Shelf life of sausages: boiled, smoked and raw smoked. How to freeze sausages

Very often, after a celebration or other feast, sausage trimmings, slices of ham, a couple of sausages, etc. remain. The shelf life of such products in the refrigerator is no more than 4 days, so they need to be eaten quickly, but it is better to freeze, because such blanks are ideal for making pizza, hodgepodge, hot sandwiches, scrambled eggs, etc.

It is worth noting that you need to freeze sausages good quality that have not expired. If a sausage or a piece of sausage has lain for a week or more in the refrigerator, then you should not freeze them in order to save the product. After defrosting, the taste will be different, the product may be slimy, with an unpleasant odor.

How to freeze sausages, sausages

Sausages can be frozen any: boiled, smoked, with fillers (for example, cheese, lard), in natural or artificial casing, long or thick.

If you bought sausages in a large bag and want to freeze the excess, then you must definitely get them out of this bag, free them from the thread and separate the sausages from each other.

You can freeze sausages or sausages whole, preferably in portions (1-3 pieces) in a plastic bag, so that after defrosting you can eat everything without a trace.

Tie the package with sausages tightly, sign the label indicating the type of sausages (for example, dairy with cheese) and the date of freezing.

Send to the freezer for storage.

To cook a frozen sausage, you can not defrost it first. To do this, put the sausage in cold water and put on fire so that it gradually thaws with heating of the water. After boiling, cook for 5-7 minutes. You can also cook sausage in a double boiler, the cooking time will be about 10-12 minutes.

If you need to defrost the sausage, then you need to transfer it from the freezer to the refrigerator shelf and wait until it is completely thawed (this will take about 4-6 hours).

It is not worth immersing a frozen sausage immediately in boiling water, as the casing may crack, and the product itself will cook unevenly.

Sausages can also be cut into circles, strips, cubes and frozen.

Put it in a bag, tie it tightly and send it to the freezer.

You can defrost chopped sausages in the refrigerator while you prepare the dough or cut other ingredients, they will defrost very quickly. If you are going to cook an omelette with them or add them to a hodgepodge, then you can add them to the broth or frying pan in frozen form - rings or cubes of sausages will defrost very quickly in a hot environment.

How to freeze sausage, ham and other meat products

You can freeze: ham, boiled, smoked and semi-smoked sausages, boiled pork, Ham, ribs, brisket, bacon, etc.

You can freeze as a whole stick of sausage, half of it, or cut into pieces.

So, if you need to freeze the whole sausage, then you need to put it in a tight plastic bag (for reliability, wrap cling film), tightly tie and sign the label indicating the type of product and the date of freezing.

Send the sausage to the freezer.

In order to defrost a sausage stick, you need to transfer it from the freezer to the refrigerator and wait until it is completely thawed, this can take about 5-6 hours. Further, such sausage can be used as usual, for example, cut into rings. It is desirable to use such sausage within 36 hours.

Sausage can also be cut into strips and frozen. You can use such a blank for making pizza or hodgepodge.

You can also freeze a mixture, for example, from sliced \u200b\u200bsmoked sausage and sausages, in order to use this blank in the future to prepare a specific dish, in this case – .

If after festive feast there are a lot of sausage rings left, then they can be frozen as is, so that in the future they can be used to make hot sandwiches. So that the sausage pieces do not stick together in the freezer, it is convenient to shift them with pieces of parchment paper.

Wrap the workpiece tightly in a bag and send it to the freezer.

The shelf life of frozen sausages and other deli meats is 2 months at -18 degrees.

It is impossible to re-freeze such products, it is also very undesirable to defrost them when room temperature, on the battery or other heat sources.

Now there is a huge variety of sausages: from sausages to ham. At first glance, it may seem that these are completely unpretentious products and you can absolutely not think about their storage. But this is not at all the case; storing sausage correctly is a whole science. Therefore, I propose to find out all the nuances together.

Variety of species

The shelf life of sausages directly depends on the method of its preparation and packaging.

Cooking technologies, conditions and shelf life - in the table:

Image	Variety
	boiled The process of cooking boiled sausages includes, oddly enough, only boiling at a temperature of 80 ° C. Manufacturers indicate on the package how long boiled sausage is stored in the refrigerator - usually no more than 3 days. If the product says that it will remain fresh after a few weeks, then most likely it is a low-quality product, which contains preservatives.
	Boiled-smoked There are 2 stages of preparation: first, cooking, then light smoking. Therefore, the shelf life of boiled sausage that has gone through the smoking process is 15 days.
	Raw-smoked The process of making raw smoked sausages includes dehydration and fermentation. Best before date raw smoked sausage may be 6 to 9 months.
	Dry-cured Such delicacies are obtained by drying, there is no heat treatment. The shelf life of dry-cured sausages is 2 months. It is believed that meat in this form has an exceptional taste, so its price is higher.
	Semi-smoked. Cooking technology includes: boiling, smoking and drying. This sausage can be consumed within 10 days.
	Home. Both purchased and self-made sausages are stored: Boiled - 3-5 days; Frozen - up to 2 months.
	Blood. Ready-to-eat blood flakes can be stored for up to 5 days in the refrigerator, frozen - up to 3 months.

