Straight from freezer to table.

[iamthestretch]

OK. I've cooked up a bunch of stuff ahead of a new arrival and now have a freezer full of carefully portioned out good things that are going to be drawn down starting from next week. So what is the best way to go from a solid chunk of bourguignon or ragu in a ziplock bag to two quick, steaming plates of meaty goodness? Pot? Microwave? If the latter, defrost then reheat? Reheat repeatedly? Full nuke ahead? I've never frozen leftovers before, so I honestly don't know the answer, but I do know I didn't much like my dinner tonight of scalding hot gravy with crunchy meatsicles. Help!

PS: Can I post this, too? First one, indulge me...

Edited January 15, 2005 by iamthestretch (log)

[snowangel]

Golly gee. Makes me wish I'd had that fourth child I always wanted. Enjoy every moment; they pass all too fast.

FOr stews, etc., I prefer to thaw in fridge and gently heat in oven or on stove, but when push comes to shove, nuke works too. But, if you nuke, don't use full power. 60%.

What a sweet baby. Name of baby? Trust Mom is feeling OK?

[culinary bear]

The newborn won't feed many people. :)

Congratulations!

A good way of reheating that's kind to stews is to put the whole bag into a chauffon of simmering water - it'll reheat gently, there's no danger of overcooking and you can leave it in as long as you like, within reason.

Takes longer than microwaving, I admit, but you get what's probably the best result.

I assume ziplock bags are fully waterproof?

[Luckylies]

The newborn won't feed many people. :)

Congratulations!

A good way of reheating that's kind to stews is to put the whole bag into a chauffon of simmering water - it'll reheat gently, there's no danger of overcooking and you can leave it in as long as you like, within reason. 

Takes longer than microwaving, I admit, but you get what's probably the best result.

I assume ziplock bags are fully waterproof?

←

that is a damn good looking baby. I mean wow, what a cute 'lil bebbe. woooba woobawa wub...anyhow....

"I assume ziplock bags are fully waterproof?"

not if you melt them.

[sparrowgrass]

What a little sweetcheeks---more details, please.

[fifi]

I much prefer the thaw and then warm gently approach. I gave up on nuking meats stews and such. I think it gives the meat an off flavor. But that just might be my prejudice against microwaves showing. The baggies frozen flat thaw pretty quickly in hot water and then I usually put it in a pot and warm it gently. I haven't had the courage to put the baggie in a pot of hot water. I don't know why. I don't think I have ever had one leak.

When I have roasted, braised or smoked meat to put up, I freeze in heavy foil tightly wrapped packets. I try to portion it out into the amounts I will use most often, one serving for me. I put the packets in a zipper baggie and label. Then about 15 minutes at 300 F in the DeLonghi convection oven and it is ready to go. (BTW . . . That DeLonghi is the best thing I ever bought myself for getting something to the table in no time at all. If you have room for one, you might think about it.)

[Fat Guy]

Emphasis on "frozen flat." The problems with reheating frozen food arise when you have a gigantic Borg-like cube of frozen stew. The Titanic could sink in the time it takes for heat to penetrate through to the center, and any method of accelerated warming will overcook the outside parts while the interior is still a block of ice. Whereas, if you freeze flat you have plenty of surface area and not much interior area, and you can reheat pretty quickly in a pot on the stovetop, or if you like to use the microwave you'll get much more even results. It all takes up the same number of cubic feet, so you're always better off freezing flat in a larger number of bags.

[Chef Metcalf]

Try freezing individual portions and then nuking, which is also handy if everyone eats at different times.

The trick is to nuke for a minute or two (don't know the heat of your microwave) and then stir, repeat and stir.

That way you will get a more even reheating.

Some microwaves have an automatic setting for frozen foods and this method seems to work very well without over heating the outside edges.

If you do have it frozen in large blocks, try putting it in a pot with a few ounces of water on very low heat for twenty minutes or so. Takes a while but it won't overcook your meat as much that way.

Beautiful baby...congrats!

[bleachboy]

I'm with Fat Guy on the flat freezing. About a month ago I made close to two gallons of meat sauce (the kind you put on pasta) and froze it all in two-serving portions in quart-size Ziploc bags. To reheat, I just hold the bag under warm running water for a few seconds -- enough to release the frozen "seal" between sauce and bag -- then just dump it in a small pot, turn heat to medium-low, add a couple tablespoons water, and cover. Come back in about 20 minutes to tasty sauce!