Suggestions and tips for freezing/storing veggis

[drab91]

So it is one month until Mavric has to go and join my budgies at my parents for a while... I want to make it as easy as possible for my mom to feed Mavric his veggi mix every morning...
The only way he eats his veggis right now is if I mix a few together in the food processor..
So I was thinking of taking like carrot, broccoli and maybe a red pepper.. blending them all up... and putting a few days portion in a zip lock bag, have a few differnt combos made up... and then put each multi day portion into a larger freezer zip lock...
How will the water content hold up? Will they go all mushy?? I am hoping she will be able to take a 3-4 day amount out at a time and leave it in the fridge and just scoop some into his dish every morning..
I am going to try it out at home and see how it goes.. but anyone have any tips for freezing things?? I don't have the best of luck and end up tossing a lot of stuff I have tried to store up in the past..
Thanks!

[Kathy]

http://www.parrothouse.com/pamelaclark/feedingcompanion.html

Scroll down to see The Layered Fresh Food Mix and Diet Conversion.

[drab91]

Thanks Kathy, that was a VERY good article to read... but my work might want to talk to you about me doing nothing the past few hours to read it all LOL
It is not exactly what I had in mind... See my Mom is still in the mode of thought that "seeds are all birds eat" and I am "crazy" feeding them this way ha ha.. we will convert her! So the fact that this "layer" will last 8 hours in the cage is more valuable to me then the whole mix maybe lasting longer in the freezer! Not to mention, things never seem to look the same after you thaw them out!

Do you use this method yourself?? I am going to start today.. and use 2 of those square tubber wear things.... I figure I will make 2 containers.. 1 for each 3 day period.. The chopping day he can have it right from the cutting board.. I am just hoping that once I mix everything together... it will stay "eatible" fresh for 3 days in the fridge in a large bowl...

Thanks again!

P.S. I am very excited to put in some fresh hot peppers to this mix... Could you guys give me an example of some that are good? I don't want to kill the little guy.. Like could you put Jalapeno peppers in WITH the seeds?? Or are you suppose to remove the seeds from any hot pepper you add??

[sanchmargar]

wow! thanks, that's a great website. really informative.

what I do sometimes is give Petie defrosted veggies. there's a new one by birdseye that has edameme (sp?) in it that he likes. they keep defrosted in the frig for a while

[chapala]

Any chili peppers are fine for the birds, even the very hot ones like habaneros. I try to find the peppers with some yellow, red, or orange coloring (ripe), depending on variety, because those have more Vit. A. But any are fine to feed, and they love the seeds!

For a vacation food, I make up some finely chopped vegetables and add sprouts to it. That's good for 3 days, stays fresh. After that I have the pet sitter resort to a cooked, frozen mix, along with a dry mix. The frozen mix is cooked brown rice and other grains, lentils, and mashed sweet potato. You can put in some finely chopped vegetables in this mix too. I package it in small zip locks, all in a big freezer bag, and it's fine for 3 days or so defrosted.
Reta

[drab91]

OK so I made my first layer salad..
This is how I built it:
Layer 1: Chopped up parsley

Layer 2: Chopped small, red pepper, green pepper, whole jalapeño with seeds, fresh peas in the pod.

Layer 3: Blended up in a food processor mixture of carrots and broccoli

Layer 4: Chopped small apple, grape and mandarin orange

Layer 5: Frozen assorted Veggis

Only problem is I have SO MUCH FOOD LOL... Gonna have to make smaller containers next time.. but we will see how long it stays fresh!
So after reading that article I take it as long as the food isn't frozen or cooked previously then it is safe to leave in the cage for a good 6-7 hours?? Like if you chopped up carrots fresh, they would be safe in the cage for 7 hours?? Am I correct?
And also.. I don't know I just picture a lot of water developing at the bottom from the thawing veggis etc.. I am guessing I will drain off the liquid before I dump it out and mix it up for the 2 day stretch?!?!
Input appreciated! :) 24 year old single guy here LOL

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c373/Drab91/layersalad.jpg

[Pado]

That looks really good :) - let us know how it works out. I've never frozen vegetables so I have no idea what they thaw out like.

