How to Blast Frozen Food
- 1). Cool hot food in preparation for storage, using an ice bath.
To make an ice bath, fill a large bowl with ice then add water to make a very cold liquid. Place the container of food in the ice bath, then stir the food with a spoon. To be properly blast frozen for food safety, food must be cold before freezing. If your food is already cold, skip this step. - 2). Wrap your food in several layers of plastic wrap, or secure in plastic freezer bags. If you're storing several pieces of the same thing, like burger patties, place a small piece of parchment paper in between each item, then seal them as a whole, or wrap each piece individually. You may also blast freeze food in plastic food storage containers. Work quickly to seal the food, no matter which method you choose.
- 3). Create masking tape labels with the type of food and date. For example, write "chicken breasts, 12/1" if you are blast freezing chicken breasts on December 1. This ensure you accurately remove items from the freezer, and use up items while the flavors are still fresh.
- 4). Take the temperature of the food once everything is ready to be frozen, using an infrared thermometer. This thermometer allows you to read the food temperature with a laser, so you don't disturb the packaging.
- 5). Place the food in your blast freezer and let it freeze for 90 minutes. Then take the temperature once more. To be properly blast frozen, food must attain a temperature of 19 degrees Fahrenheit within 90 minutes. If your blast freezer is working properly, this will happen.
- 6). Remove food from the blast freezer after 90 minutes, and place it in your deep freezer where it will reach zero degrees Fahrenheit.
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