Have you ever forgotten you had this or that because it wasn't out in the open or wasn't written down in an inventory? Have you ever had to throw out food because it didn't get eaten in time or it got freezer burn--or you couldn't identify it?
Today I want to share my thoughts on keeping a freezer inventory and how I label foods I freeze, at least when I'm being good about labeling that is. Freezing food does NOT make it last forever, or even years. Freezing simply slows down the processes that cause food to go bad, it does not stop or kill the organisms--that is why once you defrost food it has to be used and can't just stay on the counter or in the fridge for long periods of time. Some foods freeze better and longer than others, so besides inventorying your food, you should learn how to best freeze it and how long to freeze it for best results.
Inventories for your freezer, as well as other food (pantry, food storage, etc) is a good way to keep track of what you have and what you need to rotate through. Below is a very simple freezer inventory that I have used with success--meaning I know what I have and can make a plan to use it while it is nutritionally, taste, texture and sight wise the best.
From the tables, a freezer inventory includes the type of food, amount, when to use it by and location, the date you put it in can also be included, but I think the more important date is the use by date. Some freezer foods come with use by dates on them, others don't. In general for home goods--leftovers, freezer meals, things like that I try to use them up within 1 month. For meats, and store bought goods I follow basic freezer guidelines that can be found in food preserving books & resources, or in general I say 1-3 months for those things, depending if they are raw or cooked. For things like flour, yeast, dried foods, etc. I use a 6-12 month time frame.
When I use something, I change the amount if I didn't use all of it, or I cross it off my list if I used all of it. Yes, this means that every month or so a new inventory is needed to keep it up to date. Most foods don't last long enough for a freezer inventory to only be updated once a year or even once every 6 months; it will need to be updated frequently so I keep mine on the fridge. You can keep both the fridge freezer and the chest/upright freezer (if have one) inventories on one page or do a separate inventory for each one. A separate one would be handy if the foods in the chest freezer are longer storage foods that can be stored 3-12 months instead of 1-3 months. In the example above, I put them together.
The type of food, the type of container and the freezer temperature all play a part in how well and how long the food will maintain nutrition, taste, & texture. By having an inventory, you will be able to know what needs to be used, and when it needs to be used so that food doesn't go to waste. Also, by properly preparing and labeling foods when they are put into a freezer, waste can be limited.
When I label foods, besides simply saying what the food is (if not store bought), I put the date I am freezing it as well as the date I hope to use it by, plus any other information that would be helpful like bake temps and times, if it isn't something that doesn't already have that on it.
Examples: store bought lasagna: leave in packaging, label with date bought and date to use by; homemade lasagna: freeze in pan going to use to cook it--if using disposable pan can leave it in it, if using regular baking pan, freeze in pan than remove from pan; wrap in plastic wrap and aluminum foil, and place in a freezer bag--labeling lasagna, date frozen and when to use it by, along with bake temp and times if frozen or thawed.
Properly preparing, labeling and inventorying food for the freezer can help limit food waste. It can also help the food budget as foods aren't wasted, and foods can be bought and made in bulk.
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