I now buy those pre-made bagged vegetables - mostly Broccoli, Cauliflower and Carrots - I buy the separate bags of Peas in the pods. I sometimes offer the veggies as whole pieces and sometimes dice them with a hand dicer.

[LucyP]

Can I just say, if you want to stay single for long you better not let the women of the world see this... You're going to end up labelled as good father material.. hehehe

When it comes to storing my own salad mixes and stuff, I stick a piece of paper towel folded up at the top to absorb condensation. I think you could probably line your container with it too.. Should absorb a good portion of the water and stop your hard work from going all slimey.
As far as leaving it in the cage.. I would think it's ok for a few hours just depending on the temperature. If its really hot, you should change it more frequently. Same if it's really humid... but I would expect that you could leave that mix in the cage all day... I would anyway.

Mind you, I tend to subscribe to the school of thought that a wee bit of exposure to germs is probably better than none

[Wilder]

Try using pasta broken into small pieces as one of the layers next time -- for cute factor, use alphabet pasta. ;) it will absorb the moisture and soften as well.

I made a container of about that size a couple of weeks ago and it lasted that long with all but the frozen veggies remaining fresh and nice looking. The frozen veggies started to get a little off-colour, but the birds didn't care. I did drizzle a bit of lemon juice over the salad when it was assembled, so I'm sure that helped with keeping it all so nice.

I feed one parrotlet and one budgie once per day with the veggie mix. Usually a tablespoon for the budgie and two tablespoons for the parrotlet. I was sure I'd throw half of the huge container away, but nope -- they loved it!

[drab91]

The only reason I used frozen veggis on top, is the article said the coldness helps keep things in tact.. but maybe next time I will just use all fresh... makes more sense really..
Lucy, the night shift and ironically the birdies are enough to keep the women at bay LOL not by choice though that is for sure :( but that is another forum LOL
Thanks for the paper towel suggestion that is a good idea.. but the pasta idea might be even better.. Maybe the bottom layer next time will be alphabet whole wheat pasta and then the greens...
This mix will be for 4 budgies and 1 parrotlet fed once a day.. so it will be perfect amount.. but right now it is just Mavric and it is just too much food.. I will just give him too much and end up cleaning it up off of the floor ha ha

[LyndaM]

Kathy, thanks for pointing us to that article; it's very informative. I can't wait to try the chopped salad on my birds. Let us know how it goes drab91!

BTW, it has to be more the night shift than the little fuzzlets that keep the women at bay! If it is them, then they are helping you separate the wheat from the chaff. I'm sure there's a bird lovin' lady out there for you -- especially after seeing that kick a** salad! :-)

[LyndaM]

BTW, Beak Appetit Veggie Delight works well for my guys. It might be an easy thing to take to your mom's house since you basically microwave it and store it in its container in the fridge for up to a week (it makes a lot so I freeze about half of it).

[Kathy]

Oh wow, I can't believe you got to making that layered salad so quickly, LOL. It looks great!

Yes, I've tried it a couple times myself, but always in very small containers which lasted a few days at most, so I'm not sure how they look after a week. Please let us know how it works out for you and whether certain things work better - i.e. paper towel, pasta, etc.

Gosh, I wish my boyfriend could do something as simple as preparing a bird salad. In fact, I think he might be incapable of cutting up vegetables even!

A side note...
I sometimes go to West Coast Tropical Bird Studio on Broadway and get some Crazy Corn mix, which is kind of like Beak Appetit and Nemo *loves* it, but in reality, they contain a huge amount of phosphorus, which can throw the calcium/phosphorus ratio off (2:1, I believe). So best to feed those bean and/or corn mixes in moderation.

