Want to save Money? Want to be able to find anything you want in the freezer at any moment with little effort? Well, if you answered yes, this article is for you.
When a freezer gets messed up and item upon items are all piled on top of each other several things happen.
First and foremost, you can't find what you need without having to uncover half the freezer and of course it's always the last place you look. There goes your time and more electricity since the freezer is open so long. Secondly, and don't laugh, it's not safe. I have personally been looking for something and a frozen block of meat fell out on my feet! Third and most important is that when you are organized and have an inventory, you are not as likely to leave food in the freezer so long that it gets old and freezer burn and then you end up throwing it away. It's like taking dollar bills and throwing them in the trash!
Before we get started on how to store, label, and inventory your freezer, let's go over a few basic rules on packaging.
Whenever possible, buy in family packs which is much cheaper and then divide it up when you get home. Depending on how long I think it will be before we eat the meat determines how I package it. I have a vacuum sealer that I use for fish and deer meat because they stay in the freezer longer. I use freezer bags for vegetables, breads, and other items.
The vacuum sealers can be bought for about $59.00 and I think are well worth the expense. Some people still like to use butcher paper also.
When dividing up your family packs of meat you can do this two different ways. Let's say you are putting away a family size package of pork chops and you would like to be able to get out just one chop at a time. Go the dollar store(just for these inside bags) and pick up some cheap sandwich bags. Wrap each chop in its own bag, and then drop the individual bags into a freezer bag(a good brand). Be sure to get all the air out of the freezer bag. Either roll the bag while pushing out the excess air or take a straw and suck out the excess air and seal quickly. Getting the air out is the most important aspect of keeping foods from getting freezer burn.
Getting Organized
I use a black permanent marker to write on the bags. Some people prefer frozen food labels. When labeling your food, be sure and write month and year on the package. Example - Port Chops 3/07. Meaning these chops were put in the freezer March of 2007. This way you will know what foods are the oldest and need to be eaten first.
When organizing your freezer I recommend putting all beef together, chicken together, etc. I have a very large freezer and have enough shelves to separate all my meats and still have a shelf left for bread, vegetables, etc. I use the door of the freezer for weiners, lunch meats, pot pies, and small items. You may have to arrange differently according to your space.
Keeping An Inventory.
Now it's time to go over keeping an inventory. Knowing what you have at all times makes your life so much easier. Inventory can be done on the computer if you have one, or in a spiral notebook.
I keep a chart with everything in my freezer. Let me explain how this works. On the right hand side of my chart I put 8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1. This means I have 8 packages of cutlets in the freezer. Let's say tonight I take out a package to eat. I would mark through the number eight (8). Then I can see I still have seven (7) packages of cutlets left. A very simple method but works great. I know exactly how much I have without having to dig through the freezer. This will also let you know when its time to start looking for those sales to restock you your favorite items.
I mentioned earlier about color coding. I don't do this because I have a separate shelf for each kind of meat, but if you have very limited freezer space and have to mix kinds of meats you may want to color code for easier location of your item.
My suggestions are: Beef - brown, Pork - white, Chicken - yellow. Those are the main ones. You can get peel off color dots at the dime store to use. This way if you are one that used butcher paper, you can see from the yellow sticker you are looking at chicken and not pork.
I hope this article on organizing your freezer will get you on your way to saving money and a easier time in the kitchen!
