Two days ago around lunch time, I went out to my stand alone freezer to find that my #3 ds had not closed it completely after getting a couple of things for me during our breakfast hour(basically 5 hours went by!) I found alot of my things already thawing!! Ugh! So anyway, I am working at using up my FULL freezer(because of my way of once a month cooking(OMAC)) of partially thawed re-frozen items before adding more to the shelves.
With school time right around the corner and knowing that several are looking to get some things in their freezer to use during the busyness of the season and I have freezer on the brain from my little incident. I thought I would share a freezer food storage chart and some other useful links regarding freezing foods.
Here is what I found at the USDA's site:
Freezer Storage Chart (0 °F)
Note: Freezer storage is for quality only. Frozen foods remain safe indefinitely.
Bacon and Sausage 1 to 2 months
Casseroles 2 to 3 months
Egg whites or egg substitutes 12 months
Frozen Dinners and Entrees 3 to 4 months
Gravy, meat or poultry 2 to 3 months
Ham, Hotdogs and Lunchmeats 1 to 2 months
Meat, uncooked roasts 4 to 12 months
Meat, uncooked steaks or chops 4 to 12 months
Meat, uncooked ground 3 to 4 months
Meat, cooked 2 to 3 months
Poultry, uncooked whole 12 months
Poultry, uncooked parts 9 months
Poultry, uncooked giblets 3 to 4 months
Poultry, cooked 4 months
Soups and Stews 2 to 3 months
Wild game, uncooked 8 to 12 months
I also found Robbyn's Friendly Freezer, where she has a freezing & thawing guide that talks about how to freeze and thaw items appropriately. She gives a guide on what freezes well and what doesn't. You can go to her main site and find links to guides on Once A Month Cooking and some tasty looking recipes for the freezer!
For other frugal tips, resources and recipes; head over to Biblical Womanhood!
Freezer Storage Chart (0 °F)
Note: Freezer storage is for quality only. Frozen foods remain safe indefinitely.
Bacon and Sausage 1 to 2 months
Casseroles 2 to 3 months
Egg whites or egg substitutes 12 months
Frozen Dinners and Entrees 3 to 4 months
Gravy, meat or poultry 2 to 3 months
Ham, Hotdogs and Lunchmeats 1 to 2 months
Meat, uncooked roasts 4 to 12 months
Meat, uncooked steaks or chops 4 to 12 months
Meat, uncooked ground 3 to 4 months
Meat, cooked 2 to 3 months
Poultry, uncooked whole 12 months
Poultry, uncooked parts 9 months
Poultry, uncooked giblets 3 to 4 months
Poultry, cooked 4 months
Soups and Stews 2 to 3 months
Wild game, uncooked 8 to 12 months
I also found Robbyn's Friendly Freezer, where she has a freezing & thawing guide that talks about how to freeze and thaw items appropriately. She gives a guide on what freezes well and what doesn't. You can go to her main site and find links to guides on Once A Month Cooking and some tasty looking recipes for the freezer!
For other frugal tips, resources and recipes; head over to Biblical Womanhood!
6 comments:
Great article. Thanks!
Thanks a bunch! I also love your Meijer Ad match-ups and mentioned you in my post!
Nice! Thanks.
my main way of keeping my budget tight and my trips to a minimum is buying meat on sale and stocking up! couldn't do it without separating it into 1 serving chunks and freezing it.
My freezer has a buzzered if the door is open.
Oh, wow, do I ever feel your pain! This happened to me twice before I got one of those chest type freezers. We were using an old refrigerator/freezer. One time, the freezer door was left open in 95 degree weather, in the garage, for 3 days. Bye-bye steaks, etc! There was nothing to do but throw it all out. The second time, at least things were found when they were still very cold. But I had all four stove burners, the oven, two crockpots and the barbecue going to cook it all up for refreezing.
I love my little chest freezer. It's really saved us money on our electricity bill, since the old fridge was a real dinosaur. I don't really like pre-made meals, but I do like to have my meat cut up and/or browned. Like Brooke, I believe in stocking up when things are on sale.
Good luck with your freezer cooking, and may you never have another 'forgotten open door' again!
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