Can You Freeze Cheese Blocks or Slices? – Mastering the Art of Freezing Cheese: Helpful Tips and Guidelines – How To Thaw Cheese?

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Can You Freeze Cheese?: Almost all of us do prefer Cheese as one of the most common ingredients to garnish our dishes to maximize its flavor, texture, and overall food experience. Usually, people tend to stock up a large amount of cheese in their kitchen pantry, consuming all of which within the store printed use-by date is not feasible at all. Hence, the next thing that comes to mind is whether we can freeze cheese effectively to preserve it and maximize its shelf life.

Well, do not worry because this article is going to cover all of that important stuff for you. Also, share with you some important methods to increase the longevity of cheese, reduce wastage and save up your money. So without wasting any time let’s quickly start with today’s article and learn whether you can freeze cheese well or not and what effects it can portray in the section below.

Can You Freeze Cheese

Can You Freeze Cheese Slices & Blocks?

Yes, you can definitely freeze your cheese in slices if you want but that is something that is better to be avoided. Slicing cheese will expose more surface area and increase the risk of freezer burn due to dry air invasion.

If at all you need to slice and store your cheese and ensure wrapping each slice with parchment paper first and then wrap the whole bunch in a cling wrap followed by tin foil. Now if you ask: can you freeze cheese blocks then yes, you can definitely do that and the section below is going to teach you how.

How To Freeze Cheese?

Now that you have learned about the good and bad sides of freezing cheese, it is essential that you know how to freeze cheese in the most appropriate method to be able to preserve it safely for a long period of time and also give room to the least amount of degradation in texture.

Here is the step-by-step guide for you that will help you to freeze your cheese efficiently:

  1. Initially, prepare your cheese for storage. For this, you need to portion out your cheese into custom serving quantities as per what is best suitable for you. For a large block of cheese, make sure you are not freezing more than 500 gms of it per portion.
  2. Next, you must ensure wrapping your cheese properly with cheese paper, followed by an extra second layer of Aluminium tin foil. It is important to remove any original packaging from your cheese as it can cause condensation once put inside the freezer.
  3. Next, you need to put your wrapped cheese blocks inside a heavy-duty, airtight Ziploc bag or container ensuring that you have squeezed out as much air as possible. This is essential because dry air is highly potent in causing freezer burn. Also, do not forget to add a label with the current and use-by date too.
  4. Lastly, you must freeze your cheese blocks as rapidly as possible at about -23 degrees Celsius to prevent the large disruptive ice crystals from forming. You can use the “Quick Freeze” function, which is very easily available in refrigerators these days.
  5. Once you have frozen your cheese blocks solid, you can keep them in the freezer for a really long time but practice using them up within the first 4 months of storage in order to get the best results.

How Long Can You Freeze Cheese?

If stored properly in tight wraps, frozen cheese can be made to last for a maximum of 6 to 9 months but always ensure consuming it within the first 3 to 4 months to be able to enjoy something closest to its original texture and quality.

Once you have opened your pack of cheese, it can last in the fridge for about 7 days if it falls in the soft category and 3 to 4 weeks if it falls in the hard category. The safest fridge temperature to hold your cheese fresh is 40 degrees F or 4 degrees C.

However, an unopened pack of hard cheese can last in the fridge for about 6 months without any spoilage in taste and safety. If you place your unopened pack of cheese in the freezer then it can miraculously last for a year provided you have placed it carefully not touching the inside walls of the freezer.

