How to Organise Your Fridge and Freezer For Long Lasting Food!
Your Fridge isn’t just a cold storage container for your food, it’s a high tech appliance that helps you to store all of your favourite ingredients, snacks, condiments, and more! What you choose to store in your fridge is really up to you! Many modern fridges have different compartments for different purposes, and many also have temperature zones. These can be extremely helpful for ensuring your food can last for as long as it can. Many fridge owners do not take advantage of these compartments, which can easily lead food going out of date too soon. This can also lead to loss of money to replace the food and less of a desire to cook at home. No one wants to cook using out of date or bad conditioned food! Many different types of food or condiments need to be stored at cold temperatures to prevent the growth of bacteria and other microbes that make food spoil. All fridges should be set to approximately four degrees celsius, however the temperature will always vary depending on how close they are to the cooling elements, that is why it is so important to know which part of the fridge to store your food. In this, we have provided a short guide on where to store your food in your fridge so it can stay fresh and last as long as possible without spoiling!
Your Freezer
Before we begin with where to store food in your fridge, lets begin with your freezer. Freezers should always be set to -18 degrees celsius for maximum efficiency and to avoid the possibility of freezer burn. Your freezer quite obviously for frozen food, however, there are many other items such as grated cheese, tortillas, meats and more that can be stored in your freezer. Another example of food that can be stored in your freezer is bread, which can last in your freezer for up to three months! The key to freezing foods is to pack them in airtight containers, this way they cannot cross contaminate or freezer. Even though this method is effective for most foods, we recommend researching what foods you can freeze and the best method to do so.
Fridge Doors
Your fridge doors are the warmest part of your fridge, therefore should be reserved for foods, drinks and condiments that are more resistant to spoilage. Keep condiments, juices, and other foods that can withstand temperature fluctuations here. Many people use fridge doors to store eggs and dairy, however, they should never be stored here as they are not good at withstanding temperature change.
Upper Shelves
The upper shelves of your fridge have the most consistent temperatures and the lower shelves are always the coldest. In your fridge, the fridge is where you should store food and other items that don’t require cooking, such as leftovers, drinks, and ready to eat foods such as deli meats, snacks, and more. Various herbs can also be stored and kept fresh at this part of your fridge by placing them upright in a jar with water and loosely covering it with a plastic bag or clingfilm.
Lower Shelves
As previously mentioned, the lower shelves in your fridge are the coldest shelves in your fridge. These shelves are most efficient for storing raw meat, raw seafood, eggs, and dairy products. This is to prevent the raw meat and other foods bacteria from spreading to other areas of the fridge. When storing meat, it is best practice to assign a particular section of your fridge for raw meat. It is also best to keep meat in its original packaging. Overcrowding your fridge should also never happen, this will prevent cold air from flowing, meaning there will be air pockets of warmth and heat.
Crisper Drawers
Crisper drawers should always be used to store fresh fruit and vegetables. This is because the purpose of these drawers is to maintain moist conditions that help preserve the fruit and vegetables. When using your crisper drawers, it is important to keep fruit and vegetables in separate drawers. This is because many fruits produce ethylene, a chemical that helps to ripen them. When ethylene is produced, it can also promote ripening in other plans, causing vegetables to go yellow, limp, or even sprout. Due to this, it is best practice to keep fruit and vegetables in seperature crisper drawers.
Nailsea Electrical provide brand new freezer and fridges in Bristol from an extensive range of high-end brands. Feel free to browse our website and find an appliance that meets your requirements, or alternatively call our team for expert advice regarding your needs.