There are a lot reasons I’m thankful for electricity. I’m thankful for lights in my home, electronics, my washer and dryer, heat in the winter, air conditioning on very hot days, and refrigeration. I’m really glad for the ability to freeze foods for future meals – especially now that my husband and I finally purchased a chest freezer.
Freezing food is my forte. I like to freeze leftovers if I have no interest in eating them any time soon. I freeze cookies so they stay fresh until we eat them. We have a lot of meat frozen for dinnertime. And I love to freeze fresh vegetables, herbs, and fruit so we can eat them all year long.
Freezing’s a fantastic food preservation option, because the process doesn’t destroy nutrients. And it’s oh so simple.
A simplistic how-to
Image courtesy of BrianHolm/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Since it’s the prime time to preserve food, here are some tips on how to best freeze your own fresh produce:
- