There are very many sources of information about how products are frozen in a freezer, or deep freeze.
However, hosts are never fully aware of one of the last stages of preservation of food - its thawing.
There are several options for thawing products, depending on their further use:
- At room temperature;
- In the refrigerator;
- In an electric oven;
- In a microwave oven.
Here are some examples of the time required for defrosting.
One pound of red meat at room temperature (20 C) defrosts in 6 to 8 hours. If you decide to defrost in the refrigerator, take out the previous day, as you will need 12 to 15 hours at 2 to 8 degrees.
In the microwave oven, for thawing a pound of meat, you will need between 25 and 30 minutes.
For chicken, respectively, you will need 7 to 10 hours at room temperature, 12 -16 hours in a refrigerator and 23-25 minutes to defrost in the microwave.
For bread, allow 2 to 3 hours at room temperature and 10 minutes in a microwave, then it will be ready for consumption.
Cakes thaw in 2 to 3 hours at room temperature and 10 minutes in a microwave.
A pound of berries such as strawberries, raspberries, etc. is ready to eat after 5 to 8 hours, if you thaw them at room temperature, 8 to 10 hours if you keep them in the refrigerator and 6 to 8 minutes, if you will put these in the microwave.
Fruits with pips thaw in 5 to 10 hours at room temperature, 15 to 18 hours in a refrigerator, and 8 to 10 minutes in the microwave.
Note that these values are approximate. Freezing time depends mostly on the size of the package.
Remember that the microwave must be set to "defrost".
