Freezing pulled pork


 
BFletcher

BFletcher

TVWBB Platinum Member
Hi gang. Over the past year we freeze flat-shaped PP in [knockoff] Foodsaver bags and reheat in boiling water. For our household, our palates aren't too demanding and it works perfectly fine for a meal. Sometimes, however, it is dry. We sauce it, but looking at it in the serving dish can be an unpleasant sight. Do you add liquid before freezing? If so, what? Thanks!
 
How quickly do you freeze it after cooking it? If you let it rest for an hour plus, there will be tons of juice in the foil that you can pour into your bags before freezing them
 
I freeze just like you. Liquid is added when serving, as needed. It's more versatile that way.
 
No liquid. I don't use the reheat in hot water method. I thaw in cold water, then quick microwave (single servings) or reheat in oven (large quantities). Spritz with apple juice if necessary, but it's usually not.
 
I foil my butts. I pour off and save all the liquids from the foil and set it in the freezer to solidify the fat. I remove the fat and heat up the gel before straining the "other" material in the gel.

The liquid (usually 2-3 cups) is reheated and I add a table spoon of BBQ sauce and some dry rub to it and use that to keep my PP "moist" (not really a man's word, but...).

I turn over the sauce throughout the meat by hand (with gloves on) like my hands were tongs. Then I actually use tongs to weigh out my bags for freezing. All bags are weighed out to 1# (it's easier to keep inventory that way).

FWIW, I have a spreadsheet of everything in the freezer. I know it sounds anal, but IMO when the freezer is packed full I'd rather KNOW what's in there versus guessing. I know what year and how many bags there are. I simply put a line through the number so I know what's left.

If anyone is interested I will send you a copy of my spreadsheet for your use and tweaking...no charge. Just email me. ; ' )
 
This isn't a persistent problem; it has occurred twice that I recall. Maybe I didn't divide the juices quite right when making the batches. Thx
 
I have tried the book in bag method, but the microwave works remarkably well, if not better. Literally a minute or so is all it takes. I usually put a damp paper towel over it and it comes out great.
 
hey all!

we freeze in square plastic containers that stack. i, as above freeze any juice left over form any smoking event in baggies that we hang for ease of carving the fat off of the top. we mark each bag because of spice and rub differences and remove the batch of juice that matches the meat froze to add as needed. we drop ours frozen meat in a pan, use a lid and heat as slow as possible, keeping an eye on the meat as to not dry or cause bark to harden further. once heated, add homemade sauce, juice and mix as you would. that is our meal!

**throwing out another freezer topic, do any of you notice a stronger smoke flavor on reheated smoked meats?
 
I guess I could do better, but I just weigh it and bag it. Vacuum seal it and freeze it. The OP is right, sometimes it's not as good as when it went into the bag, but it's better than anything I can get store bought and it makes for a great quick meal. Dry? I guess that's what BBQ sauce is for. When I first get the bag out of the freezer, I heat it in boiling water but after the initial thaw, I've also put a serving into a bowl with BBQ sauce and then heated it in the microwave and that seems to work pretty good too.
 
I like to freeze it in chunks with the Foodsaver, seems to keep the moisture in the product. I thaw by bringing to boil in water, turn off heat and let it set in the water until thawed.
 
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