Food Science Universe (FSU)

Freezing of Meat (English)

Beef, veal, mutton and poultry are suitable for freezing. Only fresh, high-quality meat and poultry should be frozen.

Instruments

  • Polythene Bag
  • Deep Freezer
  • Sealer

Procedure

Preparation for Freezing:
  • Beef, Veal and Mutton — Select suitable cuts or portions. Cut into desired size pieces as required for final cooking. All blood-stained portions should be trimmed off.
  • Poultry — If whole chicken is desired to be used in the final preparation, e.g. for roasting, then it must be frozen after slaughtering, de-feathering, singeing and eviscerating. Chicken cuts’ are preferred for freezing when these are to be used for cooking.
Procedure:
  • Prepare the meat or bird, wash and allow to drain.
  • Pack in portions to be used later in moisture-proof wrapping material. Polythene bags are quite suitable for the purpose.
  • Repack the bag in another polythene bag. This will ensure that moisture will not be lost from the meat during freezing storage.
  • Note: Improper packaging material may result in meat to become dry on .the surface, thereby causing loss of weight and fat to become rancid. This condition is known as freeze-burn.
  • Place the packets in the coolest part of a deep freezer. Make sure that the freezer is not overloaded with too much material.
  • Once frozen, the packets can be transferred to other parts of the freezer or stacked one over another.
  • Keep in a frozen state, preferably at a temperature of -18 °C, till required.
  • Note: If there are no power failures or fluctuations in the freezer temperature, then frozen meat and poultry should preferably be consumed within 3 months.
  • Thawing — Thaw the meat in the cooking pan and cook from the frozen state. Utilize the drip containing soluble nutrients.

Loading

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top
WhatsApp chat