Help Please - Freezer Disaster

[DoreensEatingHerSoreen]

My freezer has died.

Thankfully it was not THAT full - I have moved the things that are pretty much thawed to the fridge and left the mostly frozen ones in the freezer packed around a big bag of ice which has not melted very much.

I will cook / eat what we can tomorrow and will try to get an engineer out after work.

I'm rubbish at knowing the rules when it comes to re-freezing etc. so I'm looking for some help! What can I salvage / re-freeze and what just needs to go if we don't eat it tomorrow?

Currently in the freezer there is:

Beef Mince
Ice Cream
Ice Lollies
Rice (that I cooked 3 weeks ago then froze quickly)
Home made veg soup
Peas
Sweet Potato Chips
Fish Fingers

Currently in the fridge (defrosted):

Noodles
Haddock fillets
Salmon Fillets
Sausages
Chicken Kiev
Pizza (no meat)

Thanks in advance!

don't open your freezer at all until the afternoon, then check temperature of foods and make the decision.

fish, chicken & pork - I'd cook asap then eat within 24 hours from cooking, reheating thoroughly, then throw away

beef - I'd keep in freezer for a day and when thawed I'd cook it and it in within 3 days

ice cream - can't refreeze it so make milkshake out of it, have it with dinner or if any left with breakfast (lucky kids!)

pizza - if thawed I'd keep in fridge for max a day, then cook or throw away.

peas and chips - if thawed I'd use by Friday evening the latest

veg soup - depends on what's in it.
Probably use by Thursday night.

icelollies - just water and sugary syrup so add more water and drink it as juice.

(sorry on phone, can't scroll)

Thank you Zing - Just what I needed. Milkshake is a great idea!

imho unless you cook fish straight away I would not use it past 24 hours from now, maybe coke it in a bit of milk in the morning & make fish cakes out of that mixture, as fish cakes they will last longer

you could marinate and roast chicken/pork and keep it for another 3-4 days in the fridge
in fact if you cook chicken stock without adding any veg it would last 5-6 days in the fridge

I would throw rice as is probably not worth worrying about it and there were articles saying how quickly it goes off.

rice and fish fingers - if thawed I'd use straight away or throw away

add 24 hours to all time frames for everything you still find frozen

I would not re-freeze anything, unless cooked.

I would not re-freeze fish and rice at all.

Having said that, please follow your nose and your gut instinct, if in doubt don't use.

and make a list of what was in your freezer (by make & quantity) - you should be able to get some money back through your insurance*

happy cooking!

*we had our freezer broken down two days before Christmas once, chock a block of expensive food.
it was nightmare.
we got a lot of it salvaged, but made a list if what we had to throw away and got the money back.