Freezing yeast

Can you freeze the bags of yeast that you can get at Costco? If so, for how long?

Jim Schmautz
Lolo, Montana

Yes! In fact it’s the best way to keep it for a long time, even a couple of years. On the shelf, yeast will only stay fresh for about 6 months or so. Refrigerated, you can easily double that. But in the freezer, it stays good for years! I always have one, divided, part on the shelf in the pantry and part in the fridge. But I also always have a pound in the freezer of my fridge…just in case. Then I rotate that after a couple of years and add a fresh one, just as I rotate my long-term storage and canned foods. — Jackie

Restoring hard onion and garlic powder

We have large cans of onion and garlic powders from Sam’s that were kept in the basement before we had a dehumidifier. They are rock hard. How do we restore them to their powder form so to use’m in everyday shaker bottles

Monty Digby
Ropesville, Texas

I’d take the contents out and put them on a cutting board. Depending on just how hard the powders are, I’d chop the block with either a cleaver or butcher knife until you have pieces small enough to fit into a blender. Whiz a piece or two at a time (make them half dollar size or smaller) until they are again powder. Repeat until all are fixed. If you don’t have a blender, I’ve used a rolling pin, corralling the powder with a cookie sheet. — Jackie

3 COMMENTS

  1. I’ve re-ground my garlic powder, and it hardens into a block again within a day. Now, I just transfer this block into a storage container (old chip dip tub) and scrape it across a fine grater when I need some. The next time I buy it, I’ll try putting some in a much smaller shaker and keeping the rest in the freezer.

  2. Tom’s idea worked great, I transferred my ‘block’ of onion powder to a heavy duty freezer bag (the zip type), roll/smash it with a pestle (or other similar heavy object), cut the top of the ziplock bag off to make transfer back to the jar easier and then put in a 1/4 slice of rye bread to absorb any moisture. thanks!

  3. I had a solid block of garlic in a 1 lb jar.
    10 minute resolution. Using a 1/2″ to 1″spade bit and dril holes in the block while it is in the jar. This will create powder and rocks of garlic.

    Place all rocks and powder into Ziploc bag. Squeeze out air. Hit with mallet, rolling pin or just roll a beer bottle over it.

    Then don’t buy any more in bulk, or store with rice.

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