Foods to Store in Your Freezer to Last Even Longer

Your freezer is an incredible resource in your kitchen. It can be used to store food that can be cooked and prepared in no time, such as ready meals and many different oven foods. Freezers are also needed for obvious things such as ice cubes, ice creams, and ice lollies, so they play a vital part during the summer months. What would we do without owning a freezer? Even though you might think that freezers are helpful enough, did you know there are many more foods that can be stored in your freezer for the purpose of longer durability? In this post, we have selected different foods that can be put in your freezer for them to be available to eat for long, and also for the purpose of preparing quick meals, so instead of cramming your freezer with bags of frozen food, ice cubes and ice creams, you can store better quality for food future use.


If you do not own a freezer and are looking to buy one for a price that will not leave you short of money this summer, then look no further than Budget Appliances. We supply brand new freezers and refrigeration appliances such as fridges, fridge-freezers, wine coolers and chest freezers from high-end manufacturers in South London. Freezers are important in the summer as they store ice cold food, as well as food that can be cooked effortlessly. If you are interested in having a brand new freezer installed, please do not hesitate to contact us with your approximate budget and requirements, so that we can find exactly what is best for you and arrange collection, delivery and/or installation as soon as possible.

Bread

Compared to other items of this list, this item is more commonly stored in freezers. When you’re not feeding a large passel of people every week, a loaf of bread can be slightly daunting to get through within a week. An easy solution to this problem is simply to freeze the loaf and remove individual slices when you want to use them by popping them in the toaster. Conventional commercially baked bread or homemade brown or white bread can be stored in your freezer for up to six months. This means if you are not a consistent bread-eater or bread is not very commonly eaten in your home, the loaf will last you for a long time and will save you money on your weekly supermarket shopping trips. Pita bread, milk bread, fruit bread and malt bread will also last in your freezer. Pita bread or flatbread should last for four months and milk, fruit and malt bread should last for three months. Bread with a crispy crust will only last in your freezer for only two months as the crust seems to break off as the bread thaws. Bread in the freezer is a great idea for long lasting for and saving money, however, keeping bread in your fridge is not so much of a good idea. Bread in your fridge will quickly go dry and stale.

 

Fruit and Vegetables

Frozen fruit and vegetables are highly nutritious, as well as being greatly convenient. Fruit and vegetables can be frozen as their vitamin content do not diminish during freezing. This means you will still receive the exact same, health benefits from eating fruit and vegetables after they have been frozen. Another benefit of freezing fruit and vegetables is that they thaw extremely quickly, or you can cook them from frozen. Generally speaking, fruit and vegetables can be stored in your freezer for 10-12 months. Fruit packed alone, as a puree, in syrup or sugar can also be packed inside of your fridge, however, this will not last in your freezer as fresh fruit would. Fruit that is packed alone or as a puree will last for 6-8 months and fruit packed in syrup or sugar will last for 9-12 months.


Please be aware, some fruits and vegetables with high water contents such as potatoes, celery, cucumber, salad greens and watermelon cannot be frozen. This is because the water inside of them quickly forms into ice crystals. This means that when you thaw them, you’ll be left with a mushy mess. Many different fruit and vegetables are still great frozen or are even better frozen, however, we advise checking online that they can be frozen before freezing.

 

Cheese

Yes, cheese is a food that can last for up to 8 months in your freezer and be just as efficient to use as non-frozen cheese after it has been taken out of the freezer. Grated cheese is the most effective frozen as it can thaw and melt pretty much just as fast as non-frozen cheese would. Freezing cheese is extremely useful for saving money; any shopper would know that cheese is quite an expensive item of food to buy, especially every week. Just like bread, it can be pretty daunting to have to get through every week, that’s why it is extremely useful to be able to store cheese in the fridge and save that extra bit of money during your weekly shop. People usually forget that cheese is frozen on frozen pizzas, this is where frozen cheese is probably most commonly used and melts just efficiently as cheese that is stored in the fridge. Homemade pizzas can also be stored in the freezer before they are cooked, as long as it is stored inside a baking sheet. This is an excellent way of preparing a fast meal, that is created the way you like and is a cheaper option to conventional supermarket frozen pizza.

