—John Nocita, Chef and President of the Italian Culinary Institute (Italy), in an interview with Restaurateur magazine.

If you love meat, get ready! Today is the moment of truth for meat-eaters, because once you’ve read this article, you’ll find out:

• can you freeze meat?
• what is flash freezing and how does it differ from standard freezing?
• how does proper freezing actually affect the flavour of your favourite meat products?

If you don’t own a farm (or at least live next door to one) and buy meat that has travelled a certain distance to reach the shops, then the answer is YES – go for frozen meat!

But, as they say, the devil is in the detail, so the meat needs to be frozen correctly – using the shock-freezing method. This is a special process of accelerated freezing that is far superior to standard domestic methods.

Let’s take a closer look.

Flash freezing is an accelerated freezing process that is 3 to 10 times faster than standard methods. The cooling rate is adjusted depending on the type of product.

Simply put, it is an ultra-fast freezing technique that perfectly preserves nutrients, texture, and flavour.

As a result of an optimally calibrated shock freezing process, meat products do not lose their rich flavour; they remain firm and succulent, and retain their volume during cooking.

‘But where are the facts?’ you might ask. And we agree, so let us briefly delve into the world of molecular chemistry.

According to Van ’t Hoff’s rule — who, incidentally, was a Nobel laureate in Chemistry — the rate of chemical reactions slows down as the temperature decreases.

Simply put, the faster the cooling process, the slower the degradation of the substance. This is the fundamental difference between flash freezing and slow freezing. It is precisely this feature that preserves the nutritional value and flavour of the products.

Furthermore, with shock freezing, the process of active sublimation (dehydration) begins significantly later — at the 6-month mark at the earliest. This extends the product's shelf life up to 18 months, without any loss of succulence or softening of its structure.

At the molecular level, the rapid method works as follows: the ice within the fibre structure is very small, less than 50 microns (compared to 180 microns or more in the slow method), and therefore the tiny ice crystals do not grow together to form larger ones.

With slow freezing, on the other hand, the microcrystals begin to coalesce into larger ones right from the start of the freezing process, destroying the cell walls, and so dehydration begins immediately.

In addition, the fats undergo oxidation and rancidity.

Let’s not go into too much detail on this topic; the main thing for us is that this method of heat treatment, more than any other, is ideal for preserving the qualities of craft meat.

Buy artisanal, farm-reared meat from organic farms.

So, rapid freezing helps to preserve the texture, flavour and juiciness of food, as well as extending its shelf life. But the benefits don’t stop there.

Incidentally, low temperatures inhibit microflora: sarcocysts, Neospora, Toxoplasma and other parasitic microorganisms cannot tolerate harsh, almost polar conditions.

Consequently, meat that has undergone shock freezing is safer than meat that has simply been chilled or frozen using standard methods.

Like many modern food preservation technologies, flash-freezing is surrounded by a whole host of myths and outright fabrications. We therefore feel it is necessary to debunk the most common of these.

Myth 1: All nutrients are ‘destroyed’ during freezing.

Reality: During both flash-freezing and slow freezing, the vitamin C content does indeed decrease, by approximately 15 per cent, which, in the case of meat, is a negligible loss.

Nutritionists state that poultry and meat products should not be regarded as a source of this vitamin. To replenish your ascorbic acid reserves, you need to eat fresh fruit and vegetables.

At the same time, the mass fractions of protein, fat and moisture, as well as the pH level, remain virtually unchanged throughout the entire storage period.

According to research, by the seventh day of freezing, the content of fat-soluble vitamins is similar to that of frozen meat after a whole year of storage!

Myth 2: Frozen meat works out more expensive than a fresh cut.

Reality: Yes, such a product can end up costing more when dealing with slow freezing and an unscrupulous producer. But with shock freezing, this is simply impossible.

With shock freezing, the total weight loss after defrosting is a mere 0.8% maximum, which is negligible compared to slow freezing, where the product can lose up to 10% of its weight due to sublimation.

Moreover, some dishonest producers — and occasionally even large companies — artificially inflate the weight by pumping the meat with liquid before freezing. Consequently, once defrosted, the price per net weight naturally skyrockets.

This practice is deceptive and negatively affects the flavour profile of the product. Therefore, we never do this, and we strongly advise against it (feel free to weigh our steaks AFTER defrosting).

‘Private Butcher’ meat first undergoes dry or wet ageing, is then shock-frozen, and finally vacuum-packed. Everything is honest and transparent — in both the literal and figurative sense of the word.

Myth 3: Meat loses its flavour after defrosting.

Reality: If you defrost meat and poultry correctly, without using harsh methods, these products are every bit as good as fresh ones. Flavour, aroma, texture and juiciness — all these characteristics remain excellent.

It would take a long time to debunk this myth, but the best way is to try artisanal farm meat from organic farms and draw your own conclusions.

Previously, some 20 years ago, it was thought that the faster the freezing process, the better the quality, as the ice crystals were smaller. Experts have now come to a different conclusion.

There is an optimal speed and a series of stages for flash-freezing, which vary for each product. When it comes to farm-raised meat, the freezing process is as follows:

• A preliminary stage, during which the product is cooled to 0°C.
• Pre-freezing, lowering the temperature to -5°C. This step allows up to 70 per cent of the liquid substances to be converted into microcrystals.
• Final freezing, during which different cuts of meat are brought to a temperature of -24 to -40 °C using forced-air cooling.

It is precisely this rapid yet phased process that allows us to preserve all the flavour characteristics and texture of our meat products to the greatest possible extent.

This is how we prepare all varieties of meat products from our range for dispatch:

• Premium Beef Steaks & Butcher's Cuts
• Farmhouse Chicken & Poultry
• Lamb
• Pork
• Sausages, Burgers & Smokehouse

To order these and other meat products, please visit our website.

We deliver all our products in insulated packaging, so there’s no need to worry about the meat defrosting in transit. What’s more, each product is individually sealed in sturdy vacuum packaging.

Vacuum packaging offers additional benefits:

• the meat is not exposed to air;
• the cuts are protected from any contamination and harmful bacteria;
• the meat retains its juiciness;
• the product does not absorb odours from other items in the freezer

Meat products should be stored in the freezer for between 4 and 18 months, depending on the type of meat. The vacuum seal should only be removed just before cooking.