was called Seal-A-Meal and was made under the brand name Dazey. The Seal-A-Meal didn't work all that great, but the patents passed through several hands over the years and eventually the waffle style bag was invented to suck ALL the air out (the Seal-A-Meal wasn't 100% so it wasn't as effective) and the basic appliance was improved on. Using the cut to fit rolls is far better than using the precut bags. The problem with the Foodsaver bags are that they are extremely expensive and the roll never lasts as long as you think it will. Foodsaver is best for meats IMO.

As for potatoes, there are varieties of potatoes that you can just put some in a cool, dry, dark place like a shed and they will last until the next planting, my grandfather used Red Pontiac potatoes. Russets are terrible, they need to be constantly refrigerated or else they sprout. I once read that the russet was created to remedy the famous potato blight in Ireland, every potato they tried to stop the blight couldn't, so some food scientist had to invent a completely new potato, but the potato was very sensitive and had to be babied, but it was the only way to stop the blight.

 

[Yeshuasdaughter]

I buy lots of meat at the beginning of each month and portion it out in regular ziplock sandwich bags for the amount my family eats per dinner and then freeze it. A day or two before I plan to use it, I put it in a dish in the fridge to thaw out. Then I use it in meals.

You can take a whole loaf of bread and freeze it and just pull out what you want day by day and put it directly in the toaster at meal time.

Also when tortillas are on sale, I buy a ton of packs and freeze them.

Fresh bagged spinach can be frozen and you just pull out what you want to use and then put the bag back in the freezer.

Also cakes, donuts, muffins, and other pastries can be frozen in single portions and thawed for when you want them. They stay moist and fluffy.

You can also freeze cheese and yogurt.

 

[grommet]

Another tip is take a perment marker and write the date you placed in freezer. Some things if left to long, can be become bland and yucky, and some things do get freezer burn. So just use up the item sitting the longest, then you rotate your inventory. That's a good reason to put date and what it is, because sometimes you can't tell. Freezer bags usually have area you can write in or just write it anywhere. When certain things freeze, you can't tell if it's chicken or strudel because they look the same. Some recipes well state that it freezes well. You can always defrost and add a little broth or tomato sauce to liven it up if it looks sad.

"... chicken or strudel" looking the same. That is funny. I think you are being accurate but the image made me giggle.

 

[grommet]

I'm probably going to get scolded for this again, but I rely on my FoodSaver vacuum packaging machine for sealing my food air tight in heat sealed bags before freezing.
It can also force marinade food too.
I just had a two year old steak a few days ago that suffered no freezer burn.
The other advantage is the ability to thaw my meat products in the refrigerator and leave them in it for up to a week with no ill effects because of the lack of air.

It also has the ability to pump down reusable containers made specifically for my machine so it isn't all plastic waste by using it.

For those who will give me grief about the use of the throwaway bags, they can be washed clean and reused.
I don't buy the premade bags either, I buy bulk rolls of the waffled material and make my own.

Do not ever toss a butchered product directly in your freezer in the store wrapping, because the packages are designed to allow air into them.

I have been thinking about getting a food vacuum saving machine. I will look at the Foodsaver brand and see if I can afford it. I researched on Amazon and there were machines that cost $49.99 and I thought I could buy that but I would not want to make a mistake. I do not know about these machines but what I am reading, I have no experience.

What I want to do is buy avocados when they are at a low price and freeze them. I read on the state avocado association website that they can be frozen if I halve them, remove the pit and apply cling film so there is no air. That is where I got the idea to use a vacuum machine.

I would appreciate your guidance.

 

[grommet]

Why would you get scolded - for the use of plastic?

Well, then how will this crowd feel when I say I use the vacuum sealing thing for raw meats, but do NOT wash and re-use them? They can blast me all they want, I'm an old, disabled lady caring for an old, equally disabled man, and I just can't do everything I "should" do.

Although I know about the special vacuum sealed reusable containers, I find prepared meals (chili, meatballs, etc) freeze reasonably well in store-bought Glad or Ziploc containers with lids. Those are not only reusable but dishwasher safe. My leftover meals usually don't last longer than 3 months or so because I often have recourse to an easy dinner.

If you can get a butcher to package up your ground beef in freezer paper, I find that lasts in the fridge much better than those plastic packs with a thin film of plastic wrap over it.

JUST ONE IMPORTANT ADDITION TO ALL THE ABOVE ADVICE: DO NOT COOK FOOD IN PLASTIC TRAYS, EVEN IF THE MANUFACTURER TELLS YOU TO. Cancer specialists warn that there are a lot of chemicals in plastics that may not be problems at cold or room temperatures, but leach into your food if you heat in them. There's a type of gourmet cooking called "sous vide" ("under vacuum") where you cook the food in the plastic pouch. They claim that's safe. I will throw flowers into their grave after they die from cancer.

Thank you for your thoughts. I am glad you make the point about things that can become carcinogenic when heated. Many things are not the same when heated or cooled. I like science

 

[grommet]

View attachment 60137

FoodSaver with bulk roll cutter View attachment 60138

bulk roll storage area
View attachment 60139

50 foot x 8 inch bulk rollView attachment 60140

What model is this and what replacement bags do I buy?

 

[grommet]

@grommet thanks for opening this subject up. While it doesn't appear to have much to do with autism, it appears that many of us enjoyed sharing our experiences with freezing food. It's definitely a life management skill.

