I made some awesome arroz con gris (beans and rice) that I froze after cooking it. The only animal product it contains would be lard. Otherwise, it’s just rice, beans, garlic, onions, green bell peppers, olives, and herbs. I don’t remember how long ago I made it, but it could be anywhere from 6-12 months ago. It stayed frozen the whole time. If I thaw it in a pool of room temp water and warm it up on the stove, is it safe to eat?
It’s been a hard day and my brain ran out of thinking fuel. I can’t even google this rn. I appreciate any helpful responses.
Edit: Based on responses and the American federal government, it should be safe. My freezer is set to 0*F, so we’re having dinner tonight! If you see me posting a lot in the next few days, it’s cause I got hospitalized, and you’re all gonna pay for it with my shitposts from the hospital bed! 😋
Sigh no I obviously did not eat it frozen. It was frozen in and thawed in a glass sealed Tupperware container so no it didn’t dry out before, during, or after. Thawed to room temperature not reheated. There is just something weird about rice that it doesn’t freeze well in my experience.
Since it’s a plant, my guess would be the expansion of the water becoming ice probably ruptures many of the cell walls. Even if the melting water stays where it was, the structure is broken. It had no room to stretch because it had already doubled when it absorbed the water in cooking.
The water still escapes the rice in an air tight container it just stays in the container as condensation. It won’t soak back into the rice without heat, and even then the texture of the rice will not be the same. It won’t be fluffy and soft like fresh rice is. If you aren’t worried about adding extra calories, you could try pan frying the rice before freezing or after thawing. The texture will change but it should be very flavorful thanks to the oil and added moisture.