# Rehydrating frozen meatballs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 21, 2014, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669 "2014-07-21T16:28:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/1 "2014-07-21T16:28:29Z")
I’ve got a bag of frozen, pre-made meatballs that I bought some time back to eat with pasta. Unfortunately, I didn’t go through them as quickly as I thought I would, and then I failed to notice that the bag was not sealed properly in my freezer. Result: My frozen meatballs are now freeze-dried meatballs. Completely dehydrated. I attempted to “fix” them by putting them in a bowl of water and microwaving them, hoping they’d absorb the water. It worked, somewhat, but they were still a bit “chewy”. Any _better_ way to fix these things? ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/2 "2014-07-21T16:48:41Z")
marinara sauce ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/3 "2014-07-21T16:59:30Z")
They’re never gonna be as good as they were before being dried out. Freeze-drying permanently alters the protein structures in the meat, so just replacing the lost water isn’t going to un-do that. They wouldn’t be dangerous to eat, or anything, assuming you’re thawing them properly. Just … not as tasty. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/4 "2014-07-21T17:15:59Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > They’re never gonna be as good as they were before being dried out. Freeze-drying permanently alters the protein structures in the meat, so just replacing the lost water isn’t going to un-do that. > > They wouldn’t be dangerous to eat, or anything, assuming you’re thawing them properly. Just … not as tasty. That’s what I was afraid of. The ones I ate were reasonably tasty (I chopped them into smaller pieces before eating); the texture was the main issue. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/5 "2014-07-21T18:39:48Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > marinara sauce Probably the best bet. Simmer them on low heat for 20-30 minutes, or just let them fall apart and call it bolognese. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/6 "2014-07-21T19:58:55Z")
**Moderator Action** Moving thread from General Questions to Cafe Society, our home for meatballs and other food related items. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/7 "2014-07-21T20:03:36Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > **Moderator Action** > > Moving thread from General Questions to Cafe Society, our home for meatballs and other food related items. Hey, who ya callin’ a meatball? I’ll have you know I happen to represent that remark. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/8 "2014-07-21T20:05:03Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > marinara sauce ditto However I use my Swedish meatball sauce. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/9 "2014-07-21T20:16:30Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Any _better_ way to fix these things? You could also try simmering them for a while in beef stock, like a batch of your basic herb-ox cubes. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/10 "2014-07-21T21:00:11Z")
Just chop them up and dump them in a marinara sauce, as suggested. Anything else and the chewiness will be noticeable. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2014, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rehydrating-frozen-meatballs/693669/11 "2014-07-21T22:12:23Z")
You might also consider making a new batch of meatballs or meat loaf and mixing your (chopped up) old ones in. However, I usually find that food damaged this much in the freezer doesn’t just have a different texture, but a different flavor. That’s a deal-breaker for me.