Can You Freeze Soup With Rice In It?
Soup can be one of the most delicious, yet nutritious ways to fill your stomach, isn’t it? It is also a quick way to satisfy your hunger. And who doesn’t love soup? The wholesomeness of the meal is something to drool for!
There are a lot of soup recipes, but in this article, I will be specifically focusing on freezing soup that contains rice. While I will touch upon other soup recipes as well, the motive of this article is to let you know, if you can freeze soup with rice or not.
How Can You Freeze Rice Soup?
Freezing the rice soup might appear easy, but it needs some precautions. Precautions because improper handling of the soup before freezing will degrade the quality. You must follow a stepwise approach while freezing your soup.
To ensure you do it right, check out the following points:
- The very first thing to freeze soup is to allow the recipe to cool down completely. This will prevent bacterial growth, and protect the soup from freezer burns.
- Once the soup has cooled, carefully pour it into freezer-safe containers. If you have larger quantities of soup, use smaller containers to freeze it in portions.
- Seal the containers tightly. Make sure you use specific lids for the containers for effective sealing.
- When you achieve all these steps, label the containers with the date and contents, and stack them in the freezer. Your soup is ready to be frozen.
Things To Know Before You Freeze Rice Soup!
Now that you know how to freeze soup that has rice in it, check out the following points for effective freezing. This is valid for any soup recipe.
- Ensure that your soup container is appropriately sealed. This will not only prevent spills but also protect the soup from freezer burns.
- Do not fill the containers to the brim, leave a little headspace. This will make space for expansion and prevent any form of container rupture.
- Mix the soup with rice in it properly before freezing. This will eliminate any kind of clumps that might appear.
How Long Can You Freeze The Soup That Has Rice?
Soup is primarily liquid food, so it cannot be frozen for very long. You can preserve soup that has rice in it for roughly 1 month. Yes, that is the shelf life of frozen soup, be it any soup. It is still better than keeping it in the refrigerator.
However, if you keep your soup longer, you will notice the quality begins to decrease dramatically. This happens because of the extremely cold temperature and the liquid texture of the soup. It is hence advised to consume frozen soup within 1 month for the best taste.
Does Soup With Rice Freeze Well?
Well, the freezer-friendliness of any kind of soup can be a little tricky. Again, this is because of the ingredients and the liquid consistency of the soup. That said, rice soup is not something that freezes well.
The probable reason rice soups do not freeze well is that rice continues to cook in hot broth when the soup is left to cool. The overcooked rice might not be suitable for the freezer, even if it is an ingredient in the recipe.
Soups That Freeze Well
Talking about the freezer-friendliness of soups, some soup recipes freeze well compared to others. Check them out here:
- Soups with beans
- Soups with carrots
- Soups with meat
Soups That Do Not Freeze Well
There are some recipes for soup that are not quite freezer-friendly. They might end up losing their texture and flavor once frozen. Check them out here:
- Soups with cream
- Soups with noddles
- Soups with tomato
- Soups with mushroom
- Soups with eggs
How To Defrost Rice Soup?
The best place and probably the only place to defrost soup is the microwave. This applies to any kind of soup. You do not need to thaw the soup in the refrigerator. All you have to do is, remove the lid of the container and place it in the microwave.
Let your rice soup process in the microwave for a few minutes, before you serve it hot. Also, remember that you must not let the soup thaw at room temperature. Doing this will promote bacterial growth, thus ruining your food.
Can You Refreeze Soup That Has Rice?
As mentioned above, rice soup is something that usually does not freeze well. So you must get an idea by now that it is a bad idea to refreeze the soup. However, some guidelines say it is possible to refreeze rice soup based on its ingredients.
I would advise you to simply avoid refreezing the rice soup, as it will surely lead to loss of flavor. Also, as rice is not a very good companion in soup, freezing again might not work. It is best if you consume your frozen soup immediately after it is reheated.