Methods and terms of storage

Meat products can be stored in different ways:

Without cooling;
In the refrigerator;
In the freezer.

Method 1. Without cooling

Due to their high water content, some varieties cannot be stored outside the refrigerator at all. These include:

boiled;
Ham;
Blood;
Home ready made.

Other types of delicacies that have passed heat treatment can be kept in the refrigerator. For example, let's find out how much raw food is stored smoked sausage without refrigerator.

If such a product was prepared from high-quality meat and meets the requirements of GOST, then it can be stored up to 120 days in the open air.

In the same way, you can store dry-cured delicacies, the only difference is that they are recommended to be tightened with cling film.

Method 2. Refrigerator

Now consider the nuances of storage in the refrigerator:

Image	Varieties
	boiled. Temperature from +2 to +4 °C, it is best to place it in a paper bag. The term of use is 3-5 days.
	Semi-smoked and boiled-smoked. You can store smoked sausage at temperatures from 0 to +4 ° C, for a period of up to 10 days.
	Raw-smoked. How long does raw smoked sausage keep in the refrigerator? At temperatures from +5 to +15 °C up to three weeks. Another interesting way how to store raw smoked sausage in the refrigerator: the product must be hung vertically, tying the tail to the grate. So it will cool evenly.
	Dry-cured. The rocking chair can be wrapped in foil or cling film and left in the refrigerator at temperatures up to +6 °C. Taste and freshness will last up to two months.
	home and blood. Ready-made, these varieties can lie in the refrigerator for up to 5 days at a temperature of no more than +5 ° C. There is a rather unusual method for storing homemade sausage. Need to fold finished goods v clay pots and pour melted pork fat, let it all cool and send to cool. So the shelf life will increase to 1 month

Method 3. Freezer

Can sausage be stored in the freezer? Not that it is possible, sometimes it is even necessary. Freezing is subject to:

domestic;
raw smoked;
dry-cured.

So that the sausage in the freezer does not deteriorate, it must be properly prepared. The instruction will be like this:

Check the integrity of the store packaging: if it is whole - go to step 3, if not - see step 2.
Pack raw smoked and dry-cured products in paper bags or foil, homemade - place in tightly closed containers.

Place the containers on the bottom shelf of the freezer use as needed.

Freezer shelf life is: for homemade - up to 2 months, for dry-cured and smoked sausages - up to 1 year.

Is it possible to freeze boiled sausage? We highly do not recommend doing this. This variety contains a lot of water, so when frozen-thawed, it will turn into porridge.

Outcome

Many sausages can be placed not only in the refrigerator, but also in the freezer - this will not change their taste and freshness. But when buying, it is important to pay attention to the quality of the product and its expiration date.

Boiled sausages, as well as sausages, have the shortest shelf life. Recommended storage temperature: +2-+4 degrees. And, of course, in the refrigerator. It is best to store the sausage in a container, but you can wrap it in wrapping paper, parchment, or foil. It is better not to store boiled sausages in polyethylene.

If the casing of the sausage is natural, then such a product can be stored for only a week. If artificial, then the sausage will be stored for up to 1.5 months.

Cooked-smoked sausages

Shelf life - up to 1 month, but only in unopened packaging. You need to store in the refrigerator at a temperature of 2-4 degrees. It is better to wrap in foil or parchment, in plastic bags sausage quickly becomes slimy.

Raw smoked sausages

These sausages are stored for quite a long time: up to 3 months in an unopened package, 2-3 weeks in an opened package. But you have to follow temperature regime storage: 5-8 degrees. And this is either a good cellar, or the lower shelf of the refrigerator. If the package is not opened, then you can put the sausage in the compartment for vegetables and fruits.

If the loaf has already been started, then you just need to tightly wrap the cut point with cling film, but you do not need to completely wrap the sausage in the film.

Dried sausages

They are best stored at a temperature of 5 to 15 degrees in a dark place in limbo. Under such conditions, dry-cured sausage will be stored for up to six months. If the temperature is room temperature, then the shelf life of the sausage will be reduced to 4 weeks.

Tricks

So that the cut of the sausage does not wind, it must be greased with fat or egg white

If mold has appeared on the shell of a dry-cured or raw-smoked sausage, but the sausage itself is not affected by it, then you need to remove the plaque with a cotton swab dipped in vinegar, and lubricate the affected area vegetable oil. If the sausage is winded, you can reanimate it by putting it in cold milk.

You can freeze sausages to extend their shelf life. The taste won't change much. Just do not forget that even in the freezer, the sausage will not lie forever. For example, for boiled smoked sausage, the life limit in the freezer is three months.

This topic is also relevant and important for home craftsmen who produce smoked meats in significant volumes - for their families or for sale. They definitely need to know how to protect the product from spoilage, and whether it is possible to freeze smoked sausage in freezers and chests.

