I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with the turkey and all the trimmings, and you were surrounded by all your loved ones. Life doesn’t get any better, does it? Now that Thanksgiving is over, you are left with the leftovers you will tire of in the next couple days. What can you do with them? Your freezer comes to the rescue.
Before you begin shoving the remains of that bird into your freezer, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has some advice, and some guidelines, for you.
- In order to prevent the growth of bacteria which can cause food poisoning, the CDC recommends that you put leftovers away quickly. How quickly? No longer than two hours after eating.
- Refrigerate leftovers at 40 degrees F or colder.
- Cut up the turkey or that pot roast into small pieces, no more than 2 inches thick. This will help them freeze more quickly and maintain quality. Store in small, airtight containers.
- Use up leftovers within 3 to 4 days. Any remaining after that should be frozen. They can last for 3 – 4 months.
- Use a permanent marker to label containers with the expiration date.
A guide to storing leftovers:
Food Fridge Freezer
Turkey 3 – 4 days 2 – 3 months
Meat (beef, ham) 3 – 4 days 2- 3 months
Chicken 3 – 4 days 2 – 6 months
Cranberry sauce can be frozen for up to 2 months, gravy 2 – 4 months and mashed potatoes, if made with butter and cream, can be frozen up to 1 year.
The holidays are not the only times you may need to freeze food. You can freeze food that was freshly cooked in order to save you time and money. If you would like to learn more about freezer cooking, just click on the FREE offer below. Your name will be added to my mailing list so you can receive more updates on offers like this. I will never share your information with anyone, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
