Sandstrom S3DRB12, Instruction Manual

10

Tips for Keeping Food in the Unit

•  Cooked meats/fishes should always be stored on a shelf above raw meats/fishes to avoid bacterial 

transfer. Keep raw meats/fishes in a container which is large enough to collect juices and cover it 
properly. Place the container on the lowest shelf at the bottom of the fridge compartment. 

•  Leave space around your food, to allow air to circulate inside the compartments. Ensure all parts of the 

unit are kept cool.

•  To prevent transfer of flavours and drying out, pack or cover the food separately. Fruit and vegetables 

do not need to be wrapped.

•  Always let pre-cooked food cool down before you it put in the unit. This will help to maintain the 

internal temperature of the unit.

•  To prevent cold air escaping from the unit, try to limit the number of times you open the doors. We 

recommend that you only open the doors when you need to put food in or take food out.

Shopping for Frozen Foods 

•  The freezer compartment is 4-star 

.  

When you are buying frozen food, check the storage guidelines on the packaging. You will be able to 
store each item of frozen food for the period shown against the 4-star rating. This is usually the period 
stated as “Best before” on the front of the packaging. The maximum freezing capacity of this freezer 
is shown on the rating plate. Do not place fresh food into the freezer compartment with combined 
weight that exceeds the maximum weight as stated on the rating plate.

•  Check the temperature of the frozen food cabinet in the shop where you buy your frozen foods. It 

should show a temperature lower than -18°C.

•  Take a quick look at the frozen food package and make sure it is in perfect condition.
•  Always buy frozen products last on your shopping trip or visit to the supermarket. Try to keep frozen 

food together whilst shopping and on the journey home as this will help to keep the food frozen.

•  Don’t buy frozen food unless you can freeze it straight away. Specially insulated bags can be bought 

from most supermarkets and hardware shops. These bags can keep frozen food frozen longer.

Preparations for Freezing

•  Use quality food and handle it as little as possible. Freeze food in small quantities as it freezes faster, 

takes less time to defrost and enables you to control the quantity you need better.

•  Leave cooked food to cool completely. Chill food before freezing if possible.
•  Consider how you will want to cook the food before freezing it. 
•  Don’t freeze food in metal containers if you want to microwave it straight from the freezer.
•  Use special freezer bags, freezer film, polythene bags, plastic containers, and aluminium foil (heavy 

duty grade only). If in doubt, double wrap your food. Don’t use aluminium foil for acidic foods, e.g. 
citrus fruits. Don’t use thin cling film, glass, or used food containers without cleaning.

•  Exclude as much air from the container as possible. You could buy a special vacuum pump which sucks 

excessive air out of the packaging.

•  Leave a small amount of air space when freezing liquids to allow expansion.
•  You can use the space in the freezer most efficiently if you freeze liquids (or solids 

with liquids, e.g. stew) in square blocks. This is known as “Preforming”. Pour the 
liquid into a polythene bag which is inside a square sided container. Freeze it, and 
then remove it from the container and seal the bag.

•  Label your frozen foods as they will look the same when in frozen state. Use special 

fridge freezer tapes, labels and pens with different colours. This allows you to easily 
organise and to effectively use the freezer. Write the contents and date; otherwise 
the frozen food might exceed the storage time and this could cause food poisoning. 
Please refer to your food packaging for the recommended storage time.

•  You may also add the weight and cooking notes, e.g. “defrost first”, “cook from 

frozen” and keep a separate log of what is in each drawer. This will save opening the 
door and searching around unnecessarily.