Those who freeze food

[jeninco]

I think freezer paper is now plastic on the inside.

yep this is how ours were, wrapped first in plastic (but not sealed) and then in butcher/freezer paper

This is how ours come, even now (er, in Late Sept).  Stores just fine for up to a year (I try to finish it by then) in a chest freezer. No detectible freezer burn.

[Cranky]

I think freezer paper is now plastic on the inside.

yep this is how ours were, wrapped first in plastic (but not sealed) and then in butcher/freezer paper

I think the stuff sold as freezer paper has an actual layer of plastic on one side. I don’t have any around right now but I do buy it occasionally for crafts.

The meat counter at HyVee (grocery store) wraps meat in brown paper but does lay  thin plasticy sheet on it. It’s fine for short term freezing.

I use a lot of wide mouth canning jars for freezing because I have a lot of wide mouth canning jars, because I also can.

[Catbert]

For somewhat larger quantities the fully plastic ice cream containers are good.  Plus you get the pleasure of eating the ice cream.

Back in the day there was freezer paper and freezer tape (mostly for meat).  I almost never see them them available now.

Freezer paper and tape are available on Amazon.  As near as I can tell no one else sells it.  I don't use it alot - mostly on meat that's oddly shaped or too large for a gallon freezer bag.
 
Edited to add:  The only freezer I have is part of my refrigerator so I'm generally freezing for the short run rather than people who have a stand alone freezer and buy a year's supply of something.

[Louise]

I think freezer paper is now plastic on the inside.

yep this is how ours were, wrapped first in plastic (but not sealed) and then in butcher/freezer paper

I think the stuff sold as freezer paper has an actual layer of plastic on one side. I don’t have any around right now but I do buy it occasionally for crafts.

The meat counter at HyVee (grocery store) wraps meat in brown paper but does lay  thin plasticy sheet on it. It’s fine for short term freezing.

I use a lot of wide mouth canning jars for freezing because I have a lot of wide mouth canning jars, because I also can.

Ha, yes- I've bought freezer paper for quilt appliques.

[ricelife]

I freeze a lot of food too so won't repeat the same stuff as other people

Ground beef/pork - I noticed people are freezing it raw. I actually cook it all first and then freeze - read it somewhere on the internet one time. If I want to make meatballs I'll form them into meatballs and freeze the raw meatballs.
Dairy - so if my soup recipe or whatever calls for milk/heavy cream to be added at the end, I will freeze it before I put the milk/heavy cream in. Then, when I reheat/defrost I'll put the milk/heavy cream. For some reason the texture of liquid milk/cream is disgusting after thawing
Veggie scraps - freeze them and make veggie stock in the instantpot

Wondering if getting a vacuum sealer is worth it.

[jnw]

Wondering if getting a vacuum sealer is worth it.

I feel vacuum bags are a big waste of money. I use GLAD cling wrap with a special plastic wrap dispenser (for easy wrapping) -- $25 or so.   To wrap something with plastic wrap it's like a couple cents; if i recall correctly it's MUCH more vacuum sealing.

The plastic wrap tightly wrapped around a cut of meat or ground beef is essentially almost a vacuum seal as not much air can access the surface of the food.   

I've never had any frost bite or food go bad with plastic wrap.  I plastic wrap stuff and then put in a gallon zip lock. I reuse the gallon zip locks two or three times -- the bags stay frozen the entire time so I don't bother even cleaning them.. just throw them away after 2 or three uses.

[RetiredAt63]

The plastic wrap tightly wrapped around a cut of meat or ground beef is essentially almost a vacuum seal as not much air can access the surface of the food.   

I've never had any frost bite or food go bad with plastic wrap.  I plastic wrap stuff and then put in a gallon zip lock. I reuse the gallon zip locks two or three times -- the bags stay frozen the entire time so I don't bother even cleaning them.. just throw them away after 2 or three uses.

I do this too and I've never had any problems with freezer burn.  It is essentially double sealed.

When I freeze peppers I cook them in the microwave for a minute (=blanching), put them in a seal-able plastic lunch bag for individual servings, then put them all in a big freezer ziploc.  I've used ones that were a year old and they were fine.

The more you can seal whatever it is really tight, with no air, the better it will keep.  Air is the enemy.

[ricelife]

The plastic wrap tightly wrapped around a cut of meat or ground beef is essentially almost a vacuum seal as not much air can access the surface of the food.   

I've never had any frost bite or food go bad with plastic wrap.  I plastic wrap stuff and then put in a gallon zip lock. I reuse the gallon zip locks two or three times -- the bags stay frozen the entire time so I don't bother even cleaning them.. just throw them away after 2 or three uses.

I do this too and I've never had any problems with freezer burn.  It is essentially double sealed.

