Also I separate bulk items into portion packs, each portion is separately bagged. By using the labeled bag last I always know content details of the separated bags.
By George D. from Melbourne, Australia
By Silvercarmel from Cheshire, UK
Source: Organic Gardening Magazine
By Patricia from Maple Falls, WA
By hate litter from NC
The second trick is to cover each layer of containers with a strip of cardboard no wider than those containers. Especially with front loading freezers, that keeps them from falling out, and gives you a nice and level base for the next layer. Otherwise, by the time you are up at the third or fourth layer, they get crooked and unstable. I have not been "attacked" by loose and tipping berry containers since I have been doing it this way.
By DearWebby from Black Diamond, Alberta
By looking at our board we know how much we have of each type of meat and know if we need to buy more when each type is on sale.
By Mari from Indianapolis, Indiana
By Ann in SunCityWest, AZ
Do you have stuff in your freezer that's taking up a lot of room, making you unable to get to the things that you need right away? Do you forget what you have in your freezer because you can't see it? If so, then it's time to organize! When it comes to organizing your freezer, the first thing you need to do is clean it out. Go through the contents and throw away everything that is freezer burned or otherwise unusable. This goes for large bags of French fries that only have a handful left in the bag. (Might be a good time to make yourself a snack!)
Next, you need to come up with a plan to put the rest of the stuff back in. If you have some things that have been opened but are still good then try removing them from their boxes and placing them in freezer bags instead. This works particularly well for popsicles.
Now you can start organizing the stuff you have left. Think of your freezer in terms of planning a meal. Keep your meats, your sides, and your vegetables together. On one side of your freezer (or one shelf) try stacking your poultry, fish, beef, etc. On the other, stack your frozen peas, French fries, and broccoli. For the remainder of your space, put "fast" foods and snacks together such as pizzas, Hot Pockets, ice cream, etc.
If you're the type of person who buys in bulk and ends up getting a package of 20 chicken drumsticks even though you only have a family of 3, open the package when you get home and divide it. Place however many drumsticks your family will eat at once into separate freezer bags. The bags themselves are generally easier to store than the large packages. That way, you won't have to thaw the whole thing the next time you want to cook chicken, you'll just have to thaw the portion that you're actually going to cook.
Note: Remember that when you're thawing your meats it's always safer to thaw them in your refrigerator overnight or in a microwave than to place them on your kitchen counter and let them thaw at room temperature.
I make large batches of soup, chili, casseroles, etc. and freeze them flat in ZipLock bags and then store them file-style in a box in the freezer. I make a batch of taco meat (inexpensive, lean roast like beef tri tip or rump or pork ball cooked for 8 hours with a jar of salsa and a diced onion) and freeze it flat in ZipLock sandwich bags for easy storing. Once they are frozen you can stand them up in a shoe box.
I also buy large cans at Smart and Final or Costco and divide them into ZipLock sandwich bags such as nacho cheese, cheddar cheese sauce, corn, olives, pineapple, applesauce, salsa, tomatoes, tomato sauce, green chilies and almost anything. Don't freeze potatoes or creamy dairy things. Cheese sauces or American cheese are OK.
I grate large amounts of cheese when it is on sale and freeze although it is usually cheaper to buy already grated cheese at warehouse stores.
JulieBeth
I got really tired of trying to find things in my freezer. I went to Big Lots, sort of a dollar type store in Houston and bought some plastic boxes. I only needed one. I stood my bags of meat on end like a file drawer. They are labeled and dated. The pie crusts I stood up on end, storing vertically rather than having them lying in the way all the time. The large bag of corn with a clothespin has a large bag of peas behind it, also closed with a clothespin. Dear husband found ice cream on special so he bought some. We usually have only one box of ice cream. There is a shallow shelf at the top which I couldn't get in the photo which is now housing loaves of bread. The door is for very small items, mostly frozen orange juice. By MartyD from Houston, TX
I had a freezer with out the shelf inside. The food, all in different sizes and shapes, would pile up and slide everywhere. I put water in four bottles, found an old soda crate, and put it inside. Once the water is frozen, you can either leave it right side up with things inside or turn it upside down, which makes it a bit more stable. (See the one in the back?) Enjoy!
By Sandra from Salem OR
How do you organize a refrigerator freezer in a way that you can find what you want or even find what you have?
opal
I also pull everything out every few months to ensure something didn't fall too far to the back and get forgotten. (07/17/2005)
By beanygurl
By Pat
If I add items to the freezer, the items are handwritten on the list as well. (07/20/2005)
By Abbytha
By Carol
We have an upright newer freezer that has several large slide out baskets. This new freezer is much more economical than our old freezer of 33 years!
We have several purchased baskets; I bought a larger wire basket from Wal-Mart and several of the plastic Square (milk carton type) containers & DH cut the top down a bit ... these will slide out easily. I also made tags and heat laminated them ... Beef, Chicken, Pork, Seafood and Miscellaneous and (punched holes) in the tags and attached to the baskets with zip ties.
Several baskets are easy to take out of the freezer and rearrange by dates ... we do have a tendency of adding new items quickly and not pay attention to the old versus new meats on top!
The top shelf is sort of a hodge podge fruits and stocks and a few tomatoes that we put into plastic containers that we have frozen. A Loaf of bread or a pizza.
The door is for vegetables, margarine/butter, juice, some meats like sausage, bacon, hot dogs, etc.
If you see signs on the baskets, this automatically organizes you. For us, this seems to work very well. Good Luck. (07/27/2005)
By Syd
By Amanda-Lee
By Linda
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I was rooting around in my freezer the other day and had to throw out some items due to their advanced age. This prompted me to better organize my freezer so items would not get lost under other food items.
The Freezer door: This is the warmest part of the freezer. I use it to store hot dogs, vegetables, butter, juices and the half-gallon milk jugs filled with water for picnic coolers.
Shelves: I used 3 plastic "bins" to sort my meat (purchased in bulk and shrink vac'd). One bin each for chicken, beef and pork. At a glance I can see if I need to purchase more ground beef, pork loin or bacon when is is on sale. Meat is portioned out into meal size servings and wrapped for proper storage.
When wrapping meat, be sure and label with an indelible pen (on the seam or on a label) the date. Use the oldest first.
I purchase items when they are on sale and when I have a coupon. I keep stocked up on frozen meals for "brown bag" lunches - much cheaper and healthier than fast food at work. I ALWAYS purchase butter when it is on sale, sometimes 10 pounds at a time. This especially comes in handy for holiday baking!
For more freezer advice:
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/FactSheets/...
By Diana from Prospect, KY
I make prepared meals and they're all stacked alternating types of dishes in the front right hand corner, I vacuum seal everything so I don't worry about things going bad, I have food which is up to but if not more than 5 years old and is still good as long as the seal is not broken.
Now I do organize my refrigerator with baskets, hot sauce in 1, jellies and jams in another, mustard, Mayonnaise, Ketchup, pickle relish and salad dressings in another, I have several baskets with fresh fruits or vegetables and I keep my rice, popcorn and pasta in the refrigerator also and they have their own basket. There is a catch all basket for the little odd things. (07/09/2008)
By BABBIE
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By k w (Guest Post)
Organizing Your Freezer