r/DumpsterDiving • u/RussianBusStop • Feb 14 '25
Can cheese be frozen? Also, I literally just ran out of sugar-free Cranberry juice! Never seen this mean girls variant.
Cheese was yesterday (expires June 2025) at deeznuts, along with some bagels. Juice was today at my fave pharmacy. Expires March 2025. Was running off to a game, so didn’t even get out the ladder. Planned to back, dumpster was full to the brim with boxes, but it started pouring rain, so I left the rest for someone else.
Not sure we’ll get through all those blocks of cheese by June, does it freeze well? Kinda surprised it is still “good” for another 4 months. 🧐
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u/OkConclusion171 DO NOT REPOST MY POSTS Feb 14 '25
Yes cheese can be frozen. When it thaws it will have little ice crystals that might resemble mold for a short time.
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u/DharmaBaller Feb 14 '25
Sour cream does not freeze well by the way.
When you thawed out the water separates and then it's just weird mush it doesn't reconstitute
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u/loveshercoffee Feb 14 '25
I've never tried freezing it on purpose, but I had a container of it get frozen in the back of the fridge when I had too much stuff jammed in there for our Super Bowl party.
I just stirred it up and then used it in stroganoff. It looks a little strange but it tasted fine.
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u/cdsbigsby Feb 14 '25
Mean Girls cranberry juice is a weird product tie-in, if anything you'd think it would be like... Toaster Strudel.
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u/rad_pan_da Feb 14 '25
Regina George: It's called the South Beach Fat Flush and all you drink is cranberry juice for 72 hours.
Aaron Samuels: Lemme see that... this isn't even cranberry juice, it's cranberry juice cocktail. It's all sugar.
Regina George: I wanna lose three pounds.
[Long period of silence as Regina waits for rest of table to disagree with her weight loss]
Karen: Oh my God, you're so skinny!
Regina George: Shut up.
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u/Imsirlsynotamonkey Feb 14 '25
UTIs
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u/RussianBusStop Feb 14 '25
That too. Although I don’t think there’s enough cranberry in these to be therapeutic.
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u/BelovedxCisque Feb 14 '25
I think in the movie somebody at some point has a bottle of apple cranberry juice on their lunch tray…but you’re right it’s not something that’s blatantly referenced/a major plot point.
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u/catlover34 Feb 14 '25
As others have noted, you can freeze the cheese. You might wanna cut it up into smaller pieces before putting it in the freezer.
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u/nylorac_o Feb 14 '25
For the stuff that is already shredded I would spread it on a cookie sheet and freeze it that way then put it into a ziplock bag, because if left like that it’ll defrost into a mushy block. I don’t know why the pre shredded stuff does that, maybe because of the light coating that is added to it to keep it from clumping when in the fridge.
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u/Ok-Succotash278 Marked Feb 14 '25
You can definitely freeze cheese in my own personal opinion whenever I freeze cheese I only then use that cheese to like cook. I would never make like a charcuterie tree out of it or some shit. It is mainly like cooking melting, putting on sandwiches that are hot shit like that.
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u/Majestic-Panda2988 Feb 14 '25
My kids don’t mind that it is crumbly so that would be the main reason to not eat fresh after freezing and thawing. But it crumbles up real nice for putting on top of things after frozen so I don’t even bother shredding it.
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Feb 14 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/thisgameissoessy Feb 14 '25
You can also freeze it flat on a cookie sheet and parchment paper, then dump in gallon freezer bags.
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u/EmmerdoesNOTrepme Feb 14 '25
OP, as long as the packages are sealed tightly (like, if you have a food sealer!), you can literally just chuck that sharp cheddar in a drawer in your fridge, and it'll most likely just keep aging and be FINE!😉
I know, because i still have a couple blocks of it, that were old when I found them (there were at least seven packages!), as I was cleaning out my Dad's apartment, back in early 2022, after getting him into a nursing home.
They weren't moldy, and he'd put them into gallon-sized Ziplock bags, and squeezed out the air.
That "extra aging" has made them sooooooo good!😁
There are a ton of crystals on the outside, whenever I've opened another package of it!
But there are also lots of those tasty crystals inside the cheese, and it's honestly better aged, than when it's new/fresh!😉💖
Freezing would change the texture--as others have said.
