Keeping your freezer well-stocked is essential. In addition to simplifying meal prep, it can save you time and money. Not to mention that a full freezer is even more efficient. While there are many ingredients suitable for freezing, ground beef is one of our favorite items to keep on hand as it can be transformed into anything from burgers to bolognese and beyond. The trick, however, is knowing which type of ground beef lends itself best to freezing.
To be transparent, the ideal mince for freezing has little to do with its composition. Any fresh ground meat can be frozen successfully, regardless of the cut or its fat content. Instead, you should pay attention to how the protein is packaged when buying ground beef. Since properly packaged parcels keep meat fresher for longer and limit cross-contamination, this eliminates ever having to remove ground beef from its original package, making it easy to freeze. That said, not all mince is packaged identically.
Despite that traditional plastic-wrapped trays or options like modified or controlled atmosphere packaging can be good short-term solutions, we suggest seeking out vacuum-sealed packages or cylindrical chubs when selecting ground beef destined for freezing. Essentially, these types of packaging are ideal as they reduce the meat's exposure to oxygen, which can prevent a rapid degradation in quality and subsequent spoilage, as well as limit freezer burn.
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Freezing ground beef doesn't need to be difficult. Opting to freeze vacuum-sealed packages and airtight tubes may be the easiest way to freeze ground beef, but that doesn't mean other types of packaged meat can't be frozen just as effectively. In fact, all you need to do is wrap parcels of protein in aluminum foil, prior to popping them into the freezer.
Want to perfectly portion quantities of ground beef? Whether it's wrapped in flimsy packaging or well-sealed chubs, you might not want to be burdened with having to defrost an entire portion of mince at once. In this case, remove the protein from its original packaging and place it into plastic bags. After using a rolling pin to remove excess air, the bags can be sealed, labeled, and frozen for later. Speaking of which ...
When properly stored either in its original packaging or another storage container, ground beef will last for up to 4 months in the freezer before taste and texture start to dull. Although it isn't likely to go bad ahead of schedule, should you notice signs of spoilage in your ground beef -- namely, discoloration, slimy textures, or foul odors -- we recommend tossing it out. This is your cue to head back to the supermarket and stock up on more meat.