How to Cool Gumbo Before Storing
- 1). Cool off the gumbo first by taking off the lid of the cooking pot for about five minutes to allow any additional steam to escape.
- 2). While the steam is releasing from the pot, fill the large pot or container half full with ice.
- 3). Place a gallon-size freezer bag in the 5-quart sauce pan. Open it up to fill the bottom of the pan and fold the sides down to wrap around the side of the pot.
- 4). Move the pot of gumbo next to the pot with the freezer bag and ladle gumbo into the freezer bag until it is almost full. Fold the sides of the freezer bag up, top off with additional gumbo, if needed, and seal tightly, pushing out any excess air. Repeat this step until all of the gumbo has been moved to the freezer bags.
- 5). Place the freezer bags full of gumbo in the tub of ice and add water until the bags are submerged in the ice water. Keep a thick layer of ice under the bags to chill the gumbo faster. The heat from the gumbo will help the bags to melt the ice around it and sink in to the ice bath and less ice will need to be added later.
- 6
Use a meat thermometer like this one. A digital food thermometer is another good option.Thermometer image by Ewe Degiampietro from Fotolia.com
Allow the gumbo to sit in the ice bath, monitoring the temperature about every 20 minutes. To easily check the temperature without opening the bag each time, fold the center of the bag of gumbo around the thermometer point to surround the thermometer with the gumbo in the bag. Keep the thermometer in place for at least 30 seconds to ensure an accurate reading. The hotter the gumbo was, the longer it will take to cool in the ice bath. The gumbo should reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit in two hours or less. If the ice bath has more water than ice, remove water and add back more ice to ensure the bath stays as cold as possible. - 7). Remove the gumbo from the ice bath when it has reached an internal temperature of 41 degrees Fahrenheit or less. It is important to make sure the bag is completely chilled before moving to the next step to ensure the longest life of the gumbo in storage. After removed from the ice, the gumbo will not cool as quickly, even in the freezer. Between 41 degrees and 135 degrees Fahrenheit is when germs multiply faster and the gumbo will begin to spoil. The goal is to get it from 135 degrees to 41 degrees as quickly as possible.
- 8). Remove chilled gumbo from the ice bath, ensure that the bag is sealed and place flat on its side in the freezer. Placing the gumbo flat in the freezer helps it to have more surface area to freeze faster and to thaw faster when ready to be re-heated. When re-heating, be sure to heat to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
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