When I freeze peppers I cook them in the microwave for a minute (=blanching), put them in a seal-able plastic lunch bag for individual servings, then put them all in a big freezer ziploc.  I've used ones that were a year old and they were fine.

The more you can seal whatever it is really tight, with no air, the better it will keep.  Air is the enemy.

OK perfect, this is what I currently do and do not get too much freezer burn. Basically do a cling wrap film for first layer and then put into a freezer safe ziplock bag. I also do stuff like put small portions in sandwich bags and put those bags into a larger freezer ziplock bag. That way, I can re-use the freezer ziplock bag (I just label it meat, bread, fish, etc. like a general label) cuz the sandwich bags are cheaper

[RetiredAt63]

The plastic wrap tightly wrapped around a cut of meat or ground beef is essentially almost a vacuum seal as not much air can access the surface of the food.   

I've never had any frost bite or food go bad with plastic wrap.  I plastic wrap stuff and then put in a gallon zip lock. I reuse the gallon zip locks two or three times -- the bags stay frozen the entire time so I don't bother even cleaning them.. just throw them away after 2 or three uses.

I do this too and I've never had any problems with freezer burn.  It is essentially double sealed.

When I freeze peppers I cook them in the microwave for a minute (=blanching), put them in a seal-able plastic lunch bag for individual servings, then put them all in a big freezer ziploc.  I've used ones that were a year old and they were fine.

The more you can seal whatever it is really tight, with no air, the better it will keep.  Air is the enemy.

OK perfect, this is what I currently do and do not get too much freezer burn. Basically do a cling wrap film for first layer and then put into a freezer safe ziplock bag. I also do stuff like put small portions in sandwich bags and put those bags into a larger freezer ziplock bag. That way, I can re-use the freezer ziplock bag (I just label it meat, bread, fish, etc. like a general label) cuz the sandwich bags are cheaper

Sandwich bags are cheaper because they are flimsy, basically one-use and too porous for the freezer.  But the freezer bag takes care of that.  It is so nice to ave single portions instead of a huge bock of frozen whatever.  We are so clever.   ;-)

[sonofsven]

I buy bulk rolls of vacuum bags from Amz ($27/150') which I use mainly for salmon that I catch and berries that I harvest.
I used a hand me down machine from the 80's until recently, then I got a brand new free one from a friend while helping clean out their basement.
One trick I learned with the old machine: it was so old that parts are not available; the foam sealing gasket was hardened and didn't always make a seal, so I would lightly moisten it every few seals with a damp dish rag, and then it worked fine.

[draco44]

Well played to all the fellow freezer lovers in the group. There's a corner of my freezer permanently devoted to mushy bananas. I rotate through them to make smoothies or baked goods.

One thing I don't see mentioned yet that I do is have a container in my freezer for composting. Even if you're someone who saves stuff for making soup stock, having a separate small compost bag/tub in your freezer is great for managing vegetable matter that wouldn't be good for stock, like apple cores and avocado skins and any veggies starting to mold. Keeping that wet matter out of my kitchen trash also eliminates kitchen trash smells and greater reduces the overall waste I throw out. I empty the compost container periodically as it gets full.

[Sanitary Stache]

In my State not composting is against the law. This has been phased in over the past five years and there isn’t a “compost police” (yet) but we are also a state that is known for putting our compost pails in the fridge in the summer to keep the flies down.

We recently acquired for free a larger chest freezer. FW thought I was going to slaughter and butcher a goat to fill it up, but I balked due to other complications and instead she found 300 pounds of frozen fruit that a local jam company hadn’t used for two years and now we have a fruit freezer. I never imagined I would have frozen strawberries from Egypt though when freezer strawberries is a major luxury around these parts. because freezer space holds a premium most people make strawberry preserves rather than freeze.

[iris lily]

My brother came for Thanksgiving, hoping DH would make his famous cherry pie. DH *did* make the cherry pie, from sour cherries that have been in the bottom of our freezer since the year 2005. And they were spectacular.

So, yay freezer! We probably have several more containers of vintage frozen cherries in that freezer.

[draco44]

My brother came for Thanksgiving, hoping DH would make his famous cherry pie. DH *did* make the cherry pie, from sour cherries that have been in the bottom of our freezer since the year 2005. And they were spectacular.

So, yay freezer! We probably have several more containers of vintage frozen cherries in that freezer.

Sounds tasty! Pie is delicious and sour cherries are amazing. I admit I'm also equal parts intrigued and encouraged and a tiny bit wary about the vintage of your cherries. I try to rotate through my freezer stash as best I can but definitely err on the side of assuming frozen things just keep. But then I run across some general interest article listing foods and saying "this item will only survive up to two month in the freezer" and I doubt my instincts. I know it varies by the item in question but the lines with frozen food between food safety limits, marketing, and "it's fine but maybe loses a bit of flavor" seem blurry to me. If you are fine and enjoyed your pie, it sounds like all is right with the world. I keep a closer eye on frozen meat more than fruit and veg.

