Freezing Soups and keeping the taste

Bitachon101

Mon, May 20 2013, 11:09 pm

I know everyone freezes soups.

Here's the prob - every time I freeze my soups they come out watery when I defrost, lose half the taste, and taste saltless no matter how salty or flavorful it tasted originally. My husband doesnt love the taste I noticed and so I dont often freeze soups anymore. (Truth is I cant stand the taste either!)

So, what am I doing wrong and what is the secret all you major cook-in-advance-and-freeze wonder women do to make the frozen foods come out good?

If the answer is invest in a new freezer.... well not an option right now.

So with a regular above fridge freezer what do I need to do to make my frozen soups and other frozen prepared meals taste tasty???

33055

Mon, May 20 2013, 11:18 pm

You can make sure there is minimal air reaching the food. You can double wrap and fill the containers. Also don't freeze for long periods of time.

The truth is there is a big difference in taste between fresh and frozen food.

When I use frozen chicken broth I use it for a base for another dish or instead of a bullion cube in a recipe.

chilled

Mon, May 20 2013, 11:22 pm

In the past, I've made a variety of soups, both meat and dairy, and frozen them, with no issues in defrosting and rewarming. Perhaps it is the storage of the soups that are effecting the taste. I generally used freezer ziploc bags and doubled the bag. The regular plastic 2 pound disposable containers don't seem to be freezer - proof.

Bitachon101

Mon, May 20 2013, 11:30 pm

oliveoil wrote:

What are you storing them in? And what kind of soups are you talking about?

I put a plastig bag into a disposable container and pour the soup in and then cover it.
I used to just put in disposable container and it was terrible and a relative told me to try it this way.

Tried vegetable, chicken, split pea, and a few others I dont rememeber.

Bitachon101

Mon, May 20 2013, 11:32 pm

chilled wrote:

you store the soup in bags with no container and then double bag it? And in a regular freezer attached to a fridge? No problem with taste at all?

oliveoil

Tue, May 21 2013, 12:34 am

There's a big difference in quality between ziploc bags. Make sure the ones you're using are thick, and definitely double them.

Whether you're using containers or ziploc bags, make sure there is no air inside. For containers that means filling right to the top, for ziplocs it means getting every last bit of air out.

Some vegetables hold up better than others in the freezer.

But the reality is, nothing frozen ever tastes the same as fresh. People who say it does just have less discerning taste buds and/or convince themselves it's worth it because freezing is easier for them.

granolamom

Tue, May 21 2013, 6:15 pm

I agree, there is always a difference in taste fresh vs frozen.
that said, I do freeze some soups. chicken soup to be used as a base for another soup later on. blended vegetable soups (butternut squash or potato leek or carrot).
always in a ziploc FREEZER bag which is not the ziploc storage bag. it is thicker. I dont double bag, but I do try to squeeze out as much air as possible. dont freeze until the soup is cool or you will get icicles forming which will taste like freezer burn.
use within two weeks. It wont spoil for months but it wont taste fresh after a while.
usually I have to add some water (just a bit) because blended soups tend to thicken. but otherwise they are ok.

causemommysaid

Tue, May 21 2013, 6:19 pm

I think it depends on the soup itself.

When I freeze chicken with veggies or plain veggie soup it comes out awful.

chicken broth comes out ok.

However meat, barley, or split pea soup always seem to taste good.

maybe it has something to do with starch freezing better than veggies.