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Michael Ruhlman has an interesting post today on the “freezer pantry” – things you keep in your freezer so you always have them on hand to add to dishes. I’ve been doing something similar for years now, although I had never thought of tomato paste as freeze-able. (I’ll certainly try it now, because I never go through a can of tomato paste – something I only use occasionally – before it passes its prime.)
Here’s my list of freezer staples, some of which overlap with his:
- Bacon. I buy a package, use what I need right away, roll up each individual slice, and bag them. Rolling them separately makes it easier to pull out just the number of slices I need, and they thaw quickly if you dunk them (in a plastic bag) in cool water because of all the surface area.
- Chicken stock. I freeze it in one-cup and three-cup containers. You can really never have enough of this stuff. I usually have at least one chicken carcass in my freezer for the next batch. Right now I have three. I also keep frozen bits of vegetables that might go into the stock – ends of celery, peppers, and onions that I wouldn’t include in a dish but that still have plenty of flavor for a stock.
- Oat bran. You should keep whole grains in your freezer, and mine is full of them: brown rice, barley, whole-grain coarsely-ground cornmeal (better for polenta than what’s sold as “polenta”), and whole wheat flour, at a minimum. I love the taste of oat bran and, given its nutritional benefits, like to add it to all kinds of baked goods. My wife was hooked on Trader Joes’ pumpkin bread in the fall, and I found that you could add 2 Tbsp of oat bran without affecting the texture of the finished product.
- Raw nuts. Again, like whole grains, they can go rancid. Toasted or roasted nuts can lose a little something in the freezer, but raw nuts need to be toasted before you use them, so the freezer is a great spot, and they never freeze together.
- Pancakes. Granted, not an ingredient, and more about feeding the toddler than about actual cooking. But pancakes, cooled on a rack, freeze beautifully and separate easily. For my daughter, I put two on a plate, microwave about 30 seconds, top with pure maple syrup, then nuke for about ten more seconds.
- Lemon juice. Buy a separate ice tray for this. You cut a lemon to get a bit of juice and have half a lemon left over. Squeeze out the rest, measure out 1 Tbsp increments, freeze each in its own compartment, pop them out and bag them. (Don’t leave them in the tray. I have no idea what the process at work is, but they shrivel and become gummy. It won’t happen in a bag with most/all of the air sucked out.) You can do the same thing with egg whites, although I don’t recommend freezing these for more than a few weeks.
- Legumes and corn. Right now, I have frozen peas, lima beans, and corn in my freezer, which is about my minimum. I never cook any of these on their own, but include them in all kinds of stews, soups, and rice dishes. If you have rice, an onion, peas, and corn, you have everything you need for a great and colorful pilaf.
I know a lot of people swear by food-saver devices; I bought the inexpensive Reynolds Handi-Vac, because I couldn’t bring myself to buy a $100 device (that’s eight pounds of coffee! nine or ten new books!) that would just take up more space. It works very well on dry goods, and it works quickly. I would link to Amazon, but you’re better off getting it at Target.
Veggies, Fruits, Stocks, and Puff Pastry.
Keith, what do you roll each bacon slice in? Thanks.
That’s a great idea with the bacon, definitely going to try that. RE: Tomato Paste, I buy it now in a toothpaste-style aluminum tube with a screw cap. We’ve kept the same one for more than a month, probably more than two months, and not noticed a difference.
Sean: I just roll each slice up on its own. Start at one end and roll it like a taquito. You end up with a sort of snail-shell shape.
Keith,
Our freezers must look similar but I’m always hearing it from the wife that there’s too much in there. “How much chicken stock and brine do you need to keep?” she says. My only question is why toast the raw Trader Joe’s Nuts? I can understand toasting a pine nut but I’ve never toasted any of the raw walnuts or raw almonds from there. I’ve always heard that eating nuts raw is better nutritionally.
RE: Tomato Paste. I know my Mom has been freezing it for years with great results. When the tomato rush in the garden begins, she makes almost anything she can with the tomatoes and it will freeze fairly well.
I have no idea about nutrition, but I think raw nuts are gross. Toasting them adds lots of taste and improves their texture.
