In my post, How to minimize food waste I mentioned that most foods can be frozen. In this post, I explain to the best of my knowledge and experience which ones can’t and can be frozen.
I also give tips to avoid freezer burns and waste.
(I will add as I experiment, too.)
The Good
All of these items can be frozen and thawed without any problems. The texture, taste and quality do not change once they are thawed.
Milk: I put the containers directly in the freezer. It takes a few days to thaw though so you need to plan ahead.
Butter: Freezes and thaws beautifully. It’s a good way to stock up when you find butter at a good price. I put it in the freezer in its original packaging.
Hard and sliced cheese: I constantly have sliced Swiss cheese, cheddar blocks and mozza (I pre-shred some of it first so it is ready for homemade pizzas) in my freezer. They thaw without any problems.
Cream cheese: I buy the pack of 4 blocks at Costco and freeze them in their original packaging. Cheesecake day? Pull a block out and let it thaw on the counter or overnight in the fridge.
Bread: Freezes well. If I plan on keeping the bread in the freezer for a while, I like to double-wrap it in foil. Otherwise, I put it in a freezer bag and ensure to take all the air out from the bag to reduce freezer burns (with a straw or else).
Cookies/baked goods: Most baked goods I’ve made were freezer-friendly and the same goes for cookies (you can freeze cookie dough raw or cooked, your choice).
Rice: Freezes well either on its own or in a dish. When I cook too much rice, I freeze the extra in my souper cubes (rectangular freezing mould) and chuck it in the freezer to use later. Rice might get dry if frozen for too long, so you need to add a bit of water when you reheat it.
Mashed Potatoes: Freeze well on their own or in a dish. Just like rice, the potatoes might become a little dry so add a bit of water when you reheat them.
Soups: A few things to mention here. I’ve found thicker soups such as ham & peas or soups with lentils need a few extra drops of water when reheated. All other soups, in my experience, thawed very well. There is an exception, keep reading!
Sauces: Meat sauces freeze and thaw well. Anything with dairy in it might not thaw perfectly.
Pasta: Freeze well on their own. They can become a little dry so add a bit of water when you reheat them in the microwave. I’ve found that, depending on the pasta brand, the texture can change when thawed. Pasta can also be frozen with meat sauce, although I prefer to freeze those two things separately.
Eggs: You need to process them a bit first. You can scramble your eggs and freeze them in ice cube trays. Still using the ice cube tray method, you can also put 1 egg per cube depending on the size of your tray. (Disclaimer: I haven’t tried this.)
Deli meats and cured meats: If you shop at Costco and live alone but still want that amazing deal on black forest ham, this is for you. Most of the time, I freeze half the pack. The same goes for cured meats. Unless you are hosting a large gathering (or have a girl lunch addiction?!), there is no way you are going to eat your way through all that meat. I like to vacuum seal half the cured sausages to ensure no frost buildup in the bag.
Garlic: I will talk about this more later (it’s all over the internet already) but I hate peeling garlic AND most of the garlic I used to buy would start germinating on my counter, go dry, or be mouldy before I even get to it. So I decided to buy a large amount (30 heads?), peel them all at once, mince them in the food processor, and freeze them in cubes. I only have to pull a cube out of the garlic freezer bag when I need it. No more messy peels, wasted garlic or smelly hands.
The bad
These items can be frozen but the texture or look will change. That being said, most of these items can be used in recipes or smoothies without any problems as the taste does not change.
Yogurt and sour cream: Freezes ok but the texture changes, it becomes runnier and can even become a little crumbly.
Cottage cheese: Depending on the brand and the fat percentage, the texture will change a little. It is still perfectly good to use in recipes though.
Tomatoes: I freeze tomatoes as-is when I have too many to process at once and know I won’t have the time for a while. They are good for sauces and soups only after this point.
Peppers: Become mushy, but good for using in recipes such as sauces and soups.
Celery: Becomes mushy, but also good to use in recipes.
Zucchini: Ok in recipes like sauces and or pasta but they become mushy.
Spinach/kale: Becomes mushy, but good to use in recipes or smoothies.
Mushrooms: Texture changes, but can be used in recipes, sauces, soups or stews.
The Ugly
These items cannot be frozen due to the major change in texture.
Lettuce/Kale/Spinach: Becomes mushy as all the water freezes and then gets released when they are thawed. As mentioned in “the bad”, kale and spinach can be used in recipes and smoothies though.
Noodles in broth/liquid: Noodles cannot be frozen in liquid as they will absorb the liquid as they thaw and swell up, leaving you with nothing but a pile of mushy noodles and no broth.
There you have it! All the foods you can freeze and cannot freeze.
As mentioned, I will add as I experiment with new combinations.