Can you refreeze soup?

lizzie84
lizzie84 Posts: 54
edited September 20 in Food and Nutrition
I went on a trip for a week and had made a huge pot of Collard Green and Black Eyed Pea Soup and asked my hubby to freeze it for me. When I got home, he had put all the soup in one huge bag and froze it!!! I sure can't eat all that soup within a week but I do want it...So can I refreeze the soup if I thaw it and put it in smaller containers??

Replies

  • StaceG1986
    StaceG1986 Posts: 350
    Personally I wouldn't..


    If you have cooked something and then frozen it, once it has been thawed, you shouldn't really freeze it again..I know that goes for something that has been frozen, thawed, and reheated, but not sure about this...!


    Please someone correct me if I'm wrong!! :bigsmile:
  • Questfor250
    Questfor250 Posts: 155
    Take out the block of soup. Cut away the container or bag. Use a serrated knife and saw the block into manageable chunks and put into freezer baggies. Refreeze. If you work quickly it will never thaw.
  • FitSeachely
    FitSeachely Posts: 74 Member
    Unfortunately, the only time you can re-freeze something without chance of food poisoning is by going from raw frozen to cooked frozen
  • Cassaaaaandra
    Cassaaaaandra Posts: 184 Member
    You really shouldn't refreeze anything. Gotta love husbands :laugh:
  • dclarsh1
    dclarsh1 Posts: 83
    Unfortunately, the only time you can re-freeze something without chance of food poisoning is by going from raw frozen to cooked frozen

    This is untrue. According to the USDA website (http://www.fsis.usda.gov/FactSheets/Focus_On_Freezing/index.asp#14), you can refreeze food if it has been thawed in the refrigerator. It's when something has been thawed at room temperature (on the counter) or using warm/hot water that it becomes unsafe.

    'Refreezing
    Once food is thawed in the refrigerator, it is safe to refreeze it without cooking, although there may be a loss of quality due to the moisture lost through defrosting. After cooking raw foods which were previously frozen, it is safe to freeze the cooked foods. If previously cooked foods are thawed in the refrigerator, you may refreeze the unused portion.

    If you purchase previously frozen meat, poultry or fish at a retail store, you can refreeze if it has been handled properly.'
  • lizzie84
    lizzie84 Posts: 54
    Thanks!! I think I will go with Questfor250 and try and seperate it still frozen and see how that works...
  • lizzie84
    lizzie84 Posts: 54
    Just an update: It didn't work too well for me trying to cut it up. Maybe my knives are good enough...anyways, I ended up having to just thaw it and eat as much as I could within the week ( ok, ended up throwing away half of it) I guess I will have to be more specific with my freezing instructions, LOL!
  • daddydoitall
    daddydoitall Posts: 6
    hi, Bryan here. I have worked in the food safety industry for years and you can thaw and refreeze foods safely. If done properly, the biggest concern is the quality. The issue is properly thawing. Leaving the soup on the counter and thawing is a sure way to ask for trouble. A quick thaw in a microwave and freezing left overs as soon as you know they are left overs is good. Leaving in the stock pot for a couple of hours at room temp=bad. You just dont want foods left in the temperature danger zone for more that a few hours. Keeps potentially hazardous foods above 135F or below 41F. Inbetween is where bacteria thrive.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories