You're Throwing Away Your Secret Weapon For Frozen Food Storage
If you're tired of spending wads of cash on expensive plastic freezer bags, there's most likely something at your fingertips that can be recycled for use as a fine freezer bag substitute. Inside all of your breakfast cereal boxes, you'll find a sturdy, waterproof bag that you're most likely throwing away. Made from a high-density plastic called polyethylene film, cereal bags are made to keep out moisture and condensation, which also means that they aid in preventing freezer-burned food, which can't make you sick but might ruin your dish. Additionally, the type of plastic used for cereal bags has a waxy texture that — like wax paper — creates a nonstick surface for freezing things like meat.
Because you can use cereal bags for frozen food storage, you can eliminate the extra expense of freezer bags, wax paper, or freezer paper (a cousin to wax paper but with wax on one side only), or at least cut down on the amount you keep on hand. However, unlike Ziploc freezer bags, cereal bags lack a zipper or proper seal. There are a few different ways to seal reused cereal bags, beginning with an easy and inexpensive solution: packing tape. To properly store a raw cut of meat (or any other non-liquid food item), simply place the item into the clean cereal bag, press out as much air as possible, and seal using packing tape. To ensure there will be absolutely no freezer burn, you can also use plastic wrap inside of the cereal bag.
Other ways to use cereal bags for frozen food
If you're interested in the sustainability of cereal bags for frozen foods, try using them as an extra bag for that ground meat you brought home, didn't open, and need to freeze. Simply place the ground meat (in its original packaging) inside the cereal bag. The extra layer of heavy plastic will prevent any freezer burn. You can seal it with tape or even staple the bag closed. It's also possible to use a FoodSaver vacuum sealer machine to reseal a cereal bag (look for manufacturer instructions on resealing). When it's time to thaw your meat, you can remove the packaged meat and reuse the outer cereal bag.
For double the insulation, cereal bags work great inside larger freezer bags. The waxy cereal bags can be used to separate food items like hamburger patties — simply cut them up and place them in between the patties before freezing. These durable bags also hold up well to beatings when you want to tenderize a cut meat with a mallet, and rather than having to place the meat in between two sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper, you can simply place the meat in the bag before tenderizing. You can also use cereal bags as extra insulation for freezing liquids which are prone to freezer burn. So the next time you're reaching for expensive wax paper or extra freezer bags, consider recycling those liner bags in your cereal boxes instead.