Don’t forget about freezer defrosting!

If you’re doing a spot of spring cleaning, make sure you defrost your freezer! If you look after it well, your freezer can be a fantastic ally in creating the most delicious meals for the family, no matter what your cooking skills or how much time you have to spare.

In a well looked after freezer, frozen ingredients and prepared meals can retain their nutrients and flavour indefinitely, meaning easy, delicious meals for the family, all year round. By giving your freezer a spring clean you can keep your frozen foods as delicious as the day they were bought. Follow these tips to get the best out of your freezer:

Defrosting regularly

Whilst most modern freezers are designed to defrost automatically, if you have an older design it’s important to defrost it regularly to keep it working at its best. A sure sign you need to defrost is a half inch build-up of ice around the inside of the freezer, or if you start to see ice crystals appearing on your food packages. Use our step-by-step guide to defrosting safely:

• Wrap frozen items in newspaper and place in a box in a cold area
• Unplug the freezer and wedge open the door
• Remove all freezer drawers
• Place towels or any type of absorbent material at the bottom and in front of the freezer to mop up the water as the ice thaws

• Do not use any sharp implements to remove the ice build-up from the freezer, as this could cause damage
• Once all the ice has thawed, clean the freezer and drawers with warm water
• Wipe the freezer dry and replace the drawers
• Plug the freezer back into the mains and make sure the thermostat is set correctly
• Re-pack your frozen food into the freezer.

 Reducing energy usage

If you pack it properly, your freezer can cost you as little as £18 per year, a massive saving compared with endless trips to the shops to replace withered fresh vegetables and gone off meat in the fridge. Use these tips to get the most efficiency from your freezer:

• Don’t over pack! Make sure your freezer is not too full with food or ice as this will prevent the freezer from maintaining a low temperature
• Keep a check of what you’ve got in the freezer – this will help in keeping your freezer door open for less time, and in turn waste less energy
• Remember, every degree colder means the freezer will use nearly two per cent more energy.