 

Shellfish

Shellfish are a delicacy and are great for prepared meals during the summer months. If you have shellfish that you are waiting for the right time to prepare the shellfish and do not want to have to throw the shellfish you already have away and replacing it, then storing the shellfish in the freezer as soon as possible is the best option for you. As soon as you have purchased the shellfish and if you are not planning on cooking it right away, place it straight in your freezer. Raw shellfish can be cooked from frozen to create a variety of different meals, and you won’t have to worry about thawing the shellfish before cooking. Additionally to shellfish, white fish can also be stored in your freezer for up to 3 months and oil-rich fish can be stored in your fridge for up to 2 months. Freezing fish is excellent for when you are waiting for the right time to cook a meal with fish included.


If you are looking for inspiration for a dish including frozen shellfish to prepare for yourself or your guests this summer, then take inspiration from this quick, tasty, and easy to prepare seafood pasta recipe by the BBC. The recipe allows you to add your preference of seafood into the pasta, with different flavouring from tomato, parsley, garlic and paprika. This recipe is excellent for beginners when cooking seafood and is guaranteed to impress your seafood-loving guests. Please refer to the BBC Good Food website for the full recipe.

 

Lemon, Lime and Orange Zest

Lemon, lime and orange zest is an excellent addition to any meal to add an instant burst of flavour. Once grated and placed in a bag, the lemon, lime or orange zest can last in your freezer for up to 12 months. Zest from citrus fruits can be added to a multitude of different delicacies, sweet or savoury, and make a standout impact. If you are a fan of steak, you may enjoy this incredible grilled flank steak with lemon vinegarette recipe using lemon zest. The lemon zest is used in the recipe for the marinade along with fresh garlic, olive oil, wine and kosher salt to create a unique, specialist burst of flavour. This recipe is great for two and is bound to thoroughly impress your guest. Another ingredient of this recipe is lemon juice. Lemon juice can also be stored in your fridge for up to 12 months in ice trays. The frozen lemon juice can be added to sauces when being prepared. As lemon is a citrus fruit, it will go off quickly unless it has been frozen for later use.

 

Ripe Bananas

Bananas that are past their prime are perfect for banana bread, however, not everyone has enough time to be baking midweek. If your bunch is turning fast, place the bunch in the freezer for later use. Frozen bananas are excellent for adding to smoothies and will blend well with other fruits. If you have already peeled the banana and would still like the bananas to be frozen, then simply just place them in a freezer-safe storage bag and place them in your freezer. A common misconception is that bananas last longer if they are stored in the fridge rather than in freezer; this is incorrect. If the banana has not fully ripened, it will turn black in the fridge. This is because bananas are tropical fruits and have no self-defence against the cold that will not freeze them in their cell walls.

 

What can’t be kept in the freezer?

Potatoes

Potatoes have a high water content, so after being stored in your freezer, you could be left with a mushy, soft and delicate potato. This will make them extremely hard to cook and would be unhealthy to consume once it had been cooked. If you are cooking a meal with potatoes and you are hoping to freezer them afterwards, then go for it, the cooked potatoes will not be as mushy or soft after they have been frozen. An example of this is frozen chips, french fries, roast potatoes and more. These are all pre-cooked before they are power frozen.

Eggs

Definitely, do not put eggs in the freezer! The water content that is inside the egg expands when it is frozen, which can cause the eggshell to crack and be vulnerable to bacteria inside of your freezer. This can also be extremely difficult to clean. Eggs can be frozen if certain steps are taken before they are frozen. To freeze eggs,  you need to take the egg outside of its shell, beat the eggs until completely blended and store in an airtight container. This will prevent any mess, additionally to preventing any bacteria from slipping inside the beaten egg mix.

Fried Foods

Unfortunately, you can’t freeze fried foods such as french fries and mozzarella sticks! Foods that were originally fried will lose all of their crunch if they are left in the freezer, and no ones wants to eat soft, mushy fried foods. If you’re planning on making fried foods to store in your freezer to use again; you are much better off baking the food slightly before then placing the food in the freezer after. This way you will be able to deep fry the food again after it has been baked. Before baking and freezing the food that you want to fry, please research how long the food can be frozen for and if it can be frozen for your own health.