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Best Tips To Freeze Cheese

Freezing will not affect the taste or safety of your cheese but it is definitely going to degrade the consistency and texture. But with the correct process and tips you can overcome it. So, we have shared some proven tips with you guys following which you will be able to get the best results with no spoilage while freezing your cheese:

  • Choose hard cheese instead of soft ones- While buying cheese for yourself, try investing in hard or semi-hard cheese instead of soft ones because they serve well in the freezer. The densely packed particles of hard cheese do not allow ice crystals to form and disrupt the texture of the cheese.
  • Consume soft cheese cooked- If you have bought soft cheese, avoid freezing and spoiling its texture. Instead, try consuming it within the use-by date. If at all you need to freeze it, then after thawing, try consuming it in a cooked dish rather than consuming it raw because the texture is not going to be enjoyable enough in its raw form.
  • Use salt as a preservative- If you are making homemade cheese, keep the quantity of salt a little higher than usual because salt works as an amazing preservative to help keep your cheese for a really long time without spoilage. Finally, when you thaw and use it in a cooked dish, keep the salt content there less than what is in the recipe to adjust with the extra salt you added to your cheese earlier.

Does Cheese Freeze Well?

Cheese does freeze well but while it is frozen, small ice crystals start building up on the inside which gradually disrupts the internal structure of your cheese. Hence when you thaw the cheese, the ice crystals melt and release the water causing the product inside to dry out and end up having a mealy and crumbly texture.

Cheese if frozen for an excessively long amount of time also tends to not melt properly when used in cooked dishes and sauces. Overall, freezing is a good option to preserve your cheese and increase its lasting period by killing microbes but you will definitely have to deal with the moderate textural changes that it is going to have.

While choosing your cheese, ensure selecting hard and semi-hard cheese with low water and high-fat content because they freeze well. However, other delicate and processed varieties of cheese end up turning rubbery and unpleasant to your taste buds.

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How Do You Defrost Frozen Cheese?

To defrost your cheese at the time of consumption you must first thaw it properly. To thaw your frozen cheese correctly, transfer it from the freezer to the fridge and keep it there at 32-34 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 8 hours per 500 gms of cheese.

If you are using shredded cheese for cooking purposes then you can directly use it straight from the freezer without thawing because the cooking heat is enough to melt down and defrost the cheese completely.

In case you want to improve the quality of your cheese, it is recommended to try tempering it inside the refrigerator. Tempering is a very common practice of leaving your block of cheese inside the refrigerator for a few days to several weeks depending on the type of cheese to let it ripen completely.

Should Thaw Cheese Be Refrozen?

If you are curious about whether you can refreeze your cheese once thawed or not, then you must know that cheese falls into that category of foods that should never be refrozen once thawed down. This is because even when you freeze your cheese for the very first time, it starts showing textural changes gradually as days pass.

Hence, if you repeat the process you are simply going to accelerate the textural change and end up with a final product that has an unpleasant texture and is not quite enjoyable to consume.

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FAQs on Can I Freeze Cheese Bars or Slices?

1. What cheeses should not be frozen?

Soft cheeses that hold a larger water content like ricotta, brie, parmesan, etc. must not be frozen as they do not serve well and end up in a badly textured final product due to the formation of disruptive ice crystals.

2. Which cheeses can be frozen?

Hard and semi-hard cheeses like cheddar, blue, Gorgonzola, etc. that have a lesser water content are best suitable for freezing because the dense particles do not allow many ice crystals to form.

3. Does cheese taste different after freezing?

Freezing doesn’t affect the taste and safety of cheese, however, it might change the texture moderately to something more mealy and crumbly.

4. Does frozen cheese melt well?

Yes, frozen cheese melts well in the cooking heat if used directly from the freezer but if it has been stored for a very long time then the texture will turn rubbery and not melt easily.

Closing Thoughts

Wrapping everything up, and freezing does reduce waste and maximize shelf life but there are certain foods that don’t serve quite well if frozen for a longer period of time and cheese is one of them. Our aim is to consume cheese in its most enjoyable version with maximum taste and good texture through freezing and this article has summarised that for you in a convenient guide.

Make sure to follow all the techniques and tips thoroughly and stay connected with us for more such interesting yet useful food-related write-ups like Can you Freeze Cheese Straws, Can you Freeze Cheese Spread, Can you Freeze Cream Cheese Frosting, and so on.

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