How To Stock The Perfect Freeze

Believe it or not, there is an efficient and safe way to store frozen food so that it all stays hygienically safe and promotes the best running of your freezer.

CoolCookery2 06

You should follow these general guidelines when stocking your stand-up freezer

  • Top drawer – Ice cream, baked goods, frozen fruit, prepared foods
  • Middle drawer – vegetables, chips, soups etc.
  • Bottom drawer – Meat, fish and poultry

Other top tips include

  • Ice cream – store ice cream at the back of the freezer where possible
  • Soups etc. – store soups and sauces flat in clear freezer bags to save space
  • Order your freezer – sticking to a type of food in each shelf will make things easier to find and prevent long periods with the door open
  • Fill it up – but not too much, freezers are at their most efficient when they’re full of food but still have room for the air to circulate, around 75% full is best.
  • Rotate, rotate, rotate – always put newer foods to the back or the bottom of a pile, use the older ones first, they’ll still be perfectly safe but it’s always better to use up older food first
  • Keep a list – make sure you know what’s in your freezer so you don’t end up with 10 bags of frozen peas – although you can never have too many peas!