Fresh or Frozen - Which is Better?

One of the largest hot button topics when discussing food, it whether or not you should buy fresh or frozen food. There are many advocates for and against freezing food, meat in particular, and it’s hard to sift through the information to decide what the best solution is. The right answer for you depends on your budget, family size, and schedule. For some, buying a few days worth of fresh food at a time is something they have the ability to do. For others finding time to get to the store, plan for meals, and even accessibility is an issue when it comes to getting very fresh food. That’s where your freezer comes in.

First of all, you need to know that most meat, unless you caught it yourself, is going to have been frozen at some point. It is usually flash-frozen for transport to the grocery store. Some butchers will even receive their shipments frozen. The butcher’s counter and fish market in a large grocery store will thaw their previously frozen wares, and break them down into their final forms, steaks, fillets, and roasts, for you to purchase as fresh. This isn’t a ploy to trick you, but a way to ensure that the large quantities that we produce are kept in a safely edible form for as long as possible.

To understand more about meat, check out our article about Dry Aging Meat.

Bad Wrap Leads to a Bad Rap

What happens when you freeze food?
Back in the day, when food was frozen, it took time. That led to the formation of ice crystals thanks to the moisture on the inside and the outside of the food. The longer the freezing process took, the larger the ice crystals were. This damaged the cellular structure, negatively changing the texture and flavor of your food.

Further to that, food that is manufactured with the intent of being frozen isn’t wrapped very well at all, neither is most of the fresh meat that you purchase. Unless it’s been vacuum-sealed, food that is purchased needs to be tightly wrapped and carefully stored in a freezer that is kept as full and cold as possible, around -18°C/-0.4°F.

Cool Technology

Technology has brought frozen food a long way. The best producers use liquid nitrogen to super-cool food to temperatures of -23°C/-9°F in minutes, which means that only tiny crystals can form. This preserves the nutrition and texture of the food being frozen. This goes for food that is frozen and thawed once more for sale in the butcher and fish aisle, and for food that is frozen again after being butchered.

Vegetables and fruit that are frozen can still be questionable. Most hearty vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, as well as squash, and beans do well in the freezer. They are blanched before being flash-frozen, and this usually takes place within hours of being picked; meaning that freshness and nutritional value remain intact, contrary to what most people say. In fact, most fresh fruits and vegetables lose useful nutrients naturally and only have a true nutritional lifespan of up to five days. Anything leafy loses these nutrients faster, however, anything with a shell, skin, or casing of sorts will remain nutritionally stable for a little longer. Fruit is another story. Because it is mostly sugar and water that encase the nutrients, many fruits, especially berries, tend to naturally liquefy when frozen and thawed. This doesn’t mean they’re no longer nutritionally viable, but they’re better suited for use in smoothies and pie.

Freezer Fresh

There are many good reasons to freeze food. Buying food fresh and freezing it yourself allows you to control what is in your food, and how deliciously fresh it is. You can meal prep and have whole meals ready to throw on the grill in moments, plus buying in bulk saves money. Doing it yourself ensures that you get the quality you want. There is absolutely nothing wrong with frozen food as long as it’s not processed first.

If you want to buy fresh and freeze your own food, check out our blog post on how to properly freeze food to keep it fresh. It will help you preserve your favorite foods for longer. If you have a freezer full of delicious things, check out our Recipes for inspiration on what to grill. Don’t forget our social media pages, like Instagram and Facebook that are chock full of contests, tips, and other fun things.