Forget dried-out, “freezer-burned” meat. Butcher Roman shares a simple trick for creating a vacuum seal at home without any special equipment, allowing meat to retain its juiciness and full flavour even after freezing.
Text by Ivana Sladkovská
Are you hesitant to freeze meat at home because you do not want it to lose quality? Slovakia’s best-known butcher, Roman Kóňa, owner of Mäso od Romana (“Meat from Roman”), recently shared a tip on social media that every meat lover should know.
If you come across a beautiful piece of high-quality tenderloin at the butcher’s, for example, and cannot bear to leave it behind, take the whole cut home. Anything you do not plan to eat fresh can go into the freezer. According to Roman, however, the way you freeze it is crucial. If meat is not frozen properly, it will lose quality.
Roman is clear on one point: freezing correctly is just as important as selecting the right cut in the first place. The most common mistake people make at home is freezing meat in one large piece without any preparation. Roman does the exact opposite – he portions the meat according to how he plans to use it later. “I prepare the meat for future recipes. I cut strips for stroganoff and medallions for stir-fry.”
This approach offers two key advantages:
The greatest enemy of frozen meat is air. It causes dehydration, flavour loss and the familiar phenomenon known as freezer burn. “We need to wrap the meat properly. Ideally, you should use a vacuum sealer.”
Not everyone has one at home, however – and this is where Roman’s simple yet highly effective trick comes in. He demonstrates a method that professionals know well, but which is still underestimated in many households. “If you don’t have a vacuum sealer, you can make one yourself very easily. All you need is a zip-lock bag.”
“The water pushes all the air out of the bag and creates a vacuum inside. And that is exactly what we want.”
The result? An almost perfect vacuum-packed portion without any special equipment.
The final detail that makes a significant difference is the freezing process itself. Here, too, Roman points out a common mistake. “I recommend placing these small, individually packed portions into the freezer gradually, so the meat freezes as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
Why does this matter? Faster freezing creates smaller ice crystals, which cause less damage to the meat’s cellular structure. The result is a juicier steak, even after thawing.
Roman’s method is based on three simple principles:
There is nothing complicated about it, yet the difference is noticeable on the plate. Because even freezing can be a craft.
