After a long and hard week at work, few things can beat tucking into a delicious Indian takeaway. Whether you love a bhuna or a biryani, the flavours and spices are a real treat and save you from doing the washing up. But what’s the best way to preserve your leftovers?
Can You Freeze Indian Takeaway?
Yes, you can freeze Indian takeaway for up to 1 month, but it really depends on what you’ve ordered. Nearly all curries (excluding those with potatoes) freeze really well, as do rice dishes. Our advice is to freeze your Indian takeaway dishes separately.
Do Does Indian Takeaway freeze well? Yes
Can you refreeze Indian Takeaway? No
How to Freeze Indian Takeaway
Indian takeaway means something different for everyone. However, most of us order some type of curry and a rice dish as standard. If this is the case, the good news is that it can be frozen.
The first and most important thing to do when you’re freezing Indian takeaway is to allow it to cool before adding it to the freezer.
You will then need to wrap each of the dishes separately. If, for instance, you’re freezing curry and rice, you should freeze your curry in one container and the rice in the other. This just makes your life so much easier when it comes to defrosting the right things.
You will also need to make sure your Indian takeaway is thoroughly wrapped and protected from freezer burn. If you don’t wrap it tightly, the food will spoil in the freezer.
Providing you follow the above steps, you can freeze everything from a vegetable biryani to a chicken tikka masala.
5 Tips for Freezing Indian Takeaway
Now you know how to freeze it, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing Indian takeaway to have the best results:
Avoid Potatoes
If your curry contains potatoes, it probably won’t freeze very well. As such, it’s best to either remove the potatoes from the sauce before freezing the curry or avoid freezing this dish altogether
Meat-Based Curries Freeze Well
Whether you’ve ordered chicken, lamb, or even fish curry, you will find that they freeze really well.
Always Freeze the Rice Separately
Rice and curry freeze differently, so it’s best to freeze them in separate containers. This should be easy enough as you can transfer them directly from their takeaway containers into freezer-safe versions.
Freeze Once
You should only freeze your takeaway once. This is because you can’t be sure of how many times the ingredients have been frozen before they arrived on your plate.
Freeze Quickly
As soon as your Indian takeaway has cooled, it’s important to get it in the freezer right away. Indian dishes that have been sitting out overnight should not be frozen.
How Long Can You Freeze Indian Takeaway?
You can store Indian takeaway in the freezer for around one month. Homemade curries can typically be frozen for longer than this, but we’d advise you to use your frozen takeaway within a month or so for the best results.
The reason for this is that the ice crystals that form during the freezing process can affect the taste and texture of your takeaway, so it’s best to reheat and enjoy it quickly to avoid disappointment.
You Can Freeze Indian Takeaway for up to 1 Month
How Do You Defrost Indian Takeaway?
When you’re ready to reheat your Indian takeaway, we would advise you to thaw it thoroughly in the fridge first. This can take several hours, so it’s best to remove it from the freezer the night before you plan to tuck in.
You can then reheat your Indian takeaway in the microwave or the oven, depending on your preference.
You should never thaw Indian takeaway at room temperature, as doing so can cause the ingredients to spoil.
Can You Refreeze Indian Takeaway?
No, you should only freeze Indian takeaway once. We’ve touched upon this already, but freezing Indian takeaway multiple times isn’t a good idea because you can’t be sure of how the ingredients were stored before they reached your plate.
You can keep your leftover Indian takeaway in the fridge for 1-2 days before you need to eat it, so bear this in mind and see if you can enjoy the leftovers within a few days to avoid throwing them out.
Does Indian Takeaway Freeze Well?
Overall, most Indian takeaway dishes freeze well. It’s important that you use common sense when freezing Indian takeaway and make sure that you wrap the dishes tightly in order to protect them from freezer burn.
Providing you follow the tips above, you should be able to freeze Indian takeaway without any issue.
Related FAQs
If you’ve still got questions about freezing Indian takeaway or Indian takeaway in general, then these may help:
Yes, you can freeze Indian takeaway rice. The important thing is to ensure it isn’t left sitting out at room temperature for an extended period of time.
Yes, you can freeze naan from your local Indian takeaway restaurant. Wrap each naan in a sheet of foil and then place it into a labelled bag before popping it into the freezer.
