How To Set up Your Freezer • Kath Eats

When all issues pattern towards chaos, the freezer isn’t any exception. Listed here are recommendations on find out how to arrange your freezer and the most effective equipment that can assist you keep organized. 

Shifting into our new freezer

As we ready for our transfer right into a rental cottage, we tried to make use of up as a lot of our freezer meals as doable. Whereas our fridge stays pretty organized, our freezer storage stresses me out! 

I believe as a result of the aim is all the time to open and shut it as quick as doable to keep away from leaking any chilly out, we have a tendency to simply stuff meals again in with out a lot thought as to the place we’re tossing them. 

Regardless of our greatest efforts, right here was our previous fridge on transferring week:

See that pink lid container on the appropriate? That was Birch’s leftover birthday cake from October. All of us loved it the night time earlier than we moved! 

Drawer vs. Facet by Facet

The fridge at our cottage is a aspect by aspect French door fridge and freezer, and we’re form of liking it! I want a “two doorways on the highest / freezer drawer on the underside” total as a result of I believe the width is invaluable at instances for storing fridge meals (like make-ahead meatballs), nevertheless, we actually just like the side-by-side freezer. It’s simpler to see with out bending over. 

Organizing your freezer may help you maximize its advantages, be sure you’re utilizing meals up earlier than it’s previous its prime, and assist you to meal plan and meal prep extra successfully. 

If you’re somebody with a really messy freezer (or perhaps you might have a second one in your basement or storage) you’ll profit from a freezer declutter and getting some group instruments!

Whether or not you might have a backside freezer, high freezer, chest, or a aspect by aspect, listed below are sensible suggestions and organizing concepts that can assist you maintain your freezer(s) tidy on a regular basis.

How To Set up Your Freezer

Hold a list

Maintaining a list checklist is a good way to be aware of what’s within the freezer with out having to blast your face with chilly air! You may make your personal or obtain a printable one like this one from Etsy. 

Embrace the date bought, the use by date, probably the date you opened the bag/field, and what number of you might have inside. 

You’ll need the checklist to be simply accessible within the kitchen so you may cross issues off as you employ them. Contemplate storing underneath a magnet on the aspect of the fridge, in a close-by drawer, on a bulletin board, or in your cellphone or laptop. 

Set up gadgets by expiration date

In case you’ve heard of FIFO earlier than as an accounting precept, that idea applies to freezers! FIRST IN, FIRST OUT. It means use your oldest meals first! That is difficult to do in a freezer the place you’re dumping meals on high and burying the oldest stuff, so once more, having an organizing system the place you rotate by means of can actually assist with this. 

You need to use bins or baggage to group like expiration dates with like, or use a vertical storage the place you’re transferring left to proper. 

Use labels

Ever peeked right into a bag or container and don’t have any clue what was inside? Haven’t all of us! Clearly labels are the clear answer for this. 

There are a bunch of various labeling choices, from Sharpie on a disposable bag (much less environmentally pleasant!) to Scotch freezer tape to labels that dissolve off with water!

In case you’re labeling ready meals, you may embrace the elements and primary cooking directions that can assist you bear in mind find out how to prepare dinner or reheat. 

Have meals zones

When organizing your meals, I wish to group by class: breakfast (like waffles), smoothie elements or Daily Harvest smoothie cups, desserts (popsicles, ice cream), lunch meals (Each day Harvest bowls), dinner elements (frozen veggies, floor beef, rooster nuggets, or frozen pizzas), extras (like ice packs). 

Freezer bins may help you kind by class. Our backside freezer had a moveable divider that helped maintain the sections separate, and our new fridge has pull out drawers which might be good! 

Labeling may help right here, too, so your loved ones members can inform what gadgets are imagined to go the place. 

Put most-used gadgets on the highest or door

Have you learnt what’s most used at our home? The ice cream! Second is probably going smoothie making provides like frozen bananas and berries. 

When utilizing a backside freezer, we put the most-used provides on the highest the place they’re best to succeed in. In case your freezer has a door, that’s the plain place for them. And since these things are most used, they’re in all probability additionally probably the most continuously changed, in order that they received’t be as impacted by the fixed opening of the door. 

Decant

Identical to when organizing a pantry, decanting may help you save area in your freezer. I can consider a number of merchandise we purchase on the common which have an outer field however are nonetheless individually wrapped on the within (salmon patties, No Bull burgers, frozen waffles). I’ll usually take these out of the field to avoid wasting area. Simply word that you just’ll have to recollect find out how to prepare dinner them and would possibly wish to label the expiration date on the surface. 

I additionally all the time decant popsicles and ice cream sandwiches so you may extra simply see the flavors of pops and know whenever you’re getting all the way down to the previous few – time to placed on the checklist! 

Seal tightly

Freezer burn is the WORST, and air is frozen meals’ worst enemy. Make sure you’re resealing your packaging effectively to keep away from the dreaded activity of tossing out freezer-burned veggies. When you’ve got the area for one, a vacuum sealer may help you get all of the air out. Second best choice – double wrap! 

Apply minimalism

Evidently, the less gadgets you retailer in your freezer the better will probably be to scrub. Join this again to the stock checklist that can assist you bear in mind to truly eat what you might have inside! When you’ve got an excessive amount of further area you should utilize ice packs to assist your freezer maintain within the chilly.

Do a quarterly clear out

A commonly scheduled clear out is all the time a good suggestion too. Put any misplaced gadgets again the place they belong, and toss out something expired.

In case you’re feeling tremendous up to the mark, vacuum the crumbs from any bins or drawers and provides them a wipe down. I’m all the time amazed at what number of crumbs (and hairs – gasp!) find yourself within the backside of my freezer on condition that it’s solely open for one minute at a time. 

Freezer Group Concepts

Use bins 

Bins are nice for grouping baggage of frozen fruit or unfastened, decanted popsicles. You possibly can put all the child meals in a single, all of the breakfast gadgets in a single, and so forth. 

The Container Retailer has numerous nice choices like these baskets, together with this vertical stacking one, however you can even use journal holders or primary white bins such as you’d discover on the Greenback Retailer. Stackable bins are nice for chest freezer organizing. 

Stasher baggage

We LOOOOOOVE Stasher bags!!! Not solely are they washable and reusable, however they’re legit nice at sealing and straightforward to open. The one draw back is they’re costly per bag, however they’re one thing you’ll hopefully use and reuse for years. We use the massive Stashers for bagels and frozen bananas. 

Tip: freeze berries on a sheet pan

In case you’re freezing one thing contemporary, like hand-picked strawberries within the early summer season, you may freeze them on a sheet pan and then put them in a Stasher bag – this manner they received’t stick collectively! Typically, the smaller the meals, the extra you’ll want to make use of this spreading out flash freezing methodology. Giant banana halves don’t actually need a separate freezing course of to be plucked off each other to be used. 

Go away area to increase

Frozen meals increase, so when you’re utilizing a glass container, jar, or popsicle mildew, you should definitely go away some area so that you don’t create a goopy overflow. These are my favorite silicone popsicle molds that we use to freeze further smoothies or make home made pops. They’re nice as a result of they received’t drip, there aren’t sticks to make use of, and they’re dishwasher secure. 

Freezer Group Equipment: Store The Publish

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