Let me add pre-baked pizza crust to the list. We routinely boy the 22 oz ball of dough from WF, but split it into two separate crusts and typically only make one at a time. My method for thin, crisp crust is to bake the crust by itself (in a pizza pan) for about 6 minutes at 450 degrees. Then I remove it from the pan, coat with sauce and toppings, and bake for an addition 10-15 minutes directly on the pizza stone.
I’ve frozen the extra half-way baked crust with good success many times. It’s best to store it in a good freezer bag to prevent freezer burn. For while right after my younger daughter was born, we would have four or five ready for a quick meal.
Re: Lemon juice. I think that’s just dehydration caused by freezer burn. Freezers (and refrigerators) are basically just heavily air-conditioned enclosures, so moisture gets pulled out of everything. The better the storage container (e.g. freezer bag, tupperware, etc) the less moisture will evaporate and dry out the food. An open tray of frozen liquid will “dry out” leaving behind whatever else was in there. I see ice do the same thing.
I inherited a Foodsaver Vacuum when my mother passed away. It is the best product I have ever owned.
I can make a huge batch of soup, freeze individual portions, and seal them up for later. I make a giant batch of lasagna, seal up portions, and I can make a quick, delicious lunch in under five minutes from freezer to plate.
Last night I didn’t feel like cooking. I opened the freezer pulled out a portion of chili and a portion of butternut squash soup, and dinner was done!!!
Since the chat mention is in this thread
during the chat you said you would take utley 1st in an all out draft to build a team
realizing that utley is a better all around player than hanley, don’t the facts that hanley is 5 years young and that his defense improved (according to several metrics) to average inspire some confidence that, given his young age, his defense and his offense (scary) could continue to improve? while utley at 30 will face his decline, in all likelihood, much sooner?
I’m pretty sure the water is sublimating in the lemon juice when you expose it to air, leaving all the other compaunds to concentrate. Freezer air is really dry.
Love the chats and always, at least, respect your thought process, but I just want to recommend “The Wire” as well. Like nothing else I’ve ever seen on TV. So glad I finally gave it a chance.
Feel better
Glen, usually when people ask that “pickup game” question they mean for one year. Hanley *did* have a better defensive season, that is just one data point on him though.
I just read the chat (great as usual) and wanted to also nominate The Wire for your Netflix queue. You don’t have to watch all 60 hours. Sample the first four or five episodes and drop it if it doesn’t take. I didn’t think I’d like it either, but now I’m envious of those who haven’t watched it, because they get to do so for the first time.
I’ve never met a person who could watch 2-3 hours of The Wire and not be completely addicted.
I’ll add my name to the list of Wire fans. Seriously Keith, watch the first half of season 1 and then tell us you aren’t addicted. I bet you (like everyone else on here) will be begging for more. Best form of entertainment (including movies, books, etc) I’ve ever seen.
Matt H. – I’ve always taken that question to mean “build a team around” not just for one year … they certainly are very different questions though
For me I didn’t get hooked on the Wire until season 3. Maybe because so many people told me season 1 was so great, I actually found myself somewhat disappointed after a few episodes. I mean I realized at the time it was good TV, but I didn’t view it as groundbreaking.
But after season 2, I got used to the Wire’s slow methodical build up, and Season 3’s plot hooked me. It only gets better in Season 4 (which is the best if you ask me) and Season 5 was a wonderful send-off.
I’d like to echo previous glowing posts about “The Wire.” IMO it is absolutely the best television show ever produced. By Episode 4 or 5 of the first season I was hooked.
I once read an article whose author wrote something I found to ring quite true (can’t remember source). The gist of it was, “describe any single character on the show to a friend who hasn’t yet seen it, and it will take you at least 20 minutes.” The character development was truly amazing.
Joe G, I agree 100% with everything you wrote. I found myself almost bored with the slow buildups in season 1 and 2, but man were season 3 and 4 amazing! I agree that Season 4 is the best. I was a bit let down by Season 5, but that’s probably because I didn’t care for the newspaper storyline; the main character storyline was quite good.
Season 4 of “The Wire” in all honesty is by far the best season of any show I’ve ever seen.