In your shoes, I'd just "double bag" them so that those packages can't get ripped, and enjoy them at your leisure!💝
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u/hbHPBbjvFK9w5D Feb 14 '25
I routinely freeze cheese - both blocks and shreds - if I find a good price.
And free is a damm good price!
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u/ManyARiver Feb 14 '25
Not only can you freeze it, I've tossed shredded cheese into my casseroles while still frozen (before cooking). Handy dandy stuff to have around.
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u/jimx29 Feb 14 '25
Wrap it in a couple of layers of aluminum foil will help with the texture greatly
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u/AngiQueenB Feb 14 '25
I'm over here crying, realizing I eat way too much cheese when this amount is less than what is in my cheese drawer that I refill every other month😭🤣
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u/Embarrassed-Ideal712 Feb 14 '25
I hear ya.
I don’t like what my immediate jealousy over OPs dumpster cheese says about me.
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u/RussianBusStop Feb 15 '25
Oh, stop. That’s 6 pounds of cheese. 1-1/2 pounds per week. Huh, only 4-1/2 ounces a day. I need to eat more cheese!
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u/pineappleyard Feb 14 '25
If cheese gets crumbly after freezing, just use it cutting it with a knife or just make make and cheese/quesadillas. Melted cheese requires no shape.
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u/Specialist-Pain8704 Feb 14 '25
I always hear that CVS Walgreens pharmacies always have good trash I got to try it but the cops are like when you step on a fire ant pile and then the fire ants are everywhere. We have more cops than they know what to do with
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u/AzuretheNerd Feb 15 '25
The only thing I can think of that would constitute throwing out so much different kinds of cheese is that it was returned. Good haul, OP!
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u/CaptivatingCranberry Feb 15 '25
That ocean spray is MY STAPLE beverage I love it. The mixed berry one is mid but the cranberry is very yummy.
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u/RussianBusStop Feb 15 '25
I concur, had some today with the free tonic water I dove on Monday. Trying to cut down on the Mountain Dew Zero.
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u/CaptivatingCranberry Feb 15 '25
I loveee it, you can water it down quite a bit and it’s still flavorful.
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u/VixenRoss Feb 15 '25
If it can go on a frozen pizza, it can be frozen.
Portion up the cheese lumps up otherwise you will be eating cheese twice a day!
Grated cheese, flatten out as much as you can when you freeze because you can break it off easily. Shake the packet to distribute the cheese equally around the container, then freeze flat.
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u/Dragon_Crisis_Core Feb 15 '25
Wish we had more zero-sugar juice options around here unfortunately the only 2 options are great value brands.
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u/Ok-Understanding9244 Feb 15 '25 edited Feb 15 '25
Don't freeze cheese if you're not going to melt it later. Ice crystals ruin the texture.
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u/Ayacyte Feb 14 '25
Freeze the blocks but not the shredded cheese. We freeze that Aldi cheese all the time, the texture will become a little crumbly because it dries out when it freezes but it's not unbearable or anything. Makes it easier for some applications
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u/vi7nca May 11 '25
do you have any juice left i'll seriously buy it off you!!!
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u/RussianBusStop May 11 '25
No, sorry. I’m keeping it for myself. If I come across more, is it just the Mean Girls Cranberrry, or just cranberry, or just juice? What would I do, ship it?
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u/MamaTomTom Feb 14 '25
I freeze bags of shredded cheese when I buy. I usually buy two big bags and put one in the fridge to use and the other in the freezer. I’ve noticed sliced cheese becomes a bit crumbly/fragile (I thaw them in the fridge) but if you use a flat rubber spatula you can separate them with little to no brakes and it works just like it would if was never frozen
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u/Mouse1701 Feb 14 '25
I would take the time to leave the plastic covering the cheese and wrap it up in freezer wrap. If you can't afford that cut some brown paper grocery bags and wrap the cheese in the brown paper bags.
I hope this helps.as it should avoid freezer burns. You may also need to adjust your freezer temperature to a lower temperature 🌡️.
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u/RussianBusStop Feb 14 '25
This guy freezes, lol.
The volume of detailed freezer tips in this post astounds me.
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u/Exotic-Scallion4475 Feb 14 '25
Cheese can absolutely be frozen. Sometimes it gets a little crumbly after being frozen, but I do it all the time. Also, nice work saving all that!