What does “surgelé” mean in French (and how is it different from “congelé”)?

In French, “surgelé” means frozen food — but not just any frozen food. It means food frozen very fast in a factory, like frozen peas or pizza from a shop. Food you freeze yourself at home is “congelé”. Both words translate to “frozen” in English, so learners often mix them up. When you shop in France, look for the “surgelés” aisle.

The speaker runs in deep Russian winter and points out a funny upside: “quand on a des produits surgelés, aucun problème, on peut rentrer tranquillement chez soi en tout le temps qu’on veut. Ils ne dégèleront pas.” (“When you have frozen food, no problem, you can walk home as slowly as you like. It won’t thaw.”) “Surgelé” comes from “sur-” (very, extra) + “geler” (to freeze), so it means “extra-frozen” — it is a good name for food that a factory freezes very fast and keeps very cold. In a shop, the frozen-food section is “le rayon surgelés”. The French chain Picard sells only surgelés and is well known across France. Useful pair: “congeler” = to freeze at home; “dégeler” or “décongeler” = to thaw. Examples: “J’achète des légumes surgelés.” (“I buy frozen vegetables.”) “La viande va dégeler dans une heure.” (“The meat will thaw in an hour.”)