15 Timesaving Freezer Tips
Updated: Aug. 16, 2012
1. Measure the capacity of the ice-cube tray you’re using for stock, etc., so that you know how many cubes
- 1. Measure the capacity of the ice-cube tray you’re using for stock, etc., so that you know how many cubes to use when a recipe calls for a certain amount of stock, wine or lemon juice.
- 2. Always leave 3-4 ice cubes in the tray and fill up the rest with cold water to quickly make new ice cubes. The freezing time will be reduced by half. Use mineral water to accelerate the freezing process even more.
- 3. Buy ginger fresh, peel it and freeze it whole. It will keep indefinitely and is much easier to grate when frozen.
- 4. Fill up an ice-cube tray with leftover wine and put it in the freezer. When you’re making a sauce, drop a few ice cubes of wine directly into it.
- 5. Cut one or more bananas into slices and freeze them. To make fast milkshakes, all you need to do is place pieces of frozen fruit directly into the blender or mixer with the milk.
- 6. Peel and mash overripe bananas then freeze them in a plastic container in the volume you need for your favourite banana bread or muffin recipe.
- 7. Bread, butter, milk and pure cream can all be frozen to have on hand when supplies suddenly run out.
- 8. Get into the habit of grating the zest from a lemon before squeezing its juice. Wrap the zest in a small piece of plastic wrap or a tiny zip-lock bag and freeze it in a small container. Leftover juice can be frozen in ice-cube trays, then transferred to a sealed container
- 9. Freeze leftover eggwhites in measured amounts – one, two or the number you need for your favourite pavlova recipe. Keep them tightly sealed so that they don’t get tainted with odours from other foods.
- 10. Mix egg yolks with a pinch of salt or a teaspoon of sugar to prevent coagulation and freeze for later use in either savoury or sweet dishes.
- 11. Leftover coconut milk or coconut cream will freeze successfully in ice-cube trays. Pop the frozen cubes into a freezer bag and seal to store.
- 12. Fresh herbs or fresh chillies are suitable for freezing. Simply put them into small zip-lock bags, seal and freeze until needed.
- 13. Freeze single portions of cooked rice and cooked pasta in small microwavable containers. Thaw on the Defrost setting.
- 14. Freeze chopped onion in convenient portions in zip-lock bags for when you’re in a hurry.
- 15. Nuts stay fresh for months in the freezer when they’re sealed in zip-lock bags. And there’s no need to defrost them before using.
Originally Published: August 16, 2010
