I just bought a Kenmore 5.0 freezer chest. It is the first one I have ever owned and I am just looking for tips. I want freeze as much as I can for reusing. I guess I should ask what not to freeze too?
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Mine is used to freeze meat and other things that are on sale. When frozen vegetables are on sale I buy a lot. When chicken is on sale I buy what I can and freeze them. The only thing that I can tell you is that air is bad when freezing. I add water to meats (wine with some, red for beef and white for foul) and get the air out before freezing. It was the best buy I have ever made.
You can freeze bread loaves and milk too. Keep most recent foods on bottom of items purchased prior. Many leftover foods can be placed in your freezer; just keep them airtight. Wrapping with wax paper and then foil or freezer bags.
When my freezer is only partially full, I add gallon milk jugs filled with water. The gallon jugs of ice help to keep the temperature of the freezer colder, thus using less electricity, plus they help keep everything frozen in the event of a power outage.
HI, This is a good time of the year for filling a freezer. I am making soups to freeze for the cold months. blanch corn on the cob, remove from the cob and put in freezer containers, skin tomatoes and chop and freeze for recipes, zucchini bread or even frozen grated zucchini, bread form the bread store, one thing i like to do is to have a bag or container and put in all the little left over bits of veggies, when full, make a pot of veggie soup.
Just about anything can be frozen, except those things that need to be served fresh and raw, such as cucumbers and lettuce. If you grow your own vegetables, you can freeze them for later use. If you do not, buy things from the farmers market or when they are on sale, repackage and refreeze. One can also buy meat from local farmers, have it packaged, and store that in your freezer. If that is not something that are able to do, certainly you can buy things in large packages, and repackage into smaller lots for your family, especially if you are only two or three. It is very important, for any freezing, to pack things in airtight packages and remove the extra air. I like to use ziplock freezer bags, as they are so easy, and I reuse these (wash and save), so I feel that the extra expense is worth it. I like to do soups and particularly juicy things like frozen raspberries in plastic containers.
Fresh bread or baking can also be frozen -- purchased bread in its regular bag, homemade in a recycled bread bag. Cookies, tarts, and such can be put in bags or into larger plastic containers like ice cream pails.
I also freeze individual portions of leftovers to take for school lunches. I use sandwich boxes for these.
You can also make your own TV dinners if you are so inclined, to help save time during busy periods. If you put them in foil containers, they can be rewarmed in the oven. If you put these in plastic containers, they can be warmed in the microwave.
Most fresh veggies need to be blanched before freezing, but most fruits can be frozen just with sugar (strawberries, raspberries).
ive had a chest freezer for about 10yrs now and i find it pretty useful. i put what i use daily(peas, ice cream etc.) in the freezer compartment(which is small) of my refridgerator and the rest goes into my chest. i have backup supplies for everything so as soon as something is finished, i go to my chest and replenish from there. one tip i could give you is to purchase a couple of largish square or rectangle plastic baskets with a handle or side handles and fill those up with what u want to freeze.
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