Cheese sauce is so versatile, you can add it to pretty much any dish to improve it. Unfortunately, it’s so easy to make too much, and food drowning in cheese isn’t always what everyone wants.
So, can you freeze the sauce by itself? Can you freeze canned cheese sauce, homemade, ready-made, or packet cheese sauce?
Luckily, you can, though you may find that the texture and appearance of the cheese will be different from its fresh counterpart, and this will vary hugely depending on the cheese itself and the form you bought it in.
Keep reading to discover which kinds of cheese sauce you can freeze (see also Can You Freeze Cheese Fondue) and which you shouldn’t, the best way to freeze cheese sauce, and how to reheat it when you want to use it.
The Shelf Life Of Cheese Sauce
Homemade Cheese Sauce
If you’ve made the cheese sauce yourself from scratch, it will last somewhere between 2 and 5 days provided that you keep it in the fridge, depending on the kind of cheese you used to make it.
When you freeze it, you can extend the shelf life for up to 6 months, making it worth freezing if you’ve made too much. Not everyone can eat a huge amount of cheese in a week.
You should aim to use it within a couple of months of freezing to preserve the flavor and texture of the cheese, otherwise it will be affected by freezer burn and both will be compromised to some extent.
Store-Bought Cheese Sauce
If you keep the store-bought cheese sauce in the fridge, it will last a maximum of 4 days.
Like with the homemade stuff, if you freeze store-bought cheese sauce, this will extend the shelf life up to 6 months in total.
Can You Freeze Homemade Cheese Sauce And Safely Reheat It?
Yes, you can freeze cheese sauce (see also Can You Freeze White Sauce) that you’ve made yourself. How well it will withstand the freezer depends on what kind of cheese you use, and what kind of water content the cheese has to begin with.
For example, freezing soft cheese such as Mascarpone is fairly difficult, and the results aren’t as good as the fresh stuff.
This is because soft cheese has a much higher water content. When it freezes, the water expands, breaking some of the cells in the structure of the cheese. It will also dry out a little, and once it’s thawed, it could turn grainy.
Best to use harder cheese, then. Stay away from trying to freeze sauce that’s been made with soft cheese such as Philadelphia cream cheese or cottage cheese, as this will result in a disappointing cheese sauce.
You can use cheddar, mozzarella, parmesan (see also Freezing Grated Parmesan, if you grate too much), edam, Swiss, romano, or other cheeses that generally do well in the freezer.
Make sure to freeze fresh cheese sauce (see also How To Freeze Cheese Curds). Don’t try to freeze cheese sauce that’s been sitting around for a few days in the fridge, as the risk of bacterial growth is much higher.
Can You Freeze Canned Cheese Sauce?
Don’t try to freeze canned cheese in its original can. This can cause health risks, so avoid trying that altogether.
Because the can is its own long-term storage solution for cheese sauce, you don’t need to take it out of the can and then freeze it to prolong its shelf life.
It will do just fine in the cupboard until you’re ready to use it.
If you’ve opened the can, and you’ve now got more cheese than you know what to do with, it is worth freezing the leftovers in a freezer safe container, which we’ll talk about a little further down.
Can You Freeze Packet Cheese Sauce?
It’s possible to freeze packet cheese sauce once you’ve made it, but don’t try to freeze the packet as is.
The freezing and thawing process affects the moisture content of the packet cheese (see also Can You Freeze American Cheese), and you’ll be lucky to make something that resembles cheese sauce afterwards.
If you make it, and then you want to freeze it, you can. Just make sure you let it cool completely before you try to freeze it.
You will notice some changes once the packet cheese has thawed. The texture will be more watery, and the cheese may have separated.
Simply stir it over a medium heat to reconstitute the cheese.
Can You Freeze Cheese Sauce Made With Cream?
This probably won’t be a surprise, but no, you should not freeze cheese which has been made with cream (see also How To Freeze Cream Cheese).
Cream (see also Freezing Buttermilk) is a wonderful dairy ingredient, but when it comes to freezing, it’s about as temperamental as dairy gets.
You’re better off not trying to freeze cream at all, as it splits, and can even become grainy once it has thawed.
To get around this, simply hold off on adding the cream until after the cheese sauce has defrosted, and you’re about to reheat it.
This way you’ll still get that lovely creamy texture, and you won’t have to worry about the cream spoiling or splitting.
If you’ve already added cream to cheese sauce, and you still want to freeze it, it’s worth a try.
When it comes to reheating the cheese sauce, put it on a very low heat, while you stir it continuously. Don’t allow the sauce to get too hot, otherwise it will spoil, so keep your eye on it.
If it does start to split while you’re heating it, immediately take it off the heat, and decant it into a blender or a bowl that you can use an electric mixer with.
Put a tablespoon of nearly boiling water into the sauce, and mix until the sauce turns smooth.
Can You Freeze Store-Bought Cheese Sauce?
You can freeze store-bought cheese sauce, provided that you don’t try to freeze it in its glass jar, otherwise you’ll end up with bits of cheese and glass all over your freezer.
Once you thaw the store-bought cheese sauce, you’ll notice that the color might be duller, the consistency might be thinner, and there will be some separation.
It’s easily fixed. When it comes to reheating the cheese sauce, stir it constantly to reconstitute it.
Can You Freeze Cheese Sauce Baby Food?
