Can You Freeze Mortadella?

How to Freeze Mortadella

The best method for freezing mortadella is ready sliced and in portions that can be easily grabbed out of the freezer. You can then just grab out a slice or two or as many as you need.

1. Slice
   If the mortadella isn’t already sliced you need to slice it first. If possible slice into slightly thicker slices because this will freeze better.
2. Prepare Parchment
   Cut squares of parchment or greaseproof paper. You need as many of these as you have slices of mortadella.
3. Layer
   Layer up slices of mortadella with layers of parchment paper squares. You want to ensure that you alternate so that no two pieces of meat are touching. This is to ensure you can part the meat easily when you need some.
4. Wrap
   Wrap the whole sausage layers in clingfilm to protect it from the air.
5. Bag Up
   Pop the wrapped package of mortadella into a freezer bag.
6. Freeze
   Label the bag with the date and contents. Put the whole package into the freezer.

3 Tips for Freezing Mortadella

Now you know how to freeze it, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing mortadella to have the best results:

• Check the Date – You may not need to freeze your mortadella at all. Check the use-by date. Cured meats such as mortadella can already have a long use-by date so make sure you absolutely need to freeze it first.
• Slice Beforehand – If you want to have prepared portions of mortadella then instead of wrapping up the whole sausage then you can wrap your slices in smaller amounts. Choose four to six slices, prepare using the method above with parchment paper layers then wrap those few layers into smaller packages with cling film. Pop all of these packages into a large freezer bag and then you can easily grab four to six slices out in one go without any hassle.
• Protect – Keeping your mortadella protected from the air is important. This is why we recommend that you wrap it in cling film and pop it into a freezer bag. You can go an extra step and suck out any air in the freezer bag with a straw before sealing it. This saves space and ensures no air can get to your delicious mortadella.

How Long Can You Freeze Mortadella?

You can freeze mortadella for between two to three months. You may find that this isn’t too much longer than it keeps in the fridge. You need to be careful if you plan to freeze longer than this because the quality of the food can deteriorate.

You Can Freeze Mortadella for up to 3 Months

How Do You Defrost Mortadella?

To defrost your mortadella you can take it from the freezer and put it into the fridge. It will take a few hours to thaw fully but this is the safest method of defrosting your mortadella.

You need to avoid your mortadella sitting at room temperature for too long because this is the optimum temperature for bacteria to grow and the meat to spoil.

You can speed up the process a little by using a water bath method. To do this you put the mortadella in its bag into a bowl of cool water to thaw. If you are doing this then you need to eat the mortadella straight away to avoid any harmful bacteria growing.

Can You Refreeze Mortadella?

No, you shouldn’t refreeze mortadella. The quality of the food will be compromised and if you are unlucky it could make you ill. It isn’t worth the risk so try and eat your thawed out mortadella within a day or two from defrosting it.

Always keep any mortadella you have thawed in the fridge until you are ready to eat it.

Does Mortadella Freeze Well?

Mortadella does freeze well. There may some minimal change in texture but the quality of the taste should be the same. Most people won’t even notice the difference!

Related FAQs

If you’ve still got questions about freezing mortadella or mortadella in general, then these may help:

Can You Freeze Salami?

Like most cured and dried meats, salami can be frozen but you will ruin the quality of it over time. You need to also consider storing it in the fridge instead. If stored properly, it will last for months and months in the fridge so there might not be a need to freeze it.

Can You Freeze Lunch Meat?

Lunch meat is very similar to mortadella and can be frozen in much the same way as the method above.