Prepping to freeze, thaw and reheat [closed]

Prepping to freeze, thaw and reheat [closed] - Water Drop in Close-up Photo

I have a food truck and would like to cook as many things as possible to avoid buying canned food and work with as many fresh products as possible. It is too difficult to do it on a daily basis so I wanted to be able to spend one full day seasoning and cooking a few recipes, enough for a couple of weeks and freeze it in portions. My concern is if frozen, will the taste of the food be altered after thawing and reheating to serve? Here are few examples of what I would like to freeze, thaw and reheat: - ratatouille (stewed and seasoned vegetables) - seasoned and de-boned roasted chicken - black bean paste (seasoned) or refried beans - sauteed spinach and mushrooms - roasted chicken with leek, mushrooms and creamy sauce

Please advise Thank you JP



Best Answer

This is a difficult question in part because you've listed so many things -- for instance, a cream sauce is going to be difficult, as cream sauces may break when frozen. Cooked chicken, on the other hand, I go quite frequently.

But the thing with the chicken is that I'm cooking it to use as an ingredient in other things; I think you may have more success in that way -- compromising between the two by prepping and freezing some items to minimize the amount of work needed for each day's cooking. Some foods benefit from preparing in advance (stew, chilli, soups, etc.) that may could from once a week cooking. You'd likely want to bring things back up to temperature and then adjust seasoning on the day of. (possibly adding fresh herbs for the ratatouille and/or a splash of extra acid to brighten it back up)

I don't know what sort of food truck you're operating; if it's one with a kitchen, or if it's the type that prepares food in a canteen and does no cooking on-site ... I'd assume if you're cooking on site, this could be a problem as it'll take more time to cook from a frozen state.

It's probably worthwhile to do some taste tests -- make a recipe, then put some off to freeze, then thaw it back out a week later to compare to fresh and/or canned.




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Can you freeze reheat and freeze again?

Yes, it is safe to refreeze any food remaining after reheating previously frozen leftovers to the safe temperature of 165 \xb0F as measured with a food thermometer.

How do you freeze and reheat meal prep?

Prepare your casserole and place in the freezer until completely frozen. Then, use the excess plastic wrap to pull the frozen dish out of the pan, and wrap the dish thoroughly in freezer-proof plastic. When you're ready to reheat, unwrap the food and place it back in the pan for reheating in the oven.

Can you freeze and unfreeze food multiple times?

According to senior food editor Rick Martinez and Robert Ramsey, chef instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education, you can refreeze and re-thaw food\u2014but just because you can doesn't mean you should. At ICE, Ramsey and his colleagues have a blanket rule: "If something's been frozen once, that's it."



FREEZER ORGANIZATION! Packing, Thawing And Reheating Our FREEZER MEALS! Batch Cooking!




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