Hi honeys,
I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend. It was a "long weekend" here in the UK, since yesterday was a bank holiday. I was working over the weekend but did have Sunday & Monday off, as did Hubby. We were hoping to get a few more boxes gone through & sorted but I felt so drained after my shifts, we didn't get much done.
It would have been nice to get a little more de-cluttering done but it was lovely to just spend some time together too. Just being with Hubby always makes me feel better.
Today I thought I'd write a short post on defrosting frozen food from your freezer :) I've done this for so many years and it's super handy when you've forgotten to take something out of the freezer for breakfast or maybe dinner.
We have something of a tradition when it comes to breakfasts. During the week, breakfast is a cup of tea and toast, or cereal, but on a Sunday, when there's more time since neither of us have work, Hubby cooks breakfast :)
Breakfast is likely to be eaten around mid morning or lunchtime and will be along the lines of a "full English." For months now though, breakfast for me has been more likely to be toast with scrambled eggs or grilled cheese. I've never been a big meat eater really but for the past few months, with the exception of chicken and fish, I've been meat free.
OK, so it's Sunday morning and you're making a start on the family breakfast and ... horror!!! You forgot to take the bacon out of the freezer the night before!! Panic over honeys, just take it out and place it into the sink (or your basin), fill the sink (or basin) enough to cover the package of bacon with COLD water. Warm/hot water should go no where near your food, ONLY cold. After 10 minutes or so, check on it. Remove the ice which will have formed around the package, pour the water away and replace it with fresh cold water. In no time at all honeys, your bacon, or sausages or whatever will be entirely defrosted and ready to cook. Breakfast is saved :)
There are limits though honeys. Please don't try this on just anything from the freezer, ok? I've used this method over the years for bacon, turkey roasts (those little round Mathews turkey roasts) and tuna steaks, to name just a few items. Products should be sealed in their packaging though, or if the meat has been bought in bulk and separated to be frozen, place the item (s) into a (securely) clip sealed bag to avoid contamination of your basin/sink. Any juices from the meat should stay in the bag not in your basin or sink, to avoid any risk of bacteria being transferred.
This is especially important with regard to meats such as chicken. Last Summer the UK Government's Food Standard's Agency issued guidelines which say never to wash chicken before cooking because even tiny splashes of water might carry campylobacter which can cause sickness or even death in very severe cases.
I was very surprised to read these guidelines, because, like most other people, I had always washed chicken before cooking to wash away bacteria! I follow the guidelines now though and in fact always (carefully) cook chicken from frozen, ensuring that it's cooked all the way through. Of course, it's equally important to scrub your hands too.
I know it doesn't need saying, but I'll go ahead and say it anyway, don't try this defrosting method on packets of frozen pastry or other things that water would damage or make "soggy"from your freezer if their packaging is not water tight. You can (and I have) seal items like this into (very) watertight clip seal bags or containers with watertight lids.
Items will be completely defrosted in no time at all and no need to use the defrost setting on your microwave :) Do you have any tips to deal with kitchen catastrophes honeys? If so, do share in the comments section. Till next time dear ones, whatever you're doing, have fun, smile lots, hug more and most of all have a great day :) Hugs always xx
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