[drab91]

Yeah I now realize I used a way too big of container ha ha, but chaulk it up to a learning experience.. Next time I am going to use those real small ones that people take yogurt to work in...
This morning will be the trail version when I get home so I will let you know how he likes it!
I have not tried any of those pre made foods yet like Beak Appatite but if they are good to keep in the fridge for a week then that is a very good idea.. Then I can alternate salad one week and BA the next, thus limiting moms chopping duties LOL
See Kathy what you don't realize is that your BF is truly a smart guy, he has you believe that he is unable to even chop veggis because guess what, then you don't make him do it LOL :D

[Wilder]

I have not tried any of those pre made foods yet like Beak Appatite but if they are good to keep in the fridge for a week then that is a very good idea.. Then I can alternate salad one week and BA the next, thus limiting moms chopping duties LOL

Try getting the trial-sized packages and cook the whole packet up -- then use a clean ice cube tray to freeze individual portions of food. When frozen, pop out of tray, toss in zipper lock bag, and stick in freezer. Then all you need to do is take one out to defrost each night or morning and there ya go. :)

[Koki]

Kathy, that was an excelent article. Many thanks.

Drab91, what I do at home is chop up my veggies in a processor and store it in a vacume sealed container. According to my vet, fresh veggies chopped up should last about 5 days in the fridge. I found at day 3 to 6 they begin to go bad.

But by vacuming the container the should last up to 5 times longer, or 15 to 30 days. I make it a point to through out any unused veggies each week, but I've never had the slightest deterioration of color, crispness, or texture in 7 days.

Once each morning I open the container and add to 3 bowls. Each bowl has 1 part of the veggies, 1 part sprouted grains a legumes, and 1 part leafy sprouts (alfalfa, radish, mustard etc etc). these sprouts are also in vacume containers. I put lids on two of the bowls and put back in the fridge. Reseal the vacume containers and back in the fridge. With the other bowl I add maybe a few ripe seeds or pellets, maybe a chopped pecan or something, mix up and divide into two containers. This is breakfast for my p'lets and kakariki. At noon, then again at 5, I change these with one of the bowls I placed in the fridge that morning. I'm very fortunate to live within a 5 minute walk to my office so I go home for lunch most days.

Now, If you want to freeze you will have to accept some degree of deterioration at least of texture. One option is to just give your mom a bag of frozen mixed veggies, which is just fine. If you want to make variety, you'll have to blanch your veggies before chopping. This is a bit of work but done only occasionally (a full day once a month) you can prepare more than enough different veggie meals.

You sould be able to find numerous resoureces for blanching by googling "freezing veggetables."

Basically, steam or boil veggies until they are 1/2 cooked, immediatley immerse them in ice water for the same period of time they blanched, chop them up in your food processor (slowest speed) recommended), mix the different veggies in different ways, and store them in individual servings, or enough for 1 or 2 days at the most. You can store them in freezer bags up to 6 monthes, or in vacume bags for up to 3 years. However, I recommend trying to use them within three months if not sooner.

Too make it even more convienent for your mom and more nutruitious for your birds, you could add mashed sweet potatoes (blanched 3/4 way through), cooked quinoa or amaranth (or rice), and even a little organic applesauce, then fill it in ice trays. After one hour pop the veggie cubes into a freezer bag.

However you freeze, just take out what you need the night before and put it in the fridge.

[drab91]

So today I dumped the salad out into a bowl.. wow looked SO fresh I know it was only 1 day.. but that layering really seems to work.. could feel the cold air coming off the mixture and the apples were pure white!
Anyways.. I mixed some seed in (not the whole batch just todays portion) and he dove in for about 35 minutes... I am sure once again he is just eating the seeds but at least the veggis are in his mouth and all over his face :)
I am planning on slowly putting less and less seeds in the veggi mix over this next month.. And for the next month I will put seed in it for breakfast.. and when he is done I will replace it with a pure veggi mix
Once he is eating the veggis I will offer seeds in a seperate dish.. good idea??
The reason I don't want to use just frozen vegetables is because it is too easy for him to just toss them onto the ground.. and the variety is probably better for him too..
Wow that vacuum container sounds awesome.. how much are they and how do they work?? Is it like electric or do you just pump the air out?
I am hoping to avoid freezing anything completly because in the article it says once you freeze or cook something it doesn't last as long when you leave it in the dish.. I want to be able to put the mix in at 8 am and take it out at 4 without the risk of him getting sick.
So I think if I just use 3 MUCH smaller containers.. then it will only have to be fresh for 2 days once opened.. and the layer seems to do a wonderful job for up to 5 days, so it looks like I am set.. now I just have to get him eating it LOL at least I have some consistency now instead of doing something different all the time..
Well he is just tweeting up a storm.. must be happy!

