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Freezing Potatoes: What Speaks for and What Against

Freeze potatoes? That’s the first thought when you’ve cooked too many potatoes again. But it’s not that easy to freeze potatoes.

Freeze raw potatoes?

Unfortunately, raw potatoes are not suitable for freezing. The low temperatures in the freezer turn starch into sugar – so the potatoes would taste much sweeter. This is not harmful to health, but the taste is very unusual. In addition, freezing destroys the cell structure. As a result, potatoes will look glassy and mushy after thawing.

Freeze boiled potatoes

In principle, however, you can freeze boiled potatoes: peeled, whole or in small pieces, you can use them after defrosting to make soup or mashed potatoes. Nevertheless, the consistency changes even when cooked, so you should really only freeze potatoes in an emergency.

However, the situation is different if you freeze the potatoes in their processed state: you can freeze potato soup and mashed potatoes without any problems, without the taste or consistency changing.

By the way, bought fries and croquettes keep so well in the freezer because they have been shock-frozen.

Instead of freezing: store potatoes properly

Freezing potatoes helps prevent potential food waste, but it’s not recommended. Because the freezer consumes a lot of energy and if the potatoes are not processed into mashed potatoes or potato soup, the consistency also suffers. If you want to preserve potatoes for a long time, a dry, cool and dark environment is ideal – for example the cellar. You can store potatoes there for months.

If you don’t have a basement or similar place for the potatoes, you should only buy small quantities. In vegetable and organic shops, potatoes are sold individually and not just in a large kilo sack. This is a much more effective way of preventing food waste.

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Cooking Tips

Freezing Bread: What You Should Pay Attention to

Buying too much bread or you want to stock up? Then you can also freeze the bread. You can find out how this works without plastic in our practical tips.

The right container for freezing

Plastic containers are not recommended for storing bread. In the worst case, plastic cans contain harmful plasticizers and are difficult to dispose of in an environmentally friendly manner. Instead, it’s better if you freeze bread and other foods in glass or stainless steel containers.

You can easily freeze sliced bread in it for a few weeks and then only take out as many slices as you need. The fresher the bread is when frozen, the longer it will keep in the freezer. However, it also loses its freshness and flavor over time, which is why you should generally not freeze baked goods for longer than a month or two.

Freeze bread in a cloth bag

In addition to plastic cans, plastic freezer bags can still be found in many households. You can use them several times, but sooner or later they end up in the trash. A good alternative to this are, for example, simple cloth bags. You can freeze the bread whole loaf or in slices. A cotton bag also works well to absorb excess liquid when you thaw the bread in it.

Tip: If you are only freezing your bread for a few days, for example over the weekend, you can even leave it in the paper bag. Well wrapped, the bread can also be frozen in it without any problems. You should only take it out of the paper bag to thaw it.

After freezing – thaw the bread properly

Give the frozen bread some time to thaw. One to three hours at room temperature is usually sufficient for this.
You can also let your bread thaw overnight, covered in a cotton bag or under a clean cloth.
If you defrost the bread in the oven, you should not heat it up for too long. This can make it hard and dry. However, it is possible to briefly bake the defrosted bread again in the oven. Then it tastes fresh again after the time in the freezer.
If you have frozen your bread in slices, you can also defrost it in the toaster. Simply toast the frozen slice a few seconds longer than fresh bread.

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Food

Freezing and Defrosting Apples: You Have to Pay Attention to This

Freezing apples is a good way to make your harvest last longer. However, there are a few things to keep in mind so that the apples still taste good after defrosting.

Freezing apples – what should I watch out for?

Freezing is one way of preserving food. But when it comes to apples, this method has its limits. The reason: Apples have a high water content and the apple loses its taste when it freezes due to the large amount of water. In addition, the cold destroys the cell structure and the apple loses its consistency. But if you want to bake or cook with the apples, you can freeze them without hesitation. We show a good method with which the apples can be easily processed later.

Freeze apples – but without plastic

If you want to freeze apples and thaw them again, use stainless steel cans or old jam and preserving jars, for example. It is important that the containers can be sealed airtight (more on the subject here: Freezing without plastic).

Note: We recommend that you use apples of the best organic quality from the region or from your own garden. Orchards are also a good way to get apples from the region. In this way you avoid long transport routes, which cause high CO2 emissions. In addition, the apples then contain no residues from chemical sprays. This is good for your health, as well as for bees and other insects.

Freeze apples in small portions

It is best to freeze apples the way you want to use them later. For baking and cooking you usually need apple slices. If you prefer larger pieces, quarter the apples. However, you cannot freeze it as a whole, as it takes too long to freeze through.

The best way to process the apple pieces is to blanch them briefly before freezing:

Cut the apples into small wedges.
Place the apple slices in a saucepan of boiling water and add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
Cook the apple slices for four to five minutes.
Take the apple slices out of the water with a sieve and rinse them with cold water.
Now you can put the apple slices in a container, seal it airtight and put it in the freezer. You should use them within six months.

