Freezing rice and pasta

Rice and pasta are two weeknight staples that it’s easy to make too much of. There are plenty of ways to use up leftovers, but if that’s not workable, it’s just as easy to freeze these foods for later. Keeping some ready-made ingredients or meals in the freezer can save time during the week, and ensure that there’s always something on hand to heat up if time, money, or energy for cooking runs low.

 

Food safety risks increase any time food is stored instead of being used right away, and this is especially true for leftover rice and pasta. Uncooked rice and pasta can carry spores of Bacillus cereus, a bacterium that produces toxins that are a very common cause of food poisoning. These spores can survive the cooking process, and quickly multiply and produce toxins at room temperature. They will go dormant if refrigerated or frozen, but will become active again when the leftovers are removed and reheated. Most healthy adults who have eaten food contaminated with Bacillus cereus will get sick 6-12 hours later, and experience flu-like symptoms for roughly 24 hours. Children, the elderly, and pregnant or immunosuppressed people are at higher risk of getting very sick with food poisoning, and should seek out medical care right away if symptoms become severe.

This doesn’t mean that leftover rice and pasta should never be eaten, just that it’s very important to handle these ingredients correctly. Cooked rice and pasta shouldn’t be left on a counter or in a pot on the stove; if it’s been sitting at room temperature for more than 2 hours, throw it out. Ideally, as soon as rice and pasta is done cooking it should either be eaten, or put uncovered in the fridge to cool rapidly. Once the food has reached fridge temperature, it can be put in a lidded container for storage, or frozen according to the instructions below.

Leftover rice and pasta should only be reheated once, so bear that in mind if you’re batch cooking. If you’re using leftover rice or pasta to make a hot dish like soup or casserole, for example, the soup or casserole should be eaten right away and not saved for leftovers too. If you’re using leftover rice and pasta to make cold dishes, like a pasta salad, they can be kept for a little longer, so long as they are kept cold and not warmed up to room temperature. In general, all leftovers should be eaten in 3 or 4 days, so don’t make more food than you can eat in that time, or plan to freeze them instead.

Making your own minute rice is as simple as throwing extra water and rice in the pot, and then properly freezing the leftovers. This can make cheap and healthy brown rice as convenient to cook as microwavable pouches, saving you time and money through the week.

Freezing rice

Steps:

1. Cook rice as normal. Any type of rice will work; you can simply double or triple the recipe next time you make it for a meal, and plan to freeze the leftovers.

2. Cool the rice down to room temperature. The best way to do this is to put it in a shallow container or baking sheet, and then pop it in the fridge.

3. Divide the rice into freezer safe containers. Remember that rice should only be reheated once, so freeze it in quantities that you and your family can eat in one sitting. Label with the date and seal the containers. Compress air out of bags, if you’re using them, to make storage easier. Frozen rice is best used within 2 months.

Reheating rice

Rice tends to freeze into a solid block. It’s best to break it apart into chunks before thawing it on the microwave or the stove. Reheated rice can also dry out quickly; it’s a good idea to use it right away, or add a little water during the reheating process to deal with this issue. There is no need to thaw the rice before reheating

• In the microwave; break frozen rice into chunks, and place in a microwave safe bowl. Cover with lid or plastic wrap, and microwave on “high” until just hot. Time will vary depending on the amount of rice and microwave used.
  
  
• On a stovetop: break frozen rice into chunks, and place in a pot on the stove with a little water. Cover and cook on low heat until the rice is heated all the way though, stirring occasionally to break apart

Pasta sauce and noodles should ideally be frozen separately, because they thaw and reheat at different rates. Keep this in mind when you’re cooking your pasta; unless you’re making a baked casserole dish, like lasagna, it’s a good idea to serve the sauce and noodles separately instead of mixing them together in a pot. Having sauce and noodles stored separately in the freezer also gives you the most options for what to make with your leftovers. You can either thaw them together to remake your original dish, or throw your noodles into a different kind of pasta salad or casserole and save the sauce for later.

Freezing noodles

General tips:

If you’re cooking pasta you know you’re going to freeze, make sure not to overcook the noodles. Defrosting and reheating is going to cook your noodles slightly more, and if they’re soft to begin with, they’re more likely to turn into mush. Instead, follow the package instructions for preparing your pasta “al dente”, or until the noodles are just cooked but still firm, and follow the steps below.

Steps:

1. After the noodles are cooked, toss them with a little oil to keep them from sticking together and place them in a shallow container in the fridge, uncovered, to cool. Alternatively, quickly cool the pasta by placing it in a colander, and rinsing with cold water until cool. Cooling the pasta before freezing will keep condensation from forming in your storage containers, potentially causing freezer burn.

2. Flash freeze the noodles by spreading them out in a single layer on a baking sheet, and place in the freezer for about an hour. This step is optional, but will help ensure that the pasta doesn’t freeze together into a big lump.

3. Transfer noodles into freezer safe bags or containers for long term storage. It’s a good idea to freeze pasta in serving sizes, so it can be easily taken out of the freezer and used to make a meal. Label with the date, and type of pasta if it’s not visible through the bag. Frozen pasta is best used within 6 months.

Reheating noodles

Two easy methods:

• Put noodles in the fridge overnight to thaw, and use them the next day. The noodles are already cooked, so you can add them to your dish as is, or warm them up in the microwave.
  
  
• If there’s no time to thaw in advance, put frozen noodles directly into a pot of boiling water or simmering pasta sauce. The noodles should thaw and heat up in just a few minutes, depending on the thickness, so keep a close watch over them to prevent them overcooking.

Eat the noodles the same day that they’re defrosted, and don’t save leftovers.

Freezing pasta sauce

General tips:

In general, tomato-based pasta sauces like marinara freeze better than cream-based sauces like alfredo. Cream-based sauces tend to separate in the freezer, leading to unappealing texture changes when thawed. It’s also better to avoid freezing pasta sauces with a lot of chunky vegetables, which might turn into mush after some time in the freezer. If you want to add fresh herbs like basil, sage, thyme, or rosemary to your sauce, do it after it’s been defrosted; these herbs taste great fresh or dried, but can get bitter when frozen.

Steps:

1. Cool sauce completely to room temperature. You can put the sauce uncovered in the fridge to cool down, or simply leave it on your stovetop for a maximum of 2 hours.

2. Divide your sauce into freezer containers, bearing in mind that it will expand as it freezes; don’t overfill your containers, especially if you’re using glass! You’ll want to freeze the sauce in serving sizes, so it’s easily defrosted and used. Label the containers with the date and type of sauce, and store them in the freezer for ideally no more than 6 months. The sauce will still be safe to eat after 6 months, but the flavors will likely diminish, and there is a greater chance of freezer burn on the food.

Reheating pasta sauce

Three easy methods:

• Ideally, leave your sauce in the fridge overnight to thaw it, and heat it up the next day on the stovetop or microwave to use. This will minimize risks from foodborne bacteria, and is best for pasta sauces containing meat.
  
  
• If you don’t have time to defrost the sauce in the fridge, you can put the container of sauce into a bowl of cool water to thaw. Don’t use hot water for this method, because that will increase the temperature of the sauce to an unsafe level.
  
  
• If you’re in a rush and have a microwave, sauce can be thawed with the defrost setting.

Cream based or cheesy sauces may separate during thawing. You should be able to whisk them back together during the reheating process, though the texture may stay a little grainy. Make sure you eat your sauce the same day that it’s defrosted, and don’t save any leftovers.

Freezing pasta with sauce

Two simple methods:

• To freeze leftover pasta that’s already mixed with sauce, simply cool it to room temperature in the fridge, divide it into freeze safe containers, label them with the date and type of pasta, and freeze. When you’re choosing the size of container, bear in mind that the pasta can only be reheated and served once; it’s a good idea to freeze it in servings that you can finish off in one sitting.
  
  
• You can also meal prep pasta <casseroles> that can be taken out of the freezer and baked for a quick supper. This is a great thing to do when you’re cooking a meal; it’s not very much work to double a recipe and assemble two casseroles, putting one in the freezer for later. The easiest way to do this is to layer pasta noodles and sauce into an aluminum foil freezer pan, making sure that the noodles are entirely covered by the sauce. Cool your pan down to fridge temperature in the fridge, cover it tightly, and put it in the freezer for storage.

The pasta should be good in the freezer for 3-6 months. To increase the lifespan of your pasta, use airtight freezer safe bags and containers for storage. You’ll want to compress the air out of freezer bags, and ensure that lids on containers are sealed shut.

Reheating pasta with sauce

• Noodles and sauce thaw at different rates, so you’ll definitely want to leave your mixed pasta to defrost overnight in the fridge. Once the pasta is all the way thawed, leftovers can be heated in the microwave and casseroles can be baked in the oven according to the recipe. Make sure to consume all of the pasta the same day it’s defrosted, and don’t save any for leftovers.

 

Further reading

UF Extension: Don't let rice or pasta ruin your day!

UN Extension: Freezing rice and pasta

Food is Too Expensive! was funded by the City of Saskatoon through our Healthy Yards partnership, the Cyril Capling Trust Fund of the College of Agriculture and Bioresources, and the Department of Plant Sciences. Focus group research to inform this work was collected by CHEP. Thank you all for helping us make healthy food more accessible!