[LyndaM]

A side note...
I sometimes go to West Coast Tropical Bird Studio on Broadway and get some Crazy Corn mix, which is kind of like Beak Appetit and Nemo *loves* it, but in reality, they contain a huge amount of phosphorus, which can throw the calcium/phosphorus ratio off (2:1, I believe). So best to feed those bean and/or corn mixes in moderation.

Kathy, on the BA Veggie Delight label it just lists vegetables as ingredients -- nothing added. What would be the source of the phosphorous?

[Koki]

I use a FoodSaver and vacume canister. The food saver ran me around $70, but there are less expensive models (and more expensive). The cansisters were aroun $20 for a set of three. It runs on electricity. Just plug a hose into the canister, press on the sealer, and it pumps the air out in about 1/2 minute.

I think your right about leaving 1/2 cooked then frozen food out the whole work day. I only leave cooked food out two hours or so.

[LucyP]

when I go berry picking, I use a ziploc bag and a straw and suck all the air out by hand...er... mouth(?) and that works relatively well... although i guess it doesn't have the vacuum seal thingie that some of the store made things have...
It does help to keep things intact if you are freezing them though. Just make sure your stuff is fresh when you freeze it. I defrosted some berries and left one out for Diablo for a couple hours and I checked on it and it was all moldy ... it was bizarre!

(as for the being single etc: my new-ish bf was savaged by Diablo the first night he came to hang out at my place. She headbutted his leg as hard as she could and had a complete spazz but he came back.. hehehe. Plus which, you think working nights is bad, Im a lawyer.. that's like human repellant!)

[Kathy]

Lynda--
I'm looking at my Crazy Corn bag here and like the Beak Appetit, it doesn't say anything about phosphorus levels. However, it's the corn and dried beans (dried peas, lentils, etc) that are high in phosphorus, not any added supplements.

It's not bad to feed them these mixes, but to be safe, just make sure they're getting a lot of high calcium vegetables as well, to balance things out. So moderation.

Lucy--
Law...that's interesting! That's also what I'm looking to pursue, if I can get that far. Did you go to law school here in BC?

Tell me more! LOL. I'm trying to figure out if it's really really what I want to do.

[Kathy]

Now that I've had the chance to make weekly salads as opposed to only a few days at a time, I can happily report that the salads DO stay fresh for the duration of the 7 days. This is a great way to offer fresh veggies on a daily basis to your fids without the hassle of chopping and shredding every morning.

P.S. Nemo LOVES this layered salad, with or without seeds added in. As I type this, I'm watching him take chunks out of a grapefruit piece.

[chapala]

Glad you found the 7 layer salad works for you! I chop enough vegetables for about 3 days, and food process Cello's since he eats it better very finely minced. I know some people chop daily, but I just can't get myself to do that - my vegetables are very fresh to start with (many from my garden), so they keep quite well for the 3 days. Whatever works so they get fresh food!
Reta

[Kathy]

Reta,

I've been thinking of getting a small food processor just to make my life easier every week - mainly to chop veggies for Nemo, LOL. Which processor option do you use?

I wanted to buy a mini one that only has "chop" and "grind", but wasn't sure if it'd be chopped into small enough pieces. Someone I know uses "shred", but I've found that it's mostly the bigger 11-cup processors that offer the "shred" option. But I don't really need such a big one because I don't find the need for it otherwise.

Which one do you use? Thanks!

[chapala]

I have a Kitchen Aid mini processor. It works fine in mincing up the vegetables. No options, just pulse until it's the right size of mincing. I think you'll find the vegetables won't keep quite as long when they're done in the food processor, but it saves time and is easier to do in the first place. My daughter has a Cuisinart mini, and she never uses it because it is so LOUD! Louder than her husband's power tools :)
Reta

[Kathy]

I think you'll find the vegetables won't keep quite as long when they're done in the food processor
That's interesting...do you know why? Would it hold true even if I chopped the veggies and fruits separately and not mixed with each other?

Thanks, Reta, for your reply. I was once looking at the Cuisinart Mini, too :p