Can you freeze chicken soup? Yes, you can freeze and store chicken soup and use it as a quick breakfast or dinner after a few days. Long winters also become much more enjoyable when you have a few containers of soup in the fridge. You can even defrost half of the frozen soup and store the rest for another day.
It is also quite easy to freeze soup. However, you need to take care of many things when it comes to freezing soup. Don’t worry, we are going to explain everything in detail.
Can You Freeze Chicken Soup?
The best way to impart the right flavor to your concoction is to add vegetables, extra ingredients, and some seasonings. It takes a lot of effort to make mouthwatering chicken soup at home. You will not make only a couple of bowls after going through all that trouble. Therefore, freezing soup is an excellent option. It is a hugely popular cooking trend. The soup does not decline in quality and consistency if you store it in a freezer as well. Therefore, you can consume it whenever you want.
How Long Can You Freeze Soup?
How long you can keep frozen soup in the freezer depends on its ingredients and the seasonings you used. However, frozen soup can last up to three months in a freezer according to Federal Food Safety Information. This is the optimal time to keep frozen soup if you prepared and stored it properly. Don’t forget to defrost the soup before heating it as well.
But – should you really keep soup in the freezer for 90 days? We don’t recommend doing so. The more you keep the soup, the less fresh it will be once you reheat it. All kinds of foods lose their taste as well as texture if you keep them in the freezer for a long time. Ice crystals start to develop inside the food fibers, significantly compromising their quality and flavor.
Also, some foods are more suitable for freezing than others. We will talk in detail about the types of soups you can freeze.
How Long to Keep Soup in the Fridge before Freezing?
Sometimes, you intend to eat all your soup within days and don’t want to freeze it at all. But, how long the soup will survive in the fridge once again depends on its ingredients. For example, soup with meat will go bad after 3 to 4 days maximum. Therefore, you should put the soup in the freezer within three days of preparing it. You have a couple of more days in the case of vegetable soup but you should never take any risk.
The best thing to do is to freeze the soup on the same day you make it. Store soup in a proper container and place it in a freezer immediately if you are not going to eat it. It will also decrease the chances of food poisoning.
The Best Soups to Freeze
You can easily freeze some soups and there are some you should never even think of freezing. Soups rich in proteins, hard vegetables and broth are the best candidates for freezing. Soups with noodles or dairy are just not good for freezing. You can freeze these soups but with some extra measures and precautions.
Everyone loves creamy soups as well but they also don’t perform well once frozen. Dairy such as cheese, milk, and cream can lose their texture and form curdles if you frequently freeze and reheat them.
The creamy soup should be devoid of cheese, roux, cream, etc. if you have to freeze it. Prepare it as a broth soup and add cream or cheese when you reheat it after thawing.
Chicken noodle soup is the most popular type of soup ever created. However, you must take necessary precautions while freezing soups with noodles. Noodles tend to crumble during the process of freezing because they absorb too much moisture.
Can I freeze chicken soup with vegetables? Yes, it is the best type of soup to freeze. Vegetables can last in the freezer for quite some time without compromising the quality and taste of the soup.
Best Containers to Freeze Soup
You can store soup in different kinds of containers. But – what is the best container for you? Here are some options to consider.
The Number of People You are Feeding
A small stasher bag is enough to freeze the soup if you are going to eat it yourself or serve it only to one person. On the other hand, go for a gallon size or large stasher bag if you have to feed an entire family.
The Size of Your Freezer
The size of your freezer also matters when it comes to choosing a container for freezing soup. A gallon-size bag is ideal for smaller freezers because you can store it flattened after removing the air.
Bigger 320 oz. containers are perfect for storing soup if you have ample space in your freezer.
Can You Freeze Soup in Plastic Containers?
You can freeze soups in plastic containers provided they are the right fit for the job. There are different types of plastic containers and some are more suitable for freezing soup than others. Never store food in a plastic container made of polystyrene, polycarbonate, or polyvinyl chloride. These substances are easily breakable and thus, the container can get damaged. Even worse, they can seriously contaminate the food.
Only use plastic containers that are ‘safe’ such as BPA free containers.
The Best Way to Freeze Soup
The following are some instructions for freezing your soup.
Prepare the Soup without Cream or Cheese
First of all, you need to prepare the soup. You can choose to form countless soup recipes but don’t add any kind of dairy such as cheese or cream to the soup. Similarly, it is advisable to undercook the vegetables if you want to freeze the soup. You have to reheat the soup when you decide to eat it. It can result in double cooking and thus mushy vegetables.
You must also let the soup cool down before freezing it. Freezing hot soup can lead to freezer burned soup, food poisoning, and other food related illnesses.
Freeze the Soup
The next step of course is to freeze the soup. Put the soup in a container once it is fully cooled. Do not fill the container to the capacity because liquid expands when frozen. Leave some room for the soup to expand.
You can decrease the chances of freezer burn by covering the top of a plastic or glass container with plastic wrap. The more airtight the container is, the less the risk of freezer burns.
Label the Soup
Another important thing to keep in mind is labeling the soup. The “Eat by Date” label lets you know what the expiry date of your soup is. Remember, you cannot keep soup in the freezer for more than three months.
How to Reheat the Frozen Soup?
There are many ways to reheat the frozen soup. Some of the most common of these methods are as below.
Reheat on a Stove
Put the partially thawed soup in a pot. Fill the bottom of the pot with water if you don’t want the pot to scorch. Heat the soup over medium-high temperature until it becomes fully liquid. Stir for a while as well.
Reheat in a Microwave
Put the fully or partially defrosted soup in a container. Cover the container with plastic wrap and place it in a microwave. The wrap should have some holes for ventilation. Heat the soup for 30 seconds to a minute. You can maintain consistency by stirring the soup in intervals.
Reheat in Instant Pot
One of the best ways to reheat frozen soup is using an instant pot. Heat the soup for up to 5 minutes using the pressure cooker function. It is as simple as that. However, never reheat creamy or dairy soups in an instant pot.
Reheat in a Crockpot
You should avoid reheating frozen soups in a slow cooker or a crockpot. The frozen food remains at an unsafe temperature for too long in these devices. A stovetop or microwave is a better option in our opinion.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you defrost frozen food quickly?
You should place the frozen soup in a fridge a day before defrosting. Similarly, you can put the container with frozen soup in a bowl of water if you are in a hurry. Or, you can defrost it in a microwave if you just cannot wait to eat it.
Does homemade chicken soup freeze well?
Soup is one of the best foods to freeze. Freezing also increases its shelf life without compromising on its quality, texture, and flavor. However, you should never keep soup in a freezer for more than 90 days.
Can you freeze soup that has noodles in it?
Unfortunately, you cannot. Ingredients like pasta, noodles, rice, etc, tend to lose their texture and flavor when you freeze, thaw, and reheat them frequently. What you can do is make chicken noodle soup without noodles. Add noodles only after the soup has been thawed.
Final Thoughts
You can easily freeze chicken or vegetable soup for up to 3 months. You need to take some measures to maintain its quality and flavor but it is not that difficult. However, avoid freezing soups with dairy, pasta, rice, and noodles. They are not a good candidate for freezing because they lose their texture when frozen.