Is it okay to put hot food directly in the freezer or should you wait until it cools?

Answer 1

Cool food to room temp, and then promptly freeze them. Freezing hot foods will raise the temp of your freezer, which can affect other items, like ice cream, or items that the hot food comes in contact with.

Polly

Answer 2

If the hot food in question is just one or two pieces of chicken or lasagna, go ahead and put it into the freezer hot. But if you're talking about a big pot of soup or stew, that's different. Here's what I was instructed to do when I was getting my food service worker's certificate, and also what I now do at home.

--Take the whole pot of hot food and place it in the kitchen sink. Make sure the sink trap is closed. Dump in 1 tray of ice cubes or the equivalent. (Into the sink, that is, not into the food.) Then start filling the sink with cold water--bring it up to the level of the top of the food.

--Grab a big spoon and stir from the outside in (so that the rapidly-chilling exterior part of the food helps cool the hot interior of the food). You don't have to stand there stirring the whole time, but come back to it every couple of minutes and give it another stir. For a big pot of soup, say, this will take about 15 or 20 minutes.

--When the food in the center of the pot is lukewarm to the touch, you can go ahead and put it into containers and put it straight into the freezer. Congratulations, you just might have prevented a foodborne illness!

Answer 3

Wait until it cools a bit, but not too long. The intense heat will bring down the temp in the freezer, and depending on the dish you used it could crack from the shock of the ice cold.

Answer 4

Stash strategically. Wait for hot foods to cool down to room temperature before you freeze them. Then leave plenty of space around the container in the freezer so the cold air can circulate around it; this will accelerate the freezing. When the item is finally frozen, go ahead and stack it with everything else.

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Answer 5

humorous, i concept it did because I used to positioned unchilled soda in the freezer to relax it down speedier, yet my ex would tell me that it become stupid because it would't get chilly any speedier than if I were to positioned it in the refrigerator. I nonetheless do not recognize the reply in the present day because I not in any respect researched or timed it. i'm curious to work out the actually answer. notwithstanding in words of fairly warm food, I heard many circumstances that it is more beneficial efficient to allow it cool down at room temp previously freezing it. i do not recognize why (safe practices, heating up the freezer, decreased high quality?), yet it truly is what I realized.

Answer 6

Its fine, It would taste better if you just ate it frsh, then if you put it in the freezer, then warm it up and eat it.

Answer 7

wait until it cools dude, you're shortening the life span of your fridge