I generally thaw most freezer items for 24 hours in this shoe box.

Speaking from experience, it catches condensation, it keeps my refrigerator tidy, I can submerge the meat in cold water-if necessary to speed up the process, and it’s convenient and frugal.

It costs $1 and I prefer the 6 qt. option with the rounded interior, which is better for mixing my Artisan bread in 5 minutes. See, it’s multi-functional.  It’s easily cleaned with hot soapy water and sanitized after each use.

Here’s how I determine what goes into my thawing box each night. Right after dinner or while my dear husband and children help with the dishes, I look at my menu planner that is magnetic. It sticks right on my refrigerator.

If we’re having Sticky Chicken in the crock pot, I place the whole chicken right inside the shoe box and it slides easily in between two shelves in the refrigerator.

You could throw the lid on top and have extra space if necessary or it easily slides into a tighter space in the fridge. Just look how much less space it takes than a round plate, which we normally grab for thawing meats. Plus the meat doesn’t hang over the sides of the plate. Just in case, there were a puncture in the bag or container of meat, this box will catch it and prevent a lot of heart ache when thawing. Can you guess I’ve been in that situation before?

A whole chicken will thaw in the refrigerator for at least two days, but marinated meats, like a quart size bag of Asian honey chicken will be ready the next evening for grilling. Depending on when you put it in your thawing box, you may have to submerge in cold water for a little while if it’s partially frozen (we’ll address this tomorrow). Or you can thaw for two days to be safe, but don’t allow your meat to remain in the refrigerator thawed for over three days.

Do cook, cool and freeze it for convenience chicken if you’re not eating right away. This is part one to the big thaw series, we’ll look at cold water thawing next. Stay tuned.

Do you have questions or concerns? Ideas? Share them in the comments.