RE-using plastic freezer bags - sterilise or not?

trolleyrun

It's the spores formation in rice that puts me off freezing it. Basically, if you cook rice from scratch, cool it down quickly and freeze for it to be reheated only once, then it'll be fine.

The main risk is rice that's been partially cooked (parboiled), then finished off, frozen (or just in the fridge) to then be heated again. Spores form in rice and no amount of re-heating will get rid of them totally, as it's only 120c over at least 5 mins that gets rid of them, which completely ruins the rice anyways. That's why so many people get a "hangover" after a night out and take-away, as they finish the dish off in the morning and then feel horrid later on.

As long as you cook/cool/freeze rice as in the first paragraph of this post and as others have adviced, you'll be fine. Sorry to have caused worry and confusion, that wasn't my intention.

spike7451

I reuse them but I've got them marked up with indelible marker what is in them,so the same things go back into them.For example,I have one marked for 'Black Pudding' that I pre-slice before freezing & I just top up with fresh black pudding when I restock.

Any

I wash mine thoroughly and fill them with really hot water when rinsing and I re-use even bags that had raw meat in it.
The bag is as good as boiled, then you are going to put it in the freezer again and then you are going to cook the meat that will go into that re-used bag again... I doubt anything would survive that.

I have never ever been ill yet.

PipneyJane

ksh123 wrote: »

To re-use plastic freezer bags do they need to be sterilised? If so, how? Or does a quick wash do the job? thanks

I recycle most plastic bags most of the time. Just wash them inside out in hot soapy water and dry over long wooden spoons or other long utensils in the dryer rack (or over the latest squash bottle/a handy wine bottle, if there are enough to make this necessary). However, I don't reuse ones that have held raw meat or raw fish. Instead of "wasting" good freezer bags on those, I'll re-use bread bags or those re-sealable cheese bags, binning them once the meat is defrosted.

ksh123

Thanks so much everyone for your helpful replies. I used to re-use freezer bags years ago and just dry them on the line but somehow we have all become so much more educated aboput bacteria etc I lost confidence.
But now I feel OK after hearing your replies, so thank you. I think the peg thing is a great idea too but I'm taking all your replies on board so:

THANK YOU VERY MUCH
:beer:

spike7451

What my mom used to do was whenever she picked any fruit & veg at the supermarket,she'd grab a couple of extra of those plastic bag then use them if she was going to split something up for freezing.When I go to my butcher & buy,say,4 chop,I ask him for a few extra bags for freezing & he's ok with that.

adelight

I've never done this but thought about it, I'd like to try it if I can find some good quality zip lock bags.

spike7451

adelight wrote: »

I've never done this but thought about it, I'd like to try it if I can find some good quality zip lock bags.

Tesco's do them in packs of 25.

ksh123

spike7451 wrote: »

What my mom used to do was whenever she picked any fruit & veg at the supermarket,she'd grab a couple of extra of those plastic bag then use them if she was going to split something up for freezing.When I go to my butcher & buy,say,4 chop,I ask him for a few extra bags for freezing & he's ok with that.

Yes, I did that for years. But nowadays I'm thinking enviromental impact as well as MS and they can't/don't recycle those flimsy things. Its a tiny thing I know but still, they add up

valk_scot

ksh123 wrote: »

Yes, I did that for years. But nowadays I'm thinking enviromental impact as well as MS and they can't/don't recycle those flimsy things. Its a tiny thing I know but still, they add up

For lowest environmental impact, stick to plastic boxes. A good set of boxes in a range of sizes you use most is more expensive short term but will save money over several years of use. I'm still using boxes I bought at Tupperware parties a decade ago, plus some more modern supermarket clip-locks. Easier to stack and sort on the freezer too. Or plastic lidded takeaway containers can be reused dozens of time and will stand up to the dishwasher and microwave, unlike plastic bags.