Nutritional properties of frozen products.
The freezing process affects very little the nutritional value of food. Currently in the frozen products market, the ultrafreezing technique is used, which according to experts guarantees 100% of the nutritional content. Food should be frozen quickly and at temperatures reaching-40 º C. In this way, the most of its nutritional properties are preserved, also some of the organoleptic qualities (flavor, texture, color and smell), because usually these are altered a little, especially their texture and flavor, except in the raw meats. In fresh foods, the loss of nutrients they may experience since they are collected until they are prepared, may be equal to or greater than alterations during freezing. Then frozen foods in a safe and adequate way are of great nutritional value.
Texture of frozen products.
Freezing all foods should be done immediately and harvested or prepared. They must be frozen without alterations and in unbeatable conditions, that is to say at the moment of optimum quality. If the freezing technique is carried out properly, it guarantees excellent qualities of the food, while a bad freeze implies a significant loss of nutrients, taste and texture. Very different is the home-made frozen, because by not being able to apply or not to have the right technology, the fresh foods that freeze, they can lose quality in terms of nutrients, texture, smell and original flavor.
Buying Frozen products.
To check the status of frozen products to be purchased on the market, you must:
- Analyze if they are in suitable cooling cabinets, which maintain constant freezing temperatures.
- packages, be they vegetables, fish, shellfish or empanadas, must have their contents hard and loose.
The gasket should not have frost, so it is known that the cold chain has not been broken. That the product is not in a block or difficult to separate, as it may contain water or happen that there has been a partial thawing and has been frozen again. Do not buy products if they have soft or thawed areas. The gaskets must be intact, new without tears or waste.
- The date of packing and expiration, expiration or expiration should be looked at. that have not been covered, erased or changed.
Buy the most distant date to be fulfilled. It is possible that frozen foods do not reach our freezer in its optimum conditions, because during the journey the cold chain can break and, in this case, the qualities of the product are altered. It is advisable to leave for the end the purchase of the frozen ones and place them in a thermal bag for their transport and to immediately put them in cold when they arrive at their destination.
Insidence of defrosting in the quality characteristics of the product.
In order to be successful in the preparation and service of frozen food, keep in mind that the manufacturer’s defrosting instructions on the packaging are carefully followed by the letter and slowly. If it is not done correctly, you can risk the product losing its quality (texture, flavor, aroma, color, etc.). If they are frozen food at home, they should be placed first to defrost in the refrigerator (refrigerator) and then take them to cooking. It may also happen that the freezing time has exceeded 6 months or the year, which can also alter its organoleptic characteristics and even more if the procedure has been done at home.