Thaw and use apples

To ensure that the apples do not lose their taste, you should defrost them gently:

The fridge is best for this. Let them thaw there for about 4 hours and then another 2 hours at room temperature. Because they only develop their full aroma from around 16 degrees.
If you plan to use the apples for pie toppings or to make compotes, you don’t need to thaw them. You can use them directly.
You can preserve apples by freezing them. But home-made applesauce or boiling apples is more energy-efficient and delicious. If you store apples properly, you can enjoy them well into the winter without freezing or preserving them.

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Food

Freezing Eggs: When Does It Make Sense?

You can freeze raw eggs and store them for up to ten months. If you have leftover egg yolks or whites after baking, you can freeze them too. However, to ensure that nothing goes wrong, you should pay attention to a few things.

Freezing eggs: In these cases it is worth it

You don’t have to freeze eggs to keep them for a long time: raw eggs can be kept in the refrigerator for at least four weeks – provided the shell is undamaged. Hard-boiled eggs will also keep for up to four weeks at a cool temperature. Therefore, in most cases it is not necessary to freeze eggs. Tip: You can use the water test to check whether the egg is still good after the best-before date has passed.

An exception is if you have a lot of eggs in stock or are going on vacation for a few weeks. Then it can make sense to store the eggs in the freezer.

You can also freeze egg yolks or egg whites if you only need part of the egg in a baking recipe. Raw egg yolks and whites would only keep for three days in the refrigerator, but a few months in the freezer.

By the way: When it comes to animal products, organic quality is particularly important. Therefore only buy organic eggs (code 0) – preferably those with additional certification from a nature association such as Bioland, Demeter or Naturland. Also, make sure there is no chick shredding.

Never freeze eggs in shell or cooked

However, freezing eggs can also go wrong. Be sure to note the following points:

Raw eggs in shell: If you put uncooked eggs whole in shell in the freezer, the yolk will expand and the shell will burst. The result: the eggs spread out in the freezer and freeze solid there. A big mess and waste of precious food.
Boiled eggs: In principle, hard-boiled eggs can be frozen. However, the result leaves a lot to be desired: The hard-boiled egg white changes its consistency, becomes rubbery and has a watery taste.

Freezing eggs: step-by-step instructions

If you keep the above points in mind, you can freeze eggs quite easily. The best way to do this is as follows:

If you want to freeze a whole raw egg, you should whisk it well first. Alternatively, you can freeze the egg yolk and egg white separately.
Place the egg in a clean freezer-safe container. Tip: Glass containers are more sustainable than plastic containers. Leave about a quarter of the container empty to avoid bursting in the freezer.
Label the containers with the current date and the number of eggs. This way you will know later when baking and cooking how many eggs, egg yolks, or proteins you have in front of you.
Freezing eggs as ice cubes: If you want to use the frozen eggs in small quantities, you can also freeze them in an ice cube tray and then put them in a freezer bag.

Shelf Life: Whole eggs will keep in the freezer for around eight to ten months. Frozen egg whites will keep for up to 12 months. Nevertheless, you should not store the eggs for too long: the longer they are in the freezer, the more they lose their taste.

Thawing: Frozen eggs should be thawed slowly in the refrigerator. Depending on the quantity, this takes half a day to a whole day. It goes a little faster if you put the container with the frozen eggs in a cold water bath. Under no circumstances should you thaw the eggs at room temperature or under heat.

Use: If the eggs or egg yolks or egg whites are completely thawed, you can continue to use them as usual. Don’t eat frozen eggs raw. Therefore: Heat properly before consumption!

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Food

Freezing Asparagus: How to Make It Durable

You can freeze fresh asparagus and eat it out of season. This works just as well with white asparagus as with green asparagus. We show you what you have to consider.

You should always buy fresh asparagus during the asparagus season and from the region. Because imported asparagus causes high CO2 emissions, which are not necessary. If you also want to eat asparagus out of season, you can freeze the asparagus spears.

When buying, make sure to choose organic asparagus, as conventional asparagus is often contaminated with chemical-synthetic pesticides.

Tips for freezing asparagus

Before you freeze the asparagus, be sure to peel it. You can find out more about this here: Peeling green asparagus and peeling white asparagus. You don’t have to throw away the peel – how about an asparagus soup made from the peel as a starter?
You should also cut off the woody ends now.
Don’t blanch or cook asparagus before freezing it. Because otherwise it loses its taste.
It is best to freeze the asparagus in portions and airtight. So you can easily remove it without having to defrost all the sticks at once.

After freezing: Thaw and prepare asparagus

While many foods should be thawed gently, exactly the opposite makes sense with asparagus:

It is best to put the still frozen asparagus directly into the boiling salted water. If the asparagus thaws beforehand, it loses its taste with the melted water. The asparagus needs about eight to twelve minutes in the boiling water until it is cooked.
Frozen asparagus is also good for grilling: after freezing, asparagus cooks a little faster than fresh spears. After about five minutes on the grill, you can eat it.
If you want to fry the frozen asparagus, you should cut it into small pieces before freezing. After about five minutes they are done.


You can also use the frozen asparagus for salads or vegan chicken fricassee. This is a good alternative if the asparagus has lost too much flavor during freezing.
After freezing, the asparagus can be kept for at least six months.

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