How to Refreeze Cooked Fish

Contributor

By T. Connors
eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating:

(0 Ratings)

If you plan to refreeze cooked fish, understand you might be compromising the quality if the fish once you defrost it to eat again. There are some fish that refreeze and defrost better than others, but for the most part you might lose the textural quality of your fish. Once you defrost your refrozen fish, you might want to use that fish for a chowder or stew instead of eating it as a fillet. For those who don't want to waste their leftover cooked fish, refreezing is an option, but there are several pointers to follow if they want to successfully refreeze their cooked fish.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Vacuum sealer
Vacuum sealer bags
Salmon
Orange roughy

Refreezing Cooked Fish

Step 1

Select a fish that is higher in fat such as farmed salmon. Farmed salmon has a higher fat content and will hold up better to refreezing. Make sure the fish is brought to room temperature or cooler before sealing. This will prevent you from burning your fingers or building steam inside the vacuum-sealed bag.
Step 2

Cut the vacuum bag to the right size of your piece of cooked fish. Leave a minimum of two to four inches around the piece of cooked fish to seal the it properly.
Step 3

Load the vacuum sealer bag into the vacuum, and seal the fish. Seal the fish until all the air is eliminated in the bag.
Step 4

Mark the bag with the date on which you sealed the fish. You will have to eat or use this fish within three months of sealing.
Step 5

Place the fish into the freezer immediately.

Tips & Warnings

Allow your fish to defrost in the fridge overnight. To use thawed refrozen fish for a fish chowder, simply add the cooked fish at the end of the recipe. Because the fish doesn't need to be cooked from scratch, adding the fish at the end of cooking will reheat the cold fish.
Never defrost fish on the counter in room temperatures. Food-born illnesses are a high risk for food defrosted at temperatures above 41 degrees Fahrenheit.