Nutritional and Toxicological Aspects of the Chemical Changes of Food Components and Nutrients During Freezing

Abstract

Freezing is one of the easiest, quickest, most versatile, trustworthy, and convenient methods of preserving foods. Proper methods of pre-freezing treatment, freezing process, keeping in frozen state, and thawing guarantee minimal quality and nutrient losses and formation of toxic compounds during this cycle. In this chapter principles and methods of freeze/thaw process are discussed in connection with nutritional and toxicological aspects of freezing of foods of both plant (fruits and vegetables) and animal (meat and milk) origin. To retain better the texture, flavor, and most of the nutrients, fast freezing of the food raw material is usually recommended. To guarantee the possibly minimal formation of toxic compounds as well as minimize microbial growth, temperatures below −18 °C (0 °F) are advised for long-term frozen storage of food items. Dairy products are seldom stored in frozen state.