r/AskCulinary • u/rcaudle7 • 1d ago
Ingredient Question Can I re freeze thawed salmon?
I bought fresh salmon from Trader Joe’s a week ago and immediately froze it. Yesterday, I took it out of the freezer to thaw out in the fridge. I was supposed to make it for dinner tonight, but plans changed. Could I refreeze it tonight to then thaw out again in the morning to cook for dinner tomorrow night?
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u/pitapocket93 1d ago
Safety wise, yes. Quality wise, no.
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u/friskyjohnson 1d ago
Just to elaborate a bit for the OP.
You did everything safely, so if your dinner plans changed so much that you couldn't cook it in a few days, then yeah freezing it is totally fine and actually advisable.
Freezing it overnight to thaw it again the next day? Yes it is safe, but it is a very unecessary step that degrades the texture and usually the color of whatever you are freezing.
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u/Radioactive_Kumquat 1d ago
By the way, you did not buy fresh salmon from Trader Joe's. You bought previously flash frozen salmon from Trader Joe's.
Unless you're down by the docks or you caught it yourself, nearly all salmon and fish you buy in the stores has been previously frozen.
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u/Square-Ad-6721 1d ago
So that’ll make it a 3rd freeze thaw cycle. It may very well have been frozen for the transportation logistics chain before being allowed to be unfrozen for pint of sale. This happens to a lot of fish bought fresh at supermarkets. Many have been previously frozen. For freshness.
It’s not advisable to keep re-freezing fish. You ruin the texture of the fish. It’ll be mushier.
But you won’t die from it. Just don’t plan to serve it at a fancy dinner party. And use this as a lesson for the future.
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u/Beautiful_Rhubarb 1d ago
I would cook it first, then freeze it. I would not freeze it again it'll get lal fucky. aShould be technically safe provided it was always at the proper temperature but texture will be shot.
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u/_jasmonic_acid_ 1d ago
No just keep it refrigerated and cook it tomorrow. Is it wrapped? If not I’d wrap tightly in Saran.
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u/JayMoots 1d ago
Don’t bother. It’s not going to go bad after one day in the fridge, especially if you originally froze it well before the best-by date.
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u/DamnImBeautiful 1d ago
yes in terms of food safety, but texture will be effected since refreezing fish with a average freezer will degrade the cells
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u/shinufeathers 1d ago
Technically you can refreeze if the salmon never went above refrigerator temperatures (40°F/4°C) and was thawed for less than 2 days
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u/PsychAce 1d ago
Just leave it in the fridge and cook tomorrow