Handling frozen foods

There are a number of reasons to store food in the freezer – especially for busy parents. Having meals and snacks on standby in the freezer is fantastic for a quick option. At Tot’s Pantry we provide meals that have been snap frozen to provide maximum benefit, preserving nutritional value, without adding any nasties.

Theoretically, food will last indefinitely in a freezer. However you will see degradation of the food over time. This isn’t unsafe – not if the temperature has remained below 0 degrees (below which no microbes will grow). In most domestic freezers the temperatures fluctuate and a little bit of thawing can take place which then forms ice crystals when it re-freezes. We often see freezer burn on items in the freezer – this is the result of air hitting the frozen food and the ice sublimating – which is associated with long freezing times. It looks yucky but it is still safe to eat!

The Tot’s Pantry meals have a 6 month recommended best before date. We would rather offer this as a shorter shelf life than add anything artificial to stabilise the meals – we operate on a simple approach of home cooked style – we don’t add ingredients that you wouldn’t at home.

When it comes to defrosting frozen foods, we recommend the best practice is to defrost the food in the fridge. For something relatively small like one of our meals, this would take around 24 hours. You can also defrost and reheat in one go in the microwave, just make sure that it is hot throughout (and then allowed to cool slightly) before you serve.

We do not advise letting food defrost on the bench top. Particularly with meat, poultry and fish. The outside of the food will defrost and temperatures will exceed 5 degrees (at which point potentially harmful bacteria starts to grow) whilst the core of the food will still be frozen.

Freezing is safe and convenient, and it keeps the food as fresh as possible.