Written by: niki
Wednesday, May 21, 2008

You got a little overzealous and bought half a cow’s worth of beef. Before you attempt to tackle Mt. Hamburger here is a few more freezer cooking tips.

• Slightly undercook pasta. It will not turn to mush when reheated
• Sour cream, cream and certain cream based soups do not maintain consistency when thawed.
• When freezing liquids ensure you leave adequate head space in containers to allow for expansion
• Meats can be refrozen once cooked. Ex. Frozen boneless chicken breast can be refrozen after cooked. Don’t laugh I have actually met people who did not know this.
• Wrap frozen casseroles in freezer paper in addition to placing in a freezer bag to avoid the dreaded burn.
• Be sure to label items. I guarantee you will not remember what those tinfoil wrapped rectangles are 6 weeks from now.
• Include on the label any cooking instructions as well as tips on preparation.
• Items placed in a casserole dish lined with tinfoil can be flash frozen and removed to avoid tying up those dishes
• Extra casserole dishes can be picked up fairly cheap at thrift stores and yard sales. Dollar stores have a great selection of disposable pans that can easily be reused several times over.
• Mashed potatoes can be frozen but they require the addition of sour cream and or cream cheese while being whipped. (ignore rule #2 on this one)
• When freezing pizza crusts try pre-baking them at 400 for 10 minutes..  You only have to top them and pop them back into the oven for an additional 15 minutes. Try freezing smaller portions of homemade pizza sauce made in a large batch using the crock pot.
• I like to slightly under cook chicken before freezing. 
• I like freezing my mashed potatoes and meatloaf in muffin tins.  They can be easily popped out and stored in a ziploc bag.  Perfect for portion control.  

Hopefully these tips will inspire you to start the art of freezer cooking or further streamline your existing system.

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