How Long Can Food Be Frozen For?

Reviewed by Lauren Woodley, Registered Nutritionist, speciality in healthy sustainable eating, on 09/06/2021
Lauren Woodley

Sealing away food in your freezer is a great way to a) prolong its life and b) safely lock away those oh-so-crucial nutrients. But as we discovered in our 2018 survey, 18% of Brits don’t know that frozen food lasts longer than fresh. Oh how wrong we can be sometimes, and you should know that it’s all about that ice ice baby when you’re preserving food.

All good things eventually come to an end though unfortunately, and it’s the same with frozen food. So we’ve put together a guide on when you need to dig your way to the back of your shelves to get the best from your frozen food and avoid wastage!

How long can Birds Eye products be frozen?

This one depends on what you’ve decided to pick from our delicious range! Whether you’ve gone for our frozen fish, chicken or veg, our team of nutritionists have carefully selected a use-by date for each product so that you know when to enjoy our food when it’s at its very best. Keep to this simple rule and you’ll avoid ever having to throw the Captain’s finest in the bin (we just shudder at the thought).

How long can you freeze chicken or turkey for?

You don’t ever want to fall fowl of a piece of chicken or turkey that has gone bad. But how long does it take for your perfect poultry to become uneatable. Well, first of all, it depends on how much of it you’re planning to freeze.

If it’s a whole chicken or turkey, then it should keep well for about a year, but if you only have the various parts of the bird (thighs, wings, breasts etc) then they should only stay in your freezer for nine months. For cooked poultry though, you need to fetch it out of your freezer within six months.

 

How long can you freeze red meat for?

If uncooked, you can slot your cut of beef or pork into the freezer for up to a year. Ideally, for the best taste, you’d want to eat up your piece of meat within six months though. If you have a chop, it’s a different story – you need to cook those up within four to six months of them being frozen.

If your red meat has already been cooked by the time you’re tucking it away in the freezer, then you should pull it back out again to eat up within a couple of months.

 

How long can you freeze fish for?

Well, this depends on what your catch of the day is… If you have a lovely lean piece of cod, then you’re looking at a freeze time of around six months. Something a little fattier such as a fillet of salmon – that can only be kept frozen for two months.

While there’s nothing at all fishy about freezing a fillet, it’s important that you’re super careful when docking it in your freezer. Stick to these guidelines though, and you’ll be cooking up a piece of fish which the Captain® himself would be proud of.

 

Now you know how long to keep your frozen goodies in perfect nick, check out what the ideal temperature is for your freezer.