[bmjohnson35]

I like to make homemade tomato sauce and freeze what I don't use immediately. It's extremely versatile base that can be used to make various pasta dishes, dips and pizza. It can be altered easily for different dishes. 

[iris lily]

I like to make homemade tomato sauce and freeze what I don't use immediately. It's extremely versatile base that can be used to make various pasta dishes, dips and pizza. It can be altered easily for different dishes.

I did that this year too in our year of garden tomato excess. This is when a crock pot comes in very handy, cooking down the tomatoes for sauce.

[Sanitary Stache]

My brother came for Thanksgiving, hoping DH would make his famous cherry pie. DH *did* make the cherry pie, from sour cherries that have been in the bottom of our freezer since the year 2005. And they were spectacular.

So, yay freezer! We probably have several more containers of vintage frozen cherries in that freezer.

Sounds tasty! Pie is delicious and sour cherries are amazing. I admit I'm also equal parts intrigued and encouraged and a tiny bit wary about the vintage of your cherries. I try to rotate through my freezer stash as best I can but definitely err on the side of assuming frozen things just keep. But then I run across some general interest article listing foods and saying "this item will only survive up to two month in the freezer" and I doubt my instincts. I know it varies by the item in question but the lines with frozen food between food safety limits, marketing, and "it's fine but maybe loses a bit of flavor" seem blurry to me. If you are fine and enjoyed your pie, it sounds like all is right with the world. I keep a closer eye on frozen meat more than fruit and veg.

I am unaware of any food safety issue barring the freezer fails and the food is not frozen for long enough to go bad.  Unless you are unsure that the food has remained frozen the entire time, there is no food safety line to blur.  It is just a matter of preference and possibly preparation for foods frozen a very long time.

My rule is that if it makes me want to throw up, I am not going to eat it. And that could come from a smell, a taste, or an uncertainty.  Like "this doesn't seem bad, but I was gone for two weeks last year and the power did go out but I don't know for how long so now I am scared to eat it and I wont."  Though DW would likely eat it.

DW says if you are worried about any of your long frozen foods, you can give them to us. Like many in our community already do.

[draco44]

My brother came for Thanksgiving, hoping DH would make his famous cherry pie. DH *did* make the cherry pie, from sour cherries that have been in the bottom of our freezer since the year 2005. And they were spectacular.

So, yay freezer! We probably have several more containers of vintage frozen cherries in that freezer.

Sounds tasty! Pie is delicious and sour cherries are amazing. I admit I'm also equal parts intrigued and encouraged and a tiny bit wary about the vintage of your cherries. I try to rotate through my freezer stash as best I can but definitely err on the side of assuming frozen things just keep. But then I run across some general interest article listing foods and saying "this item will only survive up to two month in the freezer" and I doubt my instincts. I know it varies by the item in question but the lines with frozen food between food safety limits, marketing, and "it's fine but maybe loses a bit of flavor" seem blurry to me. If you are fine and enjoyed your pie, it sounds like all is right with the world. I keep a closer eye on frozen meat more than fruit and veg.

I am unaware of any food safety issue barring the freezer fails and the food is not frozen for long enough to go bad.  Unless you are unsure that the food has remained frozen the entire time, there is no food safety line to blur.  It is just a matter of preference and possibly preparation for foods frozen a very long time.

My rule is that if it makes me want to throw up, I am not going to eat it. And that could come from a smell, a taste, or an uncertainty.  Like "this doesn't seem bad, but I was gone for two weeks last year and the power did go out but I don't know for how long so now I am scared to eat it and I wont."  Though DW would likely eat it.

DW says if you are worried about any of your long frozen foods, you can give them to us. Like many in our community already do.

Haha, sorry, I'm keeping my frozen berries for myself.

You are right that freezer fails are a different story. This chart from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on how long to keep things in a (working) freezer is the sort of thing I'm thinking of: https://www.foodsafety.gov/food-safety-charts/cold-food-storage-charts

I am aware this guidance exists, do not follow it, and have lived to tell the tale. The main take away, however, appears to be that it's a food quality rather than a safety thing. The gov website notes that "The guidelines for freezer storage are for quality only—frozen foods stored continuously at 0°F (-18°C) or below can be kept indefinitely." I think what I've seen is that other publications take that official guidance and make "time to throw it out!" listicles that lose the nuance about safety vs. flavor.

[afox]

What are some of the recipes and/or ingredients that freeze particularly well?

MIght be better to ask: "What does;nt freeze well".

Just about everything you cook freezes well. veggies you intend to eat without cooking dont freeze well (salads). Thats about the only thing that doesnt freeze well.