Can you freeze milk?

Milk freezes safely and keeps its nutrition. Water expands by about nine percent when it freezes, so a full container will split or force the cap off; pour a cup out first. On thawing, the fat separates and the milk looks grainy or yellowish, which is normal and disappears with vigorous shaking. Skimmed and semi-skimmed milk recover better than whole milk because there is less fat to separate.

How to do it properly

1. Pour off about 10 percent of the container to leave room for expansion
2. Freeze in the original plastic bottle or in a freezer-safe jug — not a glass bottle
3. Thaw in the fridge over a day or two, never on the counter
4. Shake hard before use, and give it another shake each time you pour
5. Use it within a few days of thawing, as you would fresh milk

What goes wrong

• A full container splits as the milk expands
• Fat separation makes it look curdled; it is not, but it puts people off drinking it straight
• Glass bottles crack in the freezer

Other "can you freeze" questions

• Can you freeze cheese? It depends — Yes, and it stays safe indefinitely — but hard cheese comes out crumbly and soft cheese comes out wet.
• Can you freeze eggs? It depends — Not in the shell. Beat them first, or freeze whites on their own.
• Can you freeze bread? Yes — Yes — freezing is the best way to store bread, far better than the fridge.
• Can you freeze bananas? Yes — Yes — peel and slice them first, because the peel turns black and welds itself on.
• Can you freeze cooked rice? Yes — Yes, and freezing quickly is the safest way to keep leftover rice.
• Can you freeze raw chicken twice? It depends — Only if it thawed in the fridge and never got above 4 °C (40 °F).
• Can you freeze breast milk? Yes — Yes — freeze it flat in bags, and use within six months for best quality.
• Can you freeze avocado? It depends — Yes, but only as a purée — frozen slices go grey and watery.
• Can you freeze soup? It depends — Yes for most soups; cream, milk and potato-based ones separate or go grainy.
• Can you freeze butter? Yes — Yes — butter freezes better than almost anything else in the fridge.
• Can you freeze cooked pasta? Yes — Yes — undercook it slightly and toss it in oil first, or it thaws into a solid block.
• Can you freeze mashed potatoes? Yes — Yes — mash with plenty of butter or cream, which protects the texture through freezing.