Do you need to freeze milk to save it for later? One thing about milk is that it will not last that long when kept in the fridge. Once it reaches its expiration date, it does not take long for milk to go bad. When the milk goes bad, it gets chunky and tends to have a foul odor.
If you want to avoid wasting milk by allowing it to spoil, you can freeze it to preserve it and then thaw it out in the fridge before using it in many ways. You can still add it to your cereal, drink it, or use it to prepare different meals after it defrosts. Keep reading to learn how to freeze milk.
Freezing a Half-Gallon of Milk in Its Original Container
Did you know that if you buy a half-gallon of milk, you can freeze it in the container that it comes in when you buy it from the grocery store? Before you put it right into the freezer, you should start by using a small amount of the milk. You would need to open it, pour a small amount of it out, and then add it to something or drink it.
The reason for using a small amount of milk before freezing it is to keep the container from bursting when it is in the freezer. You would need to place the half-gallon flat inside the freezer, meaning some of the liquid may start to move forward toward the lid attached to the bottle.
As long as you leave some milk out, you should have no issue storing your milk in this manner, but this is not the only way to keep your milk.
Adding Milk to Ice Cube Trays For Easy Freezer Storage
A fun and convenient way to store your milk would be to add it to ice cube trays. If you normally use your milk for different recipes, such as mashed potatoes, pasta dishes, soups, and more, having milk stored in ice cube trays can truly come in handy.
- You would pour the milk into different ice cube compartments, place the ice cube tray into the freezer, and wait until the milk turns solid. Whenever you need milk for a recipe, you can pop out one, two, or three of the milk cubes and toss them right into a pot or pan.
- Another neat thing about freezing milk in ice cube trays is that you can use it for drinks. For example, if you are preparing iced coffee at home, you can add a few milk cubes to your cup of coffee instead of adding traditional ice cubes made with water. It prevents the coffee from getting watery, keeps it cold, and allows you to keep your coffee tasting good. Even if you are not drinking iced coffee, you can add just a few cubes of frozen milk to hot tea or hot coffee to cool it down just a bit, making it drinkable a bit sooner.
Using Miniature Plastic Containers to Store Frozen Milk
If you buy milk in large gallon containers, you might not have enough space in your freezer for those containers. If so, you can transfer the milk from the large containers and pour it into miniature plastic containers.
- These smaller containers are convenient because you can label them and stack them with ease. They will take up much less space in your freezer, giving you more than enough room for everything else that you would normally add to your freezer.
- You can buy miniature plastic containers online or at some restaurant supply stores. Choose from an assortment of plastic containers that are available.
Never freeze your milk in a glass container. Even if you purchase it in a glass container, you should still take the time to pour it out of the glass container and into a plastic one that is better to use when you want to freeze your milk.
How Long Will the Milk Stay Good in the Freezer?
When stored properly, milk should stay good in the freezer for up to six months. Of course, it is better to use it as soon as you need it rather than waiting until six months have passed to use it.
However, you should have no problems using milk that you have put in your freezer, even if it is in there for a few months. When milk is something you use quite often in the home, you may not need to store any milk for longer than a month because you are always pulling it out and using it.
Useful Milk Freezing Tips You Should Know
Storing milk the right way is essential. Once you put your milk into the proper containers, consider stacking them up inside your freezer in order of which one is oldest and which one is newest.
- If you stack the milk the right way, you can always use the oldest one first instead of grabbing new milk containers that were recently put into the freezer.
- A great way to keep track of what you are using is to write the date on the containers with a permanent marker. Having the date on your milk gives you a chance to use it before it goes bad on you.
Follow these useful tips and suggestions on how to freeze milk properly. If you freeze it the right way, you can make your milk last longer and worry less about wasting something you have spent money on at the store. You never know when you might need to have milk available to use, especially if you often use it to make different meals, so it helps to have plenty in stock and available in your freezer where it will stay fresh for much longer.
If you happen to see a good sale on milk, do not hesitate to stock up and purchase several containers of it now that you know exactly how to store it and keep it fresh. Once you get the hang of freezing your milk in different ways, you will never waste milk again.
What to Stock Up By Month
If you like to save money by buying milk in bulk then you’ll love these buying guides for sale cycles each month.
