How Long Can You Keep Raw Chicken in the Freezer
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
Toilet paper, diapers, craven...sometimes it simply makes sense to buy in bulk. The first two tin hang around forever but poultry? Not so much. So earlier you come home with a big haul of this dinner staple, allow'due south get 1 thing out of the mode: How long can you freeze craven? Well, friends, we have the respond—and information technology'due south good news for yous and your 'family unit pack' of craven thighs.
How Long Can Yous Freeze Chicken?
The brusque answer is...forever. According to the USDA, chicken volition keep indefinitely every bit long equally it is stored at a consequent temperature of 0 degrees Fahrenheit. (Hint: That's how common cold your freezer should be.) Just just because you can go along a bird in the freezer for ii years doesn't mean that yous should. Although chicken that has been properly frozen for years won't make y'all ill, information technology volition undergo some unappetizing changes in texture and sense of taste. For this reason, the USDA has some more practical guidelines: A whole craven will taste fresh after upwards to one year in the freezer, while frozen chicken pieces should be consumed within nine months for optimal texture and flavor. That'southward still a pretty good run, so information technology's unlikely y'all'll ever demand to toss your frozen chicken. (Note: Poultry that has been cooked prior to freezing doesn't fare quite as well—if y'all sautéed that chicken breast earlier you stuck it in the freezer, be certain to eat it within four months.)
How to Tell If Your Frozen Chicken Is Still Adept
Reminder: If your chicken was withal fresh when you put it in the freezer (and your freezer is working properly), so it is highly unlikely that your frozen chicken will be bad. Withal, things can become amiss when you lot're defrosting (encounter beneath for best practices) and so it'southward important to be able to place spoiled poultry just in instance. Per the USDA, "Spoilage leaner can cause meat or poultry to turn a nighttime colour, develop an objectionable odor, and go slimy from the high bacterial numbers." Bottom line: If your chicken smells off, has a sickly greyness-greenish hue or feels unusually slick after thawing, then information technology's all-time not to take a chance.
How to Freeze Chicken
The good news is that freezing raw craven is refreshingly straightforward. In fact, all you demand to practice is transfer your poultry to an airtight container and stick it in the freezer. Avoid storing chicken (or any meat for that matter) in the door or the front end of your freezer, where temperature fluctuation tin be a problem. Instead, tuck you sealed upward poultry in the back where it will stay condom and fresh for the maximum corporeality of time.
How to Safely Defrost Frozen Chicken
When you're prepare to melt your bird, choose from one of the following three methods for thawing poultry that have been approved by the Nutrient Safety Inspection Service.
i.Use the refrigerator. The best and most fool-proof method for thawing frozen chicken is only to transfer it to the fridge. This slow and steady defrost ensures a fresh piece of poultry—but it does take considerably longer than the other 2 approaches. A whole, frozen (iii to 4 pound) chicken can take two full days or longer to defrost in the fridge, merely chicken that has been cut into pieces volition likely be set up within 24 hours. You have to plan your meal ahead for this pick, but there's a bonus: Yous can refreeze chicken y'all transferred to the refrigerator up to 2 days after it has defrosted. In other words, planning ahead pays off fifty-fifty when your plans alter.
2. Submerge in cold water. OK, it's 5 p.m. and yous realized you have nothing thawed and ready to go...and you actually can't justify ordering out yet once again. No problem—identify your water-proof bag of poultry in a stockpot, or any vessel large enough to adapt the portion, and submerge it in cold water. (Note: If you stored chicken in a difficult plastic container, you might desire to transfer it to an air-tight freezer bag for faster thawing.) The FSIS says that a large quantity of poultry (similar a whole bird or the equivalent in parts) will thaw in three to iv hours, while smaller portions volition be thoroughly defrosted in an hour or less—just be sure to keep the bacteria at bay by changing the water every 30 minutes so it stays chilly. Finally, the FSIS says that this method requires follow-through: Cook that craven as before long as it has thawed...and do not re-freeze.
3. Enlist the aid of the microwave. Ah, the microwave—our trusty appliance that always saves the day. This handy kitchen helper doesn't have much street cred when it comes to cooking upwards an impressive meal, merely information technology can do a bang-upward task of defrosting a bird. Follow the settings on your microwave—this will likely require an estimated weight—to thaw your chicken in a flash. Simply be sure to melt and consume your poultry promptly (i.east., put that protein on your plate, but not the fridge or freezer once information technology has been nuked).
RELATED: How Long Can Cooked Chicken Stay in the Refrigerator? (Hint: Non as Long as You Call back)
Source: https://www.purewow.com/food/how-long-can-you-freeze-chicken
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