Can You Freeze Olive Oil?

This comprehensive guide tells it to you exactly at is: covering everything from when should you freeze olive oil to how, in detailed steps, along with all the tips and hacks you need to make sure you freeze the oil in the most efficient, easiest way possible with the least hassles.

Put together with the help of time-tested personal experience, expert opinion, and research, this guide is your best friend when it comes to freezing olive oil!

Read on to find out everything you need to know about freezing olive oil successfully at the comfort and ease of your home!

How to Freeze Olive Oil

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

While this is not always the most recommended method if say you do not require or end up using the entire amount of olive oil you have frozen. In that case, you will have to thaw all of it, but the leftovers you don’t need will have to be discarded, as refreezing is not advised.

That said, this is the easiest method. Follow this to freeze your olive oil only if you are absolutely sure that you will be using up all of it in a recipe in the future.

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Materials

• Appropriately sized, rigid, freezer-safe container with tight-fitting lid

Tools

• Large airtight resealable heavy-duty freezer bag

Instructions

1. Transfer the olive oil into the container – This is slightly tricky in the sense that you need to choose the perfect container for this.
   
   While it cannot be too big such that there is too much space left in it even after the oil is inside, there also needs to be around an inch of headspace left for the olive oil to expand while freezing.
   
   Remember to never freeze or store olive oil in plastic containers as the oil could absorb the chemicals from the plastic.
   
   
2. Seal container tightly – The container must have a tight-fitting lid. Snap it on securely once all your olive oil has been transferred inside.
   
   
3. Put container into airtight freezer bag – This added layer of protection is to make sure that your oil holds up in the freezer for up to 18 months against freezer burns.
   
   
4. Seal freezer bag carefully - Squeeze out all the air possible from the freezer bag, and seal it tightly and securely.
   
   
5. Label and freeze – Label the freezer bag. Your olive oil is good to freeze!
   

Freezing Olive Oil in Ice Cube Trays

This is a very widely recommended, time-tested and fail-safe method! It helps preserve your olive oil really well.

Additionally, this method also saves storage space; allows you to freeze and use in portions! As it is, I always recommend freezing any food in portions as it makes the defrosting easier.

Divide the olive oil into single-serving portions

This is important as it makes your storing process much easier and more hassle-free, as well as the later processes like thawing.

Pour the oil according to serving portions into the ice cube trays

Do this carefully, and be sure to not fill the cubes to the brim with the olive oil as it will expand while freezing. 

Cover the ice trays with aluminum foil and flash-freeze

Once the ice trays have been covered securely with aluminum foil, stick them in the freezer and let the olive oil flash-freeze for at least 5 to 6 hours. To be safe, you can even flash freeze overnight.

Transfer the cubes to airtight freezer bags

Once they have frozen properly into cubes, take the trays out, pop out the cubes and transfer them into airtight freezer bags. Do this process quickly so that the frozen olive oil cubes do not start to thaw. 

Seal securely, label and freeze

Squeeze out as much excess air as possible from the freezer bags after putting the oil cubes inside. Once the bags are sealed securely and labeled, they are ready to freeze!

While freezing in ice cube trays is a great method to freeze oil in portions, it is not the only one. The next method is also preferred by many people.

Freezing Olive Oil in Portions

This is the other, really good method to freeze olive oil in portions that does not involve as much hassle as freezing them in ice cube trays. 

Freezing in portions is always recommended for freezing any foods, as this makes sure that you are able to only take and use as much as you need at a time without having to touch or thaw the rest or get into re-freezing them, which is strictly advised against. 

Pour the olive oil according to portions in small airtight freezer bags

You can also use a sturdy spoon if it helps make it easier. Remember to not fill the freezer bags to the brim. Leave around an inch of space as the oil will expand while freezing.

Seal the freezer bags carefully

As soon as you are transferring the olive oil portions into the freezer bags, seal them securely after squeezing out all the excess air from them. 

Double-bag all the bags

This is highly recommended as it helps give your olive oil the added protection it requires to survive the freezer burns in the freezer. Just be sure to make all the bags involved totally airtight.

This goes without saying, but using good quality, totally airtight and watertight freezer bags is important for your olive oil to stay well in the freezer.  

Label the bags and freeze

Label all the bags with the storage date, so that you do not end up forgetting to use them up in time and keeping them in the freezer indefinitely. They are good to freeze!

In case these methods are a little confusing, you can also check out this guide on freezing fresh herbs in olive oil:

How to Freeze Olive Oil Tapenades

Tapenades are positively delicious dishes which turn out mouth-watering as well as very healthy when you make them with olive oil! For a quick refresher on the recipe, you can consult this helpful guide:

Thankfully, you can also freeze tapenades just fine! Follow this method and the instructions given carefully!

Transfer the olive oil tapenade into a freezer-friendly jar, bag or container

You can use a sturdy spoon to do this. To freeze the tapenade in, you can go with a 4-ounce canning jar, or an airtight resealable freezer bag or even a rigid, freezer-safe container, whichever is available.

Remember to not fill the bag or container to the brim with the tapenade; you should leave at least half an inch of headspace for it to expand while freezing.

