Can I Freeze Food in my Beeswax Wraps?
I'm often asked if you can freeze beeswax food wrap, and the answer is definitely, "yes!"
Can I freeze my beeswax wraps?
The wrap itself does very well in the freezer, and can be frozen and unfrozen an indefinite number of times. But what can you use it to freeze?
I have tested Ideal Wrap for freezing a few different foods and here is what I have found.
How to Freeze Fruits and Vegetables in a Beeswax Wrap
Bananas are one of those foods I always have in the freezer. Here in Florida, bananas go from green to brown pretty quickly, so I end up freezing more than I eat fresh! I usually smash them inside a gallon freezer bag for use in banana bread, but I like to have some sliced and frozen for easy portioning for smoothies, as well. For freezing sliced banana in beeswax wrap, I sliced the banana and laid the slices in a single layer on top of an extra-large wrap. Once the slices were frozen, I gathered them all into the middle of my wrap, and then used a "Dumpling fold" to store them. The dumpling fold can be undone at one end for shaking out one portion at a time into a smoothie!
Fruits and vegetables are a great candidate for freezing in beeswax wraps. Store sliced bell pepper for dinner later in the week or sliced fruit for daily smoothies. If you can freeze a vegetable in a plastic bag, you can freeze it in a beeswax wrap.
If you're not sure about folding your beeswax wrap into a "dumpling," here's a video tutorial of how to do it (the first of three ways to wrap a lemon). This is a great fold for storing and freezing items such as sliced fruit, berries, or vegetables.
But what about freezer burn?
Since beeswax wrap is "breathable," will foods inside "freezer burn?"
From TheKitchn.com: Freezer burn happens when moisture in the outer layers of the food evaporates into the freezer air, leaving behind empty “dry” pockets in the tissue of the food.
So it's true, if you don't store your foods air-tight, then freezer burn is a concern. While safe to eat, foods which have been subject to freezer burn will be compromised of texture, and just won't taste as nice.
However, it does take some time for freezer burn to occur - at least a month, and more likely closer to three months. So if you're freezing food with the intent of consuming it in the near future (banana for smoothies, a sliced loaf of bread) freezer burn won't be an issue. For longer-term freezing (and meat), a vacuum-sealer is the best way to prevent freezer-burn, followed by eliminating as much air as possible from other containers.
What do you freeze in your beeswax wraps?! Want to know about freezing other foods? Let us know and we'll test it for you ;)
