Why is chicken scratch more expensive than chicken feed?

[U_Stormcrow]

I think freezers are a great way to buy meat on sale and save some money. But how long does meat last in a freezer before it gets freezer burn? I heard somewhere that you should rotate your freezer meat so that it is used up within 6 months. Does it depend on the type of freezer you have - that is, frost free versus regular freezer? Don't really know. But we have taken out some meat that had freezer burn and that was not good.

BTW, I think it's a good idea to put a label on freezer products along with the date. So far, I have been able to convince myself but Dear Wife is taking a little longer to get on board with that idea.

FIFO - First IN, First OUT is a rule of inventory management, at home and in the warehouse.

Freezer Burn is (mostly) Oxygen. Use a vaccuum sealer, and freezer burn is (largely) a thing of the past.

Chest freezers let less cold air escape when you open them, and draw in less moisture. They tend to produce less freezer burn. They are also hella inconvenient to get stuff off the bottom, where it goes to be forgotten.

Uprights are convenient, but much less efficient. Open the door, all the cold heavy air flows out the bottom, while drawing warm, usually much more moist air from above the freezer. More burn, and slower freezing times, leading to greater textural differences post defrost. There are, of course "tricks" to minimize this.

Life is a series of trade offs.

 

[gtaus]

FIFO - First IN, First OUT is a rule of inventory management, at home and in the warehouse.

FISH - First IN, Still HERE, is how too much of our food gets stored and not rotated.

Freezer Burn is (mostly) Oxygen. Use a vaccuum sealer, and freezer burn is (largely) a thing of the past.

I have been watching some YouTube videos on vacuum sealers lately, and am learning about how to use them. However, the video I just watched the guy said he spent over $400.00 on his vacuum sealer. I can't see how that makes economic sense for just Dear Wife and myself. We don't go through that much food that it would be hard to pay for itself in our lifetime. Any suggestions on a good food sealer that works almost as good but at a much lower price?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

FISH - First IN, Still HERE, is how too much of our food gets stored and not rotated.



I have been watching some YouTube videos on vacuum sealers lately, and am learning about how to use them. However, the video I just watched the guy said he spent over $400.00 on his vacuum sealer. I can't see how that makes economic sense for just Dear Wife and myself. We don't go through that much food that it would be hard to pay for itself in our lifetime. Any suggestions on a good food sealer that works almost as good but at a much lower price?

We have a real basic "Food Saver" brand. The bags for it are expensive. Cut your own from rolls, don't use their brand of rolls - use generic, you save some more money. Finally, only use them for things you plan to keep for an extended period - expensive meats. A little freezer burn on ground beef is unnoticable. "Soup" can't freezer burn, really nothing stored completely immersed in liquid can, but few foods meet that criteria. Last tip? Get to know your grocer. Most of what gets set on display in many groceries comes prepacked and frozen. Ask the grocer to pull the frozen Australian leg of lamb for you from the back, rather than the defrosted one in the display case. It never defrosts, and its already butcher-packed - a year later (I've done this, many times - can you tell??) there is still no freezer burn, and it tastes as fresh as if you bought it just defrosted from the grocer that day.

 

[Al Gerhart]

That's an idea I had not thought of trying. I feed the fish offal to my girls when I bring home a mess of fish to clean. They pick at the remains a bit, but usually most of the remains end up getting buried into the compost for the worms. Then the chickens can eat the worms. So, it's all good.

Grind it up or chop it up and I bet they would eat the offal without cooking it.

 

[Al Gerhart]

I think freezers are a great way to buy meat on sale and save some money. But how long does meat last in a freezer before it gets freezer burn? I heard somewhere that you should rotate your freezer meat so that it is used up within 6 months. Does it depend on the type of freezer you have - that is, frost free versus regular freezer? Don't really know. But we have taken out some meat that had freezer burn and that was not good.

BTW, I think it's a good idea to put a label on freezer products along with the date. So far, I have been able to convince myself but Dear Wife is taking a little longer to get on board with that idea.

I have never had a problem with factory wrapped meat like comes from Sams Club. But I do stack it first in first out, putting the new stuff on the bottom. I use chest freezers.

 

[Al Gerhart]

FISH - First IN, Still HERE, is how too much of our food gets stored and not rotated.



I have been watching some YouTube videos on vacuum sealers lately, and am learning about how to use them. However, the video I just watched the guy said he spent over $400.00 on his vacuum sealer. I can't see how that makes economic sense for just Dear Wife and myself. We don't go through that much food that it would be hard to pay for itself in our lifetime. Any suggestions on a good food sealer that works almost as good but at a much lower price?

You don't need an expensive machine. Take a look at these videos. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=vacuum+package+no+machine

And if in doubt, drop in a couple of oxygen absorbers.

 

[Al Gerhart]

FIFO - First IN, First OUT is a rule of inventory management, at home and in the warehouse.

Freezer Burn is (mostly) Oxygen. Use a vaccuum sealer, and freezer burn is (largely) a thing of the past.

Chest freezers let less cold air escape when you open them, and draw in less moisture. They tend to produce less freezer burn. They are also hella inconvenient to get stuff off the bottom, where it goes to be forgotten.

Uprights are convenient, but much less efficient. Open the door, all the cold heavy air flows out the bottom, while drawing warm, usually much more moist air from above the freezer. More burn, and slower freezing times, leading to greater textural differences post defrost. There are, of course "tricks" to minimize this.

Life is a series of trade offs.

Yeah, I use the chest freezers. Never had a problem with freezer burn on anything. To store things and still get stuff out I used plastic totes from Walmart, stacking like product in its own tub. You waste a bit of space doing that though. Then I have a paint drawing with the layers of tubs labeled so I know where to find stuff and don't hide the sausage from myself. Ya'll keep your comments to yourself on that last sentence.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

... Then I have a paint drawing with the layers of tubs labeled so I know where to find stuff and don't hide the sausage from myself. Ya'll keep your comments to yourself on that last sentence.

Not my place to judge.

You do your thing, I'll do mine...

 

[Al Gerhart]

" Sadly, despite Al's best efforts, the deranged chicken folk took full advantage of the unfortunate choice of words he used and quickly dragged the formerly erudite conversation down into the gutter...."

 

[gtaus]

Yeah, I use the chest freezers. Never had a problem with freezer burn on anything. To store things and still get stuff out I used plastic totes from Walmart, stacking like product in its own tub.

Our upright freezer out in the garage just died a few weeks ago. So, I had to move everything to a backup chest freezer down in the basement. I did not have enough plastic totes, so thanks for the suggestion for the WalMart option.