Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Eating and Drinking => Cooking, Storing and Preserving => Topic started by: Goldfinger on May 26, 2011, 17:23
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Not sure where to post this, so move if you have to.
Anyway, I'd like to know how much (freezer) storage space is needed, roughly for an average sized plot producing veg? (And what people have ATM ;) )
What we don't eat fresh will be blanched and frozen etc, for later on / over winter.
Thought I'd ask this in readyness for the harvest, and it'll give me time to get maybe another freezer, say off Freecycle.
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I have a fridge freezer with probably 75L freezer capacity. I also have a small 2-drawer under counter freezer (not as high as a regular freezer) which is probably about 40L.
I don't fill them just with veg, as I make a lot of soups and stews. But I could probably fill them again easily.
If you have the room for a full-height or chest freezer, you'll probably find ways to fill it without any trouble ...
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Last year I only had a small chest freezer and in the autumn it was full (hardly anything except veg in there! ) because I then had to start storing tomato sauces in jars cos i'd run out of room.....and I've only got a small (about a 1/3rd of a full size) plot.
When the fridge packed up I replaced it with a fridge/freezer so now I have the 4 drawers in the fridge/freezer and the small chest freezer, which I'll turn off as it empties towards spring.
Fingers crossed that will be enough space :)
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I have an enormous freezer and a small one and I still have to bottle loads of fruit as I just can't get everything in the freezers. I think it is a rule of thumb that says whatever space you have you need an extra 50%.
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Everyone knows that things expand with heat, and conversely contract with lack of heat. Hence the capacity of any freezer cabinet will shrink to much smaller than your thought it was.
Murphy's ninth law of thermodynamics (frozen vegetable codicil).
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:lol: :lol:
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Everyone knows that things expand with heat, and conversely contract with lack of heat. Hence the capacity of any freezer cabinet will shrink to much smaller than your thought it was.
Murphy's ninth law of thermodynamics (frozen vegetable codicil).
What fabulous logic!!
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And if you get a vacuum packing machine, you won't need a freezer and it'll take up even less space! :lol:
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I find that I can freeze so much stuff, that I have two 20 cubic foot freezers, and it's still not enough. I even freeze butter on sales, cream cheese, breads, pies, nuts, pasta, hummus as well as the usual veg, fruit and meats. I don't freeze sauces as I know I'd run out of space too fast so I bottle all sauces, certain fruits like cherries and peaches, all jams, kraut, pickles. The rest gets frozen. When there's a good sale on something I use, I buy LOTS and freeze. When chicken breasts are selling cheap, I'll buy about 40 lbs, skin and bone them, then bag in 3's for my family. Saves lots of space and it's ready when needed. I'd love a 3rd freezer but I get dirty looks when I try to mention the subject ::)
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Trillium I am in awe ::)
(and envy of your storage capacity) :D
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I find that I can freeze so much stuff, that I have two 20 cubic foot freezers, and it's still not enough. I even freeze butter on sales, cream cheese, breads, pies, nuts, pasta, hummus as well as the usual veg, fruit and meats. I don't freeze sauces as I know I'd run out of space too fast so I bottle all sauces, certain fruits like cherries and peaches, all jams, kraut, pickles. The rest gets frozen. When there's a good sale on something I use, I buy LOTS and freeze. When chicken breasts are selling cheap, I'll buy about 40 lbs, skin and bone them, then bag in 3's for my family. Saves lots of space and it's ready when needed. I'd love a 3rd freezer but I get dirty looks when I try to mention the subject ::)
Will that be fresh pasta??
But freezing NUTS??!! ??? Not heard that one before? No, hang on.. er, yes maybe I have.... :blush:
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:ohmy: Goldfinger :ohmy:
:lol: :lol: :lol:
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Yes, fresh pasta freezes beautifully, especially when I bought it half-price. I can't bring myself to pay full price which would really kill the grocery budget.
And yes, nuts freeze well and keep ages. The 2-legged type, not so well ;)
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And if you get a vacuum packing machine, you won't need a freezer and it'll take up even less space! :lol:
I have a commercial version one but I still freeze some of the stuff I vac pack as the vac pack stops freeze burn
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We've got 4 freezers. a large chest freezer, medium chest freezer, small chest freezer and an under the counter one. The under the counter is full of my kitchen requirements, the little one is empty at the moment, but the other 2 are full of chickens, turkey bits, pork and beef.
Oh and some stock, soup and bread!
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4 FREEZERS!!??? :blink:
Have you ever seen / got to the bottom of any of them lately?? :lol: