I'd be embarrassed to tell you how much food I've thrown out because it got lost in my freezer.
Before my husband and I got married, he helped me clean out my apartment freezer. We had to use a screwdriver to chip away at the thick layer of ice, and we found packages that were so icy that the food was unrecognizable.
After we were married, I asked my husband about setting up an extra freezer. I can't imagine why he wasn't in favor of the idea. (Yes, I'm joking.) In any case, at his suggestion, I now keep an inventory of what's in the freezer.
To start, we pulled everything out of the freezer. We took inventory and made a list by category: beef, chicken, pork, pasta, vegetables. Every time I add or remove an item, I update the list. That's not as much trouble as it sounds, since we generally stock up on sale items; we'll add several packages of the same item at once, then go weeks without purchasing more.
It's not exactly breaking news, but it helps me stay organized and it saves money by reducing waste. This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Frugal Fridays.
You are one smart cookie, Melissa!! I keep saying, "I'm going to make an inventory list for my freezer." And yep, one of these days, I'm really gonna do that. We just put a whole beef back in the freezer. We do it every year. Of course, the freezer gets much lower right before we put one in. I shoulda done last week before the beef went in! LOL! I'm gonna do that next time. I sure am. Uh huh! LOL!
ReplyDeleteThat is a great tip, very useful for these days of recession.
ReplyDeleteThis is something I really want to do. Our fridge freezer is full to the max and so is our deep freezer in the garage. I never know what we have.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely works for me too! I have my freezer above my fridge that I keep all the "open" pkgs of things and then my upright freezer in the garage keeps all the sale meats, breads, and extra baking that I do. I keep one list though so I know what I have at just a glance. :) Having the list makes it easier for menu planning too. :)
ReplyDeleteThis is something that I really need to do. My freezer is literally packed full and I'm not even sure exactly what is in there.
ReplyDeleteOur freezer in Germany is so small - I think Germans hate frozen things (except ice cream!), so I didn't have a problem with managing the space. But in the US... well that's a whole other deal. Thanks for the good suggestion. We could use it, too!
ReplyDeleteKatie
I have tried this at various times. Even bought some freezer magnets that are write on wipe off so the record can go on the front of the freezer, but somehow we never keep up with it!
ReplyDeleteSorry! I have too many pages up at once! You can delete my other comment!
ReplyDeleteWe do this too. We have a large freezer in our basement and I keep an inventory sheet on everything in there. When someone takes something out, they mark it off the sheet! It works great.
I even organize my list by category so I can find what I need for a meal quickly: meats, full meals, fruits and veggies, beans, broth, baby food cubes... It helps to know what's in there and what you need to use up!
ReplyDeleteI need to do this. My freezer looks like yours. I like the idea of keeping a list. I always forget what meat I have stockpiled. I label it, but once it goes in the pile it gets lost.
ReplyDelete