You can freeze cheese sauce for babies, but be aware of cross contamination before you try to freeze it.
If you’ve given your baby the full portion, and you want to freeze the rest, just be careful of bacteria already being in the cheese, either from their hands, their mouth, or a toy making its way into the cheese.
If that sounds like a typical mealtime, hold off on freezing it.
It’s easier to portion it out before you give it to your baby instead. That way you can avoid any contamination altogether.
How To Freeze Cheese Sauce
How To Freeze Homemade Cheese Sauce
The first thing you need to do is let the cheese cool completely. Separate it into portions, as many as you feel you’ll need.
If you’re unsure, go for more portions that are smaller, as you can always take out more to defrost, but you can’t refreeze the cheese sauce once you thaw it.
You can either freeze them in airtight containers straight away, or flash freeze them in ice cube trays to make smaller amounts, where this will stop the cheese from sticking together as it freezes.
If you’re using the ice cube method, don’t leave the cheese in the freezer for longer than an hour in the tray, as this can dramatically change the texture of the cheese.
Take them out and decant into a resealable freezer bag, and freeze.
How To Freeze Leftover Canned Cheese Sauce
Decant the leftover cheese into ice cube trays, and place the trays into the freezer.
Let them firm up for an hour at most, and then transfer the cubes of cheese sauce into a freezer bag or an airtight container.
A resealable freezer bag would be better, as it takes up less space, and you can simply take out as much as you need and no more than that.
You will notice that the canned cheese sauce will have a slightly different appearance once you’ve thawed it.
The consistency may be much thinner, the color a little dull, and you may find it has separated to some degree. Luckily, you can fix it by stirring it constantly as you reheat it.
How To Freeze Store-Bought Cheese Sauce
The best way of doing this is by flash-freezing the cheese sauce, so you can take out as much as you need without defrosting the whole thing.
Just make sure to transfer the cheese sauce into a freezer safe container before you freeze it long-term. Don’t try freezing it in its original packaging.
Spoon the cheese sauce into ice cube trays, and freeze them for an hour. Once the cheese is firm, decant the cubes into a resealable freezer bag, label it, and freeze it.
How To Freeze Cheese Sauce For Babies
Decant the cheese into ice cube trays. Portioning it out by using the ice cube trays makes it a lot easier to defrost what you need, as you need it, preventing food waste.
Flash freeze the portions by putting the cheese into the freezer for an hour. Don’t leave them in the freezer any longer, otherwise you risk giving the sauce freezer burn.
While that’s not dangerous, it will change both the flavor and the texture of the cheese, and I doubt your baby will appreciate it!
Decant the firm cheese sauce into a resealable freezer bag, label it, and freeze it. Make sure to use it within a couple of months of freezing for best results.
Tips & Tricks To Get Freezing Cheese Sauce Right The First Time
Wait Until The Cheese Is Completely Cool
Don’t try to freeze cheese sauce that’s still warm. Wait until it is completely cool. If you do stick it in the freezer before it is cold, you risk spoiling the food that is in the freezer, as the residual heat can cause it to defrost!
Make sure that you don’t leave the sauce out at room temperature for 2 hours or more, otherwise you risk bacterial growth, which leads to food poisoning.
If you find that the sauce isn’t cooling down quickly enough, you can decant it into a smaller container at room temperature, rather than the hot pan you melted it in.
Often, this isn’t necessary. The pan should have a large enough surface area to cool it down quickly enough.
Flash Freezing
Consider flash-freezing the cheese. It’s better to portion out the cheese in ice cube trays than try to freeze the lot in one container.
It will take longer to defrost if you don’t, and it may defrost unevenly. Also, you’ll have to use all of the cheese within a very short window of time, and wasn’t that the problem you had to begin with?
Label The Container
I know, it doesn’t seem all that important to label the cheese, rather than getting it into the freezer.
If you don’t label it, and you come back to it a couple of months later, you might not remember when you froze it, or more importantly, when you should aim to use it.
This is an easy way to preserve the quality of your cheese sauce. Keep in mind that the sooner you use the cheese, the better the flavor and texture it will be.
While most cheese sauces can be kept in the freezer for up to 6 months, it’s worth defrosting and using the sauce within 3 months or so, as it’s less likely the sauce will develop freezer burn.
How Do You Defrost Cheese Sauce?
No matter which cheese sauce you froze, the best method of defrosting it is the same.
Transfer the cheese sauce directly into the fridge, and let it thaw overnight.
Once it’s completely defrosted, reheat it in a saucepan over a very low heat to start with, and gradually increase the temperature. Stir it constantly to reconstitute the cheese, and remove from the heat once it’s piping hot.
If you cook it from frozen, it won’t have a chance to come together again before it curdles, as you won’t be able to stir it constantly.
The cheese may end up watery or half-separated, so it’s best to take your time defrosting it in the fridge beforehand.
Conclusion
You can save a lot of time and some money by freezing cheese sauce (see also Can You Freeze Nacho Cheese Sauce?), especially if you’ve made it from scratch.
As long as you give it enough time to cool completely, storing cheese sauce in the freezer is an ideal way to save the cheese for later.
Just ensure that the cheese sauce itself is made up of harder cheeses, and it doesn’t have cream in it, otherwise you’re better off using it straight away than trying to freeze it for later.
