Do you struggle and stuff your freezer to the limit each time you get a frozen meal delivery or come home from a trip to the grocery store? Then this guide will help you free up more precious freezer space.
Having more freezer space is a great way to save money by stocking your freezer during promotions or even buying foods in bulk. Here are a few of our favorites tips for how you can save space.
Freeze foods flat
Freezing leftovers is a great way to always have some delicious foods on hand for the days you are too tired to cook. When it comes to freezing food and maintaining freshness it’s important you try to freeze the food as quickly as possible after cooking and to minimize the contact the frozen food has with air. Storing frozen food flat helps with both these issues so it’s a great habit.
Freeze the foods quickly
The faster you freeze foods the better they will store and taste. In fact if you have cooked a lot of foods and know you will have leftovers, it can be a good idea to transfer some foods to a freezer bag, flatten it and let it start cooling off in water first.
Having the foods stored flat in bags will not let them freeze in minutes like in our commercial blast-freezers but it will speed up the freezing process compared to freezing it in large tupperware containers for example.
Remove the air
Another benefit of freezing foods flat is that you are removing as much air as possible from the bags which lets them maintain maximum taste for longer.
Transfer frozen foods to smaller bags
If you have a large pack of food it can be a good idea to throw out the large packaging and put the food into smaller freezer bags, just remember to freeze it as flat as possible and with as little contact with air as possible.
Remove unnecessary packaging
You can toss the cardboard boxes a lot of frozen food comes packed in to free up space for more foods. But remember to mark down the best before date and write it down first. If you want to keep track of the cooking instructions take a picture of them with your phone to check back on for when you want to cook it.
Clear out your freezer
We all have some foods in the bottom of the freezer that seemed to have been there forever. Challenge yourself to take those out and cook them and free up that space for more delicious foods you like.
Defrost and keep clean
Hong Kong is a very humid place and each time you open the door some of that humidity will build up frost in your freezer. Try to take the time to defrost your freezer every 6 months as frost build up can easily start taking up your precious space.
Need even more space in your freezer?
If you simply can’t get the freezer door closed here is a tip for how you can store your gafell meals.
- Remove the paper sleeve and plastic film from the meal.
- With washed hands or a fork gently lift up on the side of the food.
- The entire meal should lift up intact.
- Wrap the entire meal in freezer plastic wrap, freezer paper, or in a freezer zip lock bag and wrap it tightly.
- Mark down the best-before date onto the outside of the bag with a marking pen or on a piece of paper tape.
- Wash the tray and keep it for when you want to eat the meal.
This will save even more space and if you have several of the same meal you can keep them together in the same bag. Keep the plastic trays and wash them and store them and you can easily put back the meals into the tray when it’s time to eat.
Need even more space still?
Having a lot of freezer space is a luxury and peace of mind that you always have something good to eat. Check out our guide to buying a new freezer in Hong Kong here