It is believed that frozen food is generally not healthy as it loses its nutrition value. However, it is to be learnt that the act of freezing doesn’t make food healthy or unhealthy. The nutritional value of the food depends on the nutritional content of the food that is frozen. Freezing doesn’t affect the calorie count, the fiber content, or the amounts of minerals. It can make a difference with a few vitamins, such as folate and vitamin C. But, most of the nutritional value will be maintained after freezing.

Freezing doesn’t change the amount of fat, protein, carbohydrates or sugar either. The fluid content can change, which is apparent when you thaw your food. You might see a puddle of liquid as the water drains away. The smart way of choosing your frozen meal is to look for products that don’t have a lot of added sugar, sodium or high-calorie sauces. Living out of your homes might make you crave for home-made food, and this is when frozen food helps to save you from this hustle.

When it comes to preparing and serving a quick meal, nothing beats the convenience of frozen foods. They fit nicely in your freezer, keep for a long time, and they’re easy to prepare. Stocking up on frozen foods can also be a great way to save money if you buy them when they’re on sale. You can also freeze fresh perishable foods to keep them longer, which is a great way to cut down on waste. But many still wonder whether frozen foods can be a part of a healthy diet. If your food was nutritious before it was frozen, it will still be nutritious after it’s thawed. You can’t go wrong with plain, frozen fruits, vegetables, meats, chicken, and fish. You can even freeze whole grains.

Freezing doesn’t affect the calorie count, the fiber content, or the mineral content of a food. The freezing process can make a difference with a few vitamins (such as folate and vitamin C), but most of a food’s nutritional value will be maintained after freezing. Freezing also won’t change the amount of fat, protein, carbohydrates, or sugar in a particular food. The fluid content can change, however, which is often apparent when you thaw your food (you might see a puddle of liquid as the water drains away).

But, I wish to point out that there are four variable that affect longevity of frozen foods. How they are packed, speed at which they are frozen, in a frost free freezer and most importantly the moisture content.

Depending on the quality of packaging the migration of air into it will vary. If you have a glass jar compared to a freezer bag, the amount of evaporation from the freezer bag will be greater.

Items that are flash frozen have less damage from growing ice crystals piercing cell walls, changing taste and texture.

A frost free fridge several times a day has above freezing air flowing through it to melt frost. This type of freezer will accelerate frost damage. Very small items might thaw and refreeze over and over again.

Items that are very arid, like coffee beans or sun dried tomatoes can keep quite for many years before a flavor or texture change will be apparent. Same for fresh dried spices like basil. Glass jars are ideal for dry ingredients

Unlike in many smaller cities, Urban consumers tend to go to the market once per week. That means that food bought on Saturday has to last through Friday. Fresh produce doesn’t always have a week’s lifespan after being bought, so its frozen counterpart is often the solution to the problem.

Of course, not all produce freezes well: lettuce and bananas, for example, aren’t something you’ll typically find in a freezer case. Those have to be eaten pretty soon after purchase, with perhaps a couple of days’ storage in the refrigerator being possible.

In the end, it comes down to convenience. But it doesn’t hurt that some frozen foods are actually “fresher” than those sold as fresh. Often, the products sold as fresh have been in transit and on the shelf for a week or more, while the frozen item was frozen within minutes of being picked.

Frozen corn—not a substitute for fresh corn on the cob or corn chowder, but they are good in corn fritters.

Frozen meats:  Seafood, like clams lose some of their texture. As long as you don’t store the meat for too long, store it properly for no freezer burn, and you defrost it properly, chicken breasts and thighs are very good.

Most of the nice, colorful veg you see on the supermarket is days old, and each for that goes by they lose a certain proportion of their goodness. Peas fresh from the garden are wonderful; peas from the shop are never that good. Peas in the UK are farmed, picked, frozen and packed in around two hours, and in the shop the next day. They keep their goodness almost as if you’d just picked them.

Some veg doesn’t freeze well without being blanched first. Carrots for instance. You can lose a little vitamin C in this process. Potatoes don’t freeze well at all. Cook them first.

Buy and eat frozen veg in confidence. Much better than the pack of whatever supposedly fresh stuff that says ‘best by’ ten days later.