POST 9: Freezer tips

All frozen foods need to be kept frozen at a temperature well below -18 degrees centigrade.

If you keep your freezer open whilst trying to decide what to select for your next meal, then you are bumping up the temperature inside and the frozen stuff starts to defrost and deteriorate.

If you are going to make use of the freezer like I do, then it may be a good idea to invest in a stand-alone upright freezer, which has pull out shallow baskets. This will ensure that you don’t open it too often and the food inside retains its quality and stability.

If you leave items in there too long, then they will suffer from freezer burn. What’s that you ask? Well the food starts to discolour on the outside and appears to have puckered white splotches. It is not harmful to eat but the taste and texture leaves much to be desired. You cannot reverse this.

For optimum results, store all foods in airtight containers, zip lock bags or in a few layers of cling wrap. I must admit that as a greenie I do tend to steer clear of cling wrap as much as I can. Where does it go from the garbage can? Plus, it isn’t biodegradable.

I follow an easy principle: remove a frozen item each time you plan to freeze something. Your freezer will always have space, and nothing will spoil.

When I first started using my freezer, I used to keep a list on my fridge, which had the names and dates of everything that went in. Now I just know instinctively what I have in there.