I wrote this because I believe it is about autism. Freezing food seems to be a commonly known lifeskill but I did not know about it. This is why I wanted to talk about it here. Something I did not know but most people do.

I think there are aspies, like me, who do not know ordinary things. Trouble with laundry, organizing bills, riding the bus. I wanted people to know I had this trouble and just recently learned something new. I wanted people who are like me to feel like there are others like them.

 

[grommet]

@grommet thanks for opening this subject up. While it doesn't appear to have much to do with autism, it appears that many of us enjoyed sharing our experiences with freezing food. It's definitely a life management skill.

I am sorry. I did not read your post well enough. I think you make a good point. Maybe this not knowing about a particular lifeskill isn't because of autism. It feels for me like it is but that may only be me.

 

[grommet]

Foodsaver is a wonderful invention, I bought mine nearly new (no packaging) off Ebay, I bought a nearly new old style electric countertop grill (not the clamshell grills, but the old 1970s style grill that is no longer made) there too. Sometimes nearly new electric cooking appliances will pop up on Ebay. Using small electric appliances to cook is better than using a whole huge oven.

As for Foodsaver, the basic idea has been around since the 70s, back then it was called Seal-A-Meal and was made under the brand name Dazey. The Seal-A-Meal didn't work all that great, but the patents passed through several hands over the years and eventually the waffle style bag was invented to suck ALL the air out (the Seal-A-Meal wasn't 100% so it wasn't as effective) and the basic appliance was improved on. Using the cut to fit rolls is far better than using the precut bags. The problem with the Foodsaver bags are that they are extremely expensive and the roll never lasts as long as you think it will. Foodsaver is best for meats IMO.

As for potatoes, there are varieties of potatoes that you can just put some in a cool, dry, dark place like a shed and they will last until the next planting, my grandfather used Red Pontiac potatoes. Russets are terrible, they need to be constantly refrigerated or else they sprout. I once read that the russet was created to remedy the famous potato blight in Ireland, every potato they tried to stop the blight couldn't, so some food scientist had to invent a completely new potato, but the potato was very sensitive and had to be babied, but it was the only way to stop the blight.

Thank you for the history on Foodsaver and home vacuum packing machines. I thought that was very interesting.

If you can recommend a machine and the right supplies for me I would be grateful. I do not buy meat, though maybe I could keep some fish in the freezer. I am aspie and eat the same thing everyday or close to it. I would like to be able to stock up on my regular things and have them ready so I do not have to change my routine. I would like to have avocados in the freezer and I also eat a kind of pita bread. It is about 6-7 inches wide and quite flat. I cannot think yet of something else I would freeze but with the option of freezing things, I might.

 

[Varzar]

I wrote this because I believe it is about autism. Freezing food seems to be a commonly known lifeskill but I did not know about it. This is why I wanted to talk about it here. Something I did not know but most people do.

I think there are aspies, like me, who do not know ordinary things. Trouble with laundry, organizing bills, riding the bus. I wanted people to know I had this trouble and just recently learned something new. I wanted people who are like me to feel like there are others like them.

@GadAbout is right.. It has nothing to do with autism.. You are not the first person I've heard that didn't know you could freeze bread.. And the others were NTs..

This is less a neurotype issue, and more an age issue. It seems at least in North America, our education systems and parenting techniques are failing to bring up the next generations with the same level of knowledge as generations before.. Or perhaps it is technology being leaned on like a crutch, and allowed within the school systems to enable the younger generations to depend on technology instead of the computer inside their skulls.. Like many issues of our world, it seems to be a complex issue with many facets..

afaic, it is a serious societal issue that is mostly being ignored.

It's cool that you are keen on learning these life skills though.

 

[GadAbout]

Actually I never learned my cooking and food preservation skills from either my parents or high school or college. After college I had a job for about 8 months working as a cook. I learned a lot there, and enjoying it, I continued to learn over the course of my adult years. You can learn these things at any stage of life.

 

[Streetwise]

I have been thinking about getting a food vacuum saving machine. I will look at the Foodsaver brand and see if I can afford it. I researched on Amazon and there were machines that cost $49.99 and I thought I could buy that but I would not want to make a mistake. I do not know about these machines but what I am reading, I have no experience.

What I want to do is buy avocados when they are at a low price and freeze them. I read on the state avocado association website that they can be frozen if I halve them, remove the pit and apply cling film so there is no air. That is where I got the idea to use a vacuum machine.

I would appreciate your guidance.

There are different brands of vacuum sealer you can get one that has a hard plastic box and you suck out the air with any fruit or vegetables if you want to preserve them for a short time put on lemon juice after you have cut them like an avocado.

 

[NothingToSeeHere]

I have a regular oven - convection, I guess. I set the oven at 250 degrees F to resurrect the bread wrapped in foil.

I do this too put don't bother wrapping it or anything, just dunk it under the cold tap then straight in the oven at about 200 degrees celcius, warm crusty bread appears 10 minutes later.

 

[NothingToSeeHere]

I swear the only thing I don't like about living in a tiny flat is not having space for a proper freezer, I just have a tiny freezer draw in the top of my fridge so I have to be very economical about what I freeze. I don't know how I'd survive without batch cooking and freezing though! The only thing I struggle to freeze is pasta, it either reheats to mush or rubber.