Читать книгу Canning & Preserving For Dummies - Amelia Jeanroy - Страница 18

Freezing foods is the art of preparing and packaging foods at their peak of freshness and plopping them into the freezer to preserve all that seasonal goodness. Freezing is a great way to preserve foods that can’t withstand the high temperatures and long cooking times of conventional canning methods.

The keys to freezing food are to make sure it’s absolutely fresh, that you freeze it as quickly as possible, and that you keep it at a proper frozen temperature (0 degrees).

The quality won’t get better just because you throw it in the freezer. Properly packaging food in freezer paper or freezer containers prevents any deterioration in its quality. Damage occurs when your food comes in contact with the dry air of a freezer. Although freezer-damaged food won’t hurt you, this does make the food taste bad. Here are three things to help you avoid freezer burn.

 Reduce exposure to air: Wrap food tightly.

 Avoid fluctuating temperatures. Keep the freezer closed as much as possible. Know what you want to remove before opening the door.

 Don’t overfill your freezer. An overly full freezer reduces air circulation and speeds up freezer damage.

For information and instructions on freezing a variety of foods, go to Part 4.