Freezer Jenga!

C_J

This is the thread where we support and encourage each other in our attempts to organise/clear our freezer stocks. I will be posting in the coming days looking for inspiration for how to use up the items I unearth from mine, and would really love some OS recipe suggestions from you along with hints, tips and general freezer banter.

Everyone else with a cluttered freezer, do please join in the fun. Also suggestions for preventing this happening to me again would be welcome. Last January I tried sticking a whiteboard to the front of the garage freezer to keep an up-to-date inventory, but that lasted a week.

C_J

My immediate problem is that I have just been given a large gammon joint which I wasn't expecting. It's about 5kg and the size of a football.

It would be nice to have over Christmas but I don't have a single square inch of space left in either freezer. Would it be better to cook it now and freeze portions of it once I've made some room? Or is defrosted gammon not as nice as freshly cooked? Help!

kathrynha

Personally I would freeze it raw and cook it later, but is cutting it up now in to the size pieces you need possible?


What else is in your freezer?
My one that takes up space is bread. I tend to shove crusts in to the freezer and when I have a load I make them in to bread crumbs, which takes up a lot less space.

suki1964

Cook it now and slice, divide into portions and freeze flat.

Will be fine reheated and also lovely for sandwiches. And the end bits plus the boiling liquid will make lovely soup for over this weekend ( seeing as the freezer is full)

I don't store bread in the freezers. Too much space needed and tbh bread is cheap to buy.

If you have bread stock piled, use it. Bread and butter pudding for puddings in the week, or good old fashioned bread pudding which lasts for ages wrapped in grease proof and in a cake tin

LameWolf

I am normally very organised with my freezer; I have a list of the contents on a spreadsheet, divided up into the four drawers, so that I know what is where.

The only time I had a real problem was when I had two little Westies come to stay for their two-week holiday, and without any warning to me beforehand, their owners sent a big pile of margarine tubs filled with home-cooked food for the little guys - which, yes, you know what's coming, don't you, had to be stored in the freezer til they were needed.

I still don't know how I did it, but I managed some creative Freezer Tetris and got it all in.

I do keep a sliced loaf in there - but only because I usually make our bread as needed, but I keep some sliced in for emergencies, like if I was too poorly to make bread. If we need to fall back on the sliced, we can then just get out however much we need and leave the rest frozen.

At the moment I have quite a bit of space taken up with foraged blackberries, but they are gradually getting used (some went in a blackberry'n'apple crumble earlier today).

Lance_De_Boils

suki1964 wrote: »

Cook it now and slice, divide into portions and freeze flat.

Will be fine reheated and also lovely for sandwiches. And the end bits plus the boiling liquid will make lovely soup for over this weekend ( seeing as the freezer is full)

I don't store bread in the freezers. Too much space needed and tbh bread is cheap to buy.

If you have bread stock piled, use it. Bread and butter pudding for puddings in the week, or good old fashioned bread pudding which lasts for ages wrapped in grease proof and in a cake tin

Ah yes. The dreaded individual-slices-of-bread. I often find these in the bowels of my freezer. Usually broken into pieces and covered in a snow like substance. Or little bags of breadcrumbs that I have lovingly made ready for the day when I have the need for breadcrumbs. Which is never.

MrsTinks

So I'm not the only one who has BOUGHT breadcrumbs (like the wasteful Bisto kind although I think they were own brand...) and have actually managed to have them go out of date???

Yeah... never use breadcrumbs with anything to be honest, I can't even remember why I bought them years ago! :doh:

I've been doing some freezer tetris myself so I'll update my list from my diary and drag it down here too Making pretty good inroads! Now... how to get through a bag of churros without looking like a pig ready for slaughter at the end of it LOL

suki1964

Breadcrumbs uses

Treacle tart

Covered in chilli oil, baked in the oven and sprinkled over pasta

Used to thicken soups

Stuffing base

Or when you get sick of the sight of them, Pack into yoghurt pots and cover in meat fat, let set and the birds love it

[Deleted User]

I don't have the breadcrumbs problem as I no longer eat bread I ate so little anyway it wasn't a problem to just stop buying it I have a lock'n'lock box that I keep crackers in(i don't eat much of them either )

My problems are the left overs.I always seem to have some left over bits that I can't bear to throw out and so I freeze.I also have several packets of mince/stewing meat bought when on offer and stuck in the freezer for use later :0 I am now being very strict with myself and have stopped buying meat altogether until my freezer is empty aND I can defrost it.Seems to take ages as I am sure food is multiplying in there no matter how much I use the blooming thing never seems to empty very quickly.
I think its often a case ,as in cupboard space ,the more room you have the more you fill it up.years ago back in the 1960s I had a small fridge with a tiny shelf at the top for frozen peas etc and that's about all it held Now fridge freezers are so much bigger the freezer bit always seems to be full. I buy and eat quite a bit of veg and if I have over bought I will often freeze the excess (that's just reminded me I have asparagus in there that I bought ages ago and haven't used) That will definitely be used this weekend. my freezer is in so much need of defrosting I have actually taken the top drawer out and have just got stuff laying on the shelf:o:o:o.
So no more buying of freeze supplies until I can give it a darned good defrost and find all the hidden treasures that are virtually stuck encased in an iceberg at the back of the freezer :):):)

Islandmaid

I decided to empty the freezer yesterday and repack in an orderly fashion, apart from finding 2 bags of sweetcorn (ideas to use up would be appreciated) I spyed a glimpse of white shelf when I had prepacked it all.

Then Hubby comes home with half a goat!! After a bit of knife wealding, I managed to wedge it in there - looks like we are having Goat for Christmas

Pollycat

C_J wrote: »

This is the thread where we support and encourage each other in our attempts to organise/clear our freezer stocks. I will be posting in the coming days looking for inspiration for how to use up the items I unearth from mine, and would really love some OS recipe suggestions from you along with hints, tips and general freezer banter.

Everyone else with a cluttered freezer, do please join in the fun. Also suggestions for preventing this happening to me again would be welcome. Last January I tried sticking a whiteboard to the front of the garage freezer to keep an up-to-date inventory, but that lasted a week.

The only way I can manage the contents of my freezer is to be very strict and keep a proper list of what's in and cross it off when I take it out.

I keep a note of the date and have 2 separate lists - 1 for uncooked meat, sausages etc and the other for 'ready meals' e.g. bol, chilli, stews, frozen fish etc.

I meal plan for 3 weeks at a time so I sit down with a coffee and my freezer lists and try to use up what's been in for a while.

I cleared room for a 3kg joint of beef for Christmas and when Tesco put their counter roasting joints on half price offer at £5 per kg I bought 2 (weighing 3.5kg) and sliced some and diced some for various slow cooker meals.
Unfortunately (or not really ) the same day I discovered 2 x 1kg steak mince reduced to £3 per kilo on the YS shelf so I had to buy that too, I've bagged it in 12oz portions.
Oh, and a half leg of lamb as that is also half price.

So.....my freezer is groaning at the seams but my menu plan will start to clear some space over the next week or so.
Tesco have pork leg joints at £3 per kilo & I'd like to get some of that in too.
And I need to make space for a box of uncooked yorkshire puddings for Christmas Day so I have my own challenges.

As for bread, I usually keep a 'toastie' loaf in and a 6 pack of granary rolls for sandwiches.