Seal securely

This is essential part of making sure your olive oil tapenades freeze well! If you are using a freezer bag, make sure to squeeze out all the excess air first.

In case of jars or containers, make sure they have tight-fitting lids. Snap them on tightly and securely.

Your freezer bags, jars or containers must be airtight and watertight.

Label and freeze

Label the jar, bag or container with the storage date to ensure you do not forget about the olive oil tapenade and keep it in the freezer for an extended period of time. 

Your tapenades are ready to freeze! Once stored properly as instructed, they can be refrigerated for at least one week, or kept in freezer storage for up to 3 months.

How Long Can You Freeze Olive Oil?

For best results, the frozen olive oil should not be kept in freezer storage for beyond 12 and 18 months and should ideally consumed within that time frame. Additionally, experts have confirmed that freezing olive oil actually improves its aromatic properties! 

Note that, with the first method, that is, wherein your freeze the olive oil all together, it might be wise to consume the olive oil within no longer than six to seven months of freezing. 

This is also I always recommend freezing with the storage date labeled. This way, you do not end up keeping the olive oil in the freezer for too long.

How to Store Frozen Olive Oil?

As discussed, olive oil can be kept in freezer storage in airtight containers with tight-fitting lids, whether whole or in portions, or even in the form of cubes, or frozen with herbs, and even cooked in the form tapenades or maybe a marinade.

Whichever method you go with, the sealing and freezing needs to be done very carefully;

good quality airtight and watertight freezer-safe containers need to be used, and it needs to be ensured that the oil is frozen at the same, consistent temperature in the freezer.

For all of the processes and methods prescribed here, using heavy-duty, airtight, resealable, freezer-friendly bags and pouches to freeze the olive oil in is a must.

If you are using containers instead, ensure that they are freezer-safe and have tight-fitting lids. 

And they need to be sealed really well. A vacuum sealer is actually a great investment for this purpose, especially if you freeze food often. It would help get all the air out.

Remember that your olive oil may not hold up well in the freezer even beyond a couple of weeks if the storage is not done properly, following all the instructions correctly and meticulously and making sure you use the best quality materials.

How to Defrost Frozen Olive Oil?

If you are planning on using the olive oil cubes in a hot recipe or dish, you can simply drop the frozen cubes directly into the pot. There is no need to separately thaw the olive oil in advance as the pan’s heat will do that well enough, and quite quickly, too.

If you are thawing a larger quantity of olive oil, for example the oil you have frozen as per Method #1, or are using it in a cold dish, you can also simply allow the olive oil to return to room temperature by allowing it to defrost on your countertop. 

If you have to thaw the olive oil cubes for some reason, I would recommend that you put the cubes into a small bowl or glass and allow the cubes to thaw for a good few hours, in order to prevent a mess.

If you want, you could also thaw olive oil in the refrigerator, for example of you want to use it in place of butter. If it reaches room temperature it will melt completely and return to its original state.

If it remains cold, the taste should be unchanged and it will be easily spreadable.

I would not recommend storing olive oil in the refrigerator. This is because, at around 40 degrees Fahrenheit, the fats in the olive oil begin to solidify.

Please do keep it in mind that your oil will not be liquid unless and until it is stored at room temperature.

While olive oil has a considerably long shelf life before it is frozen, after being thawed, it is mandatory that you use it up within 3-4 days.

It is also very important not to thaw more than you can use in this period of time to make sure you do not end up having to waste any of it.

This is also why I recommend freezing in portions. Do keep in mind that refreezing olive oil is not advised.

I also do not at all recommend exposing the frozen olive oil to any heat, such as in a microwave.

This is because olive oil has a very low water content which is what the microwave targets if reheated. Microwaving frozen olive oil is not going to cause it harm, it is simply useless.

Can You Re-freeze Frozen Olive Oil?

It is not recommended to re-freeze frozen olive oil, as, to freeze and thaw it once would already take a toll on its consistency, texture, and even flavor. But to repeat that whole process once more might render the oil ruined beyond salvation. 

Try your best to use up all of the olive oil the first time around that it is thawed. In the case of leftovers, it is best to discard them as chances are that they are no longer safe or suitable for consumption. 

This is also the reason that I advise you to freeze olive oil, or honestly any food for that matter, in serving portions, or together at once only if you are confident that you can use it all up at one go. Refreezing is really not worth it. 

Does Olive Oil Freeze Well?

Freezing olive oil is an excellent way to preserve its optimal condition for as long as possible, so yes, it does indeed freeze quite well. Freezing olive oil does not affect any of its properties or its quality, texture of flavor in any way at all.

That said, do not end up keeping the olive oil in the freezer indefinitely. That is a sure-shot way to render it unusable.

Otherwise, as described, you can actually keep olive oil in freezer storage for a considerably long time (12 to 18 months!) Just defrost carefully too.

FAQs

Bottom Line

We hope this comprehensive, step-by-step guide covering the best methods to freeze olive oil successfully at the safety and ease of your home has helped you!

For any further questions you may have regarding freezing olive oil, please do let us know by reaching out to us!

If you have any other tips and tricks that you have discovered and would like to share, feel free to reach out and let us know; we will add them to this guide so they can help more people!

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