Freezing Food and Freezer Care

Here's comprhensive advice from a food scientists on how to freezer-wrap practically anything and everything. Does it really matter how food is wrapped for freezing? You bet. Food quality will hold up longer if an item is wrapped properly.

Dry foods:  Dry foods (flour, cake mix, oatmeal) and foods that are high in fat (pie crusts, cookies, bakery goods) need to be wrapped tightly to exclude oxygen which can lead to oxidation and rancid flavor. If you're storing a product in a freezer bag, press down on the wrap prior to sealing it. This will expel oxygen. If you're storing a product in a rubber or plastic container, fill the container as close to the top to displace oxygen. If you're storing food in a plastic wrap, wrap it as tightly as possible to minimize or eliminate room  for oxygen. Foods that  you bring home from the store wrapped in paper should be rewrapped in plastic wrap, bags or plastic containers prior to freezing them.

A defrosting and cleaning schedule depends upon these factors: