How long can you keep each type of meat in the freezer?
The guideline might surprise you!
Tips and Crafts
Published on October 18, 2021 at 7:12 a.m.
Photo Credit: Adobe Stock
A question we all asked ourselves at least once: After how many days, weeks or months, is a food still edible when it is frozen? Is the ice on the packaging a bad sign? Meat in particular stresses many people. And when in doubt, many of us turn to the compost bin ...
Yet many of the discarded foods are still edible. How do you know exactly for how long?
If you are undecided in this area, take the time to take a look at the list of storage times recommended by Health Canada.
Before freezing meat, we strongly suggest that you wrap it and write the freezing date on it. So you won't have to rack your brains the next time you want to prepare one of the meats lying dormant in the freezer.
Good to know: some meats can sleep in the freezer for more than a year!
Here are the deadlines to respect for each type of meat and other proteins...
Chicken / Turkey:
Whole raw poultry: 10-12 months
Raw chopped poultry: 6-9 months
Cooked poultry without sauce: 1-3 months
Cooked poultry with sauce: 6 months
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Other meats:
Beef (steaks, roasts): 6-12 months
Pork: 8-12 months
Minced, cubed or thinly sliced meat: 3-4 months
Lamb: 8-12 months
Calf: 8-12 months
Bacon: 1-2 months
Cooked ham: 1-2 months
Smoked meat, cold cuts: 1-2 months
Fresh sausages: 2-3 months
Hot dog sausages: 1-2 months
Whole dry sausages: do not freeze
Meat sauces: 4-6 months
Meat cooked with sauce: 4 months
Meat cooked without sauce: 2-3 months
Cooked meat sliced under vacuum: 1 month
Offal (liver, heart, etc.): 3-4 months
Eggs:
Raw egg white: 9 months
Raw egg yolk: 4 months
Whole with the shell: does not freeze.
Fish and seafood:
Cooked crab: 1 month
Shrimps: 2-4 months
Fatty fish (salmon, trout, etc.): 2 months
Lean fish (sole, tilapia, etc.): 6 months
Scallops: 3 months
Oysters without scales: 2-4 months
Mussels without scales: 3 months
Scaleless clams: 3 months
Cold smoked fish: 2 months
Oysters + mussels + clams in their scales: do not freeze! It is recommended to store them in a ventilated container.
Tofu:
1-2 months
After how long do you still feel comfortable eating frozen food?