Features of storing smoked sausage

Among all types of sausages that are produced by meat processing plants, they are the most “long-playing” in terms of timing. This is due to several reasons:

Smoking protects meat product from the development of pathogenic microflora.
They contain a lot of natural preservative - table salt.
V low maintenance moisture; that is, the environment for the reproduction of microbes is unfavorable.
An additional protection is the shell (natural or artificial), which creates a barrier to mechanical damage and harmful effects environment.

In addition to these factors, the storage of smoked sausage depends on external conditions: temperature and humidity. In the instructions for acceptance, storage and commodity processing of products used by wholesalers, 2 modes of storage of sausages in refrigerators are defined: temperature from -3 to -6°C and from -7 to -9°C. Here, by the way, is the answer to the question of whether it is possible to freeze smoked sausages. Freezer temperature home refrigerator well within these parameters.

If necessary, according to the same instruction, it is allowed to store sausages at an air temperature of 0 to +4 ° C for 4 weeks from the date of production. Permissible humidity in the places of storage of smoked meats is in the range from 80 to 90%. The lower the temperature, the higher the humidity should be.

Compliance with all these conditions significantly affects the shelf life and helps maintain a stable quality of smoked meats.

Shelf life of smoked sausage

Not all smoked sausages are the same. They differ in composition and quantitative content of meat and spices, according to the recipe, as well as in the method of preparation. On the shelves of stores you can find a wide variety of sausages from different manufacturers. Despite the abundance of names, they can all be grouped according to this principle:

raw smoked;
semi-smoked;
boiled-smoked.

For the manufacture of each of these types of smoked sausages in the Soviet Union, there were separate GOSTs, which conscientious manufacturers use to this day.

According to this table, a pattern can be traced: the more moisture is contained in the sausage, the shorter its shelf life. In general, compared to conventional boiled sausages, smoked varieties have less water and more salt. Together with the smoked products present, the combination of all these factors increases the "keeping quality" of the sausage. Smoked sausage is stored either hanging or in factory boxes.

According to GOST, raw smoked sausage must contain 100% of the highest grade meat (beef and pork), in semi-smoked and boiled-smoked sausage from 100% raw meat, some may be of other, not higher, grades. There are no additives here: soy, vegetable protein, bacon, etc. High-quality raw smoked sausages are “dressed” only in a natural edible casing.

Many meat processing industries are following the path of simplifying the composition, replacing raw materials by up to 20-25% and reducing costs. finished products. This is allowed, but not by GOST, but by TU, which enterprises develop independently. As a shell, an artificial film or pressed paper is used. Therefore, often smoked sausage does not have the real taste that is accustomed to and expected from it. It also keeps worse.

During storage, sometimes salt crystallizes on the surface of the sausage. This is not a disadvantage: the shell “breathes”, allows moisture and some minerals to pass through, resulting in a characteristic white coating. It does not impair the taste of smoked sausage and does not shorten its shelf life.

Advice for everyone: experts sausage production it is recommended to hold the sausage in a saline solution for 5 minutes before storing it, after which it is imperative to wipe it dry with a clean cloth.

It is bad when on the surface of the sausage loaf appears white mold. It signals the beginning of spoilage of the product. If there is little mold, you can remove it with a cloth, or salt water (1:5), or a 3% vinegar solution without damaging the shells. Then the sausage should be well dried and immediately used for food. This sausage is no longer suitable for further storage.

One more useful advice: you should not buy smoked sausage with an expiration date greater than it should be according to GOST. It may mean that the manufacturer has added too many artificial preservatives to the minced sausage, which help to extend the life of the sausage, even in improper storage conditions.

Let you doubt and sausages, too flavored with hot spices - pepper, garlic, fragrant herbs. The enumeration of these substances is most likely a trick of the manufacturer: this is how he tries to hide spoiled or substandard sausage. Why pay a lot of money (and smoked sausage is not cheap) for a low-quality product? To pay again later, but for medicines?

The shelf life of smoked meats depends on their integrity. An uncut sausage stick has the longest shelf life, portioned piece- less, serving cuts have the shortest shelf life. If necessary, the sausage can be frozen, and before serving, defrost in advance in the refrigerator on the bottom shelf without opening the package. Re-freezing is unacceptable, so you have to immediately eat everything that was thawed.

Cooked-smoked sausages

Raw smoked sausages

These sausages are stored for quite a long time: up to 3 months in an unopened package, 2-3 weeks in an opened package. But you need to observe the temperature regime of storage: 5-8 degrees. And this is either a good cellar, or the lower shelf of the refrigerator. If the package is not opened, then you can put the sausage in the compartment for vegetables and fruits.

If the loaf has already been started, then you just need to tightly wrap the cut point with cling film, but you do not need to completely wrap the sausage in the film.

Dried sausages

Tricks

So that the cut of the sausage does not wind, it must be greased with fat or egg white

If mold has appeared on the shell of a dry-cured or raw-smoked sausage, but the sausage itself is not affected by it, then you need to remove the plaque with a cotton swab dipped in vinegar, and grease the affected area with vegetable oil. If the sausage is winded, you can reanimate it by putting it in cold milk.