Fish Freezer Burn: Is It Harmful?

Fish from the freezer is practical – if only it weren’t for the freezer burn! How does the discoloration come about and is it a health hazard? Here you can find out how to save salmon and co. and how to prevent freezer burn in fish.

Freezer burn in fish

The brand is a misleading word when it comes to frozen goods. Of course, that doesn’t mean the fish burned. But due to minimal temperature fluctuations, water escapes from the chilled goods evaporates and freezes again when the temperature drops. This process removes oxygen from the food, ensures the destruction of valuable ingredients, and causes the small, whitish-black spots in the fish fillet to develop.

Causes of Freezer Burn

Freezer burn in fish can occur very quickly in everyday life. It can result from the following reasons:

• Air in freezer bag/freezer box
• Interruption of the cold chain (e.g. way home from the supermarket)
• The freezer is open too long
• Frozen goods are moved too often in the freezer compartment

Detect and remove freezer burn

It’s not easy to spot freezer burns on fish. The affected areas are whitish, greyish, or black – often identical in color to the respective food from the water. Since water is the element of Pisces, smaller ice crystals on a deep-frozen piece are not uncommon.

In most cases, freezer burns on fish form very evenly, affecting the entire surface. If only individual areas are affected, they can be easily removed. Just chop it off while it’s still frozen.

Health hazard?

The process itself is not harmful. Short cooling breaks are usually not a problem. As nutrients and fats are destroyed, however, the fish is often no longer particularly tasty, and digestive problems may arise.
However, you should trust the origin of the fish. If you cannot rule out that the cold chain was interrupted for a long time, the fish was exposed to strong temperature fluctuations, and/or was stored incorrectly, you better be careful! This greatly increases the likelihood of germs multiplying. In these cases, it is better not to consume it anymore. Better safe than sorry.

Tip: Caution is also advised in the event of a power failure lasting several hours or if the freezer has been unintentionally left open for a long time!

Avoid freezer burn on fish

Maybe you like fishing yourself and want to freeze your catch? Use these tips to avoid burns:

• drain well before freezing
• pack airtight
• Open the freezer rarely and only briefly
• Do not relocate frozen goods
• When buying, pay attention to short transport routes and use a cool bag