Freezing instructions

Healthy green fish curry

Seafood is always best fresh – but whether you’ve grabbed a bargain at the supermarket or you’ve hauled in your own, sometimes you end up with more fish than you can eat.  In the old days salting or bottling was the preferred method of longer term storage.  Nowadays, most homes have freezers.  Yes, fresh is best, but don’t forget that freezing is a good option for longer term storage and for enjoying it out of season.

All kinds of seafood can be frozen.  Small fish can be frozen whole, larger ones, if not filleted, should have the head, tail and guts removed and be de-scaled.

Commercially frozen seafood is blast frozen using temperatures far lower than a household freezer can manage.  So the key to freezing fish is the same as other meats, but with shorter timeframes for freezing and for storing:

1. Clean, de-scale and wash whole fish. Ensure that excess moisture is removed from fillets by patting it dry with paper towels.
2. If you don't want to freeze a whole fish, cut it to the smallest form possible, eg steaks or fillets.
3. Wrap the fish tightly with plastic cling film. Then in a second layer - getting as tight a seal as possible. Then wrap in tin foil or place in a plastic container. If you use freezer bags, then ensure that as much air as possible is removed from the bag - create a vacuum if you can. Ice crystals will form if there is air in the bag.
4. Label it with the date and contents.
5. Place the bag in the coldest part of the freezer - in an upright freezer, this is at the very back. Then pack already frozen items around it to speed up the freezing process. (You can move things around again once the fish is completely frozen.)
6. Don't forget it's there. Use it within 3 months of freezing.

Defrosting seafood

1. Always defrost frozen seafood in the refrigerator.
2. Place the plastic wrapped seafood in a container or bowl and set it inside the fridge.
3. Leave it overnight.
4. Cook it as soon as it has defrosted.

Recipes such as seafood stews, casseroles, chowders, bisques, bouillabaisse or curries are excellent uses for pre-frozen seafood.  Tucking into a delicious fish curry or chowder in autumn made out of that great fish bargain or catch from last summer is a tasty way to get your healthy omega-3 intake.