Your Freezer: The Secret to Eating Better This Year

Meat delivered to your doorstep makes eating better the easiest part of your day.

The new year is here and is  a great time to reflect and reset –  a moment to slow down and explore simple rituals and resources that make better eating easy. 

Whatever your plan, your freezer is an unsung hero in your kitchen; ready to make planning, preparing, and enjoying meals a breeze. .

In this guide, we’ll tell you how to organize your freezer, thaw your meat, and batch cook — to make better eating easier than ever before. 

Delivery Day: A Game Plan for When Your Box Arrives

When a Force of Nature box of meat shows up, the show begins.

Bring the box inside right away, open it up, and do 3 simple things: Check,  Search, and Sort

CHECK THE TEMP:

Your meat should arrive frozen or refrigerator-cold (note: meat is safe to refreeze or cook if at or below 40°F (4°C)). A quick way to check is to feel the center of a package with your fingers; it should be very cold and firm. If you have a kitchen thermometer, you can take its temperature. Read more about food safety here. 

SEARCH FOR DAMAGE:

Look for any obvious damage to outer packaging and note any vacuum packs that have come unsealed or cracked.

• If cracked, set aside and see “Popped Packaging” below.

SORT IT OUT:

Sort everything into two categories: 

• “Now”: These are the items you know you’ll use in the next 3–5 days. Put these toward the front of your fridge where you’ll see them to start thawing. 
• “Later”: These are the steaks and cuts that you know you won’t use in the next week that go into longer-term freezer storage.

While that feels simple, it’s powerful. You’re not just “putting meat away.” You’re setting yourself up so that on a tired Thursday night, there’s something delicious, ready, accessible, and simple that actually supports your goals.

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Popped Packaging: What To Do and When to Worry

Shipping with dry ice is the best way to ensure your delivery arrives cold but it can also be rough on plastic. Every now and then you might see:

• Plastic that’s no longer tight against the meat

• Small cracks in the plastic from extreme cold

• A bit of air inside the packaging

This is what we mean by a “popped.” In most cases, this is NOT a safety issue. As long as the meat is still cold / partially frozen and under 40°F, it is safe to refreeze or cook.

Here’s how to handle it:

• Loose Plastic: Treat it as normal. Freeze or thaw as you usually would. 

• Cracked Packaging / Exposed Meat:  Move into a clean, airtight, container and either put it in the fridge and plan to cook within 3 days, or store it in the freezer  — this way when you go to thaw it, it won’t run the risk of leaking. 

• Warm or Over 40ºF: Reach out to info@forceofnaturemeats.com and we’ll make it right!

Most of the time, a “popped” seal is just a slight inconvenience  and nothing to worry about. .

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Freezer Realities: Making It Work in Any Kitchen

You can still make frozen meat delivery work, even with a standard fridge/freezer.

When space is tight, keep some of these considerations in mind: 

• Quick-cook cuts stay up front: Grinds, patties, sausages, and smaller steaks can turn into dinner in short order.

• Reserve the back for “project” cuts:  Reserve a few roasts or braising cuts for a weekend or quieter day.

• “File” packages (especially grinds) like books: Upright and stacked = saved space! 

For a chest or upright freezer, this is your long-term pantry.  Avoid a disorganized future by creating simple “zones”: 

• Fast: Grinds, patties, smaller steaks, sausages.

• Slow: Roasts, brisket, short ribs, osso buco, and other braising cuts ( often the most unwieldy to organize as well).

• Ready to Eat: Cooked leftovers, batch-cooked meals, and any ready-to-eat items you keep on hand – like Force of Nature meatballs!

Knowing the ins and outs of your space is key and keeps headaches out of the kitchen and good meals at your fingertips on the ready. 

Organize How You Eat

The best freezer system is the one that matches your real life and habits. 

A few questions to ask yourself:

• How many dinners per week do you cook at home right now?

• How many of those are quick 15-30 minute meals?

• How much time could you reasonably devote to batch cooking larger slow cooker cuts or bigger batches of ground meat?

For most busy families and professionals, a month might look something like:

• Three or four nights a week built around quick grinds and patties

• One or two nights that lean on slower braises or roasts

• One or two “we just need something fast” nights where a ready-to-eat option like Force of Nature Meatballs or Sausages or batch cooked meats save the day

Once you understand your typical routine, you can start subscribing & saving to stay stocked for less (up to 10% off).

Easy Freezy 

You don’t need an elaborate plan to eat better this year –  just  good meat a freezer, and a simple way to use it.

The next time your box arrives, try this:

• Take 10–15 minutes unpacking, checking temperature, and sorting steaks and grinds into “now” and “later.”

• Decide what lives in your fridge freezer and, if you have one, what belongs in deeper storage.

• Hold one batch cook session that week, whether a huge pot of taco meat or a slow braise, this gives you flexible leftovers.

• Have  ready-to-eat options tucked away for when you’re short on time. 

• Set or refine Subscribe & Save so your next box looks a little more like the way you actually eat.

Your future Thursdays will thank you. Not because you suddenly became a different person, but because you built a simple system that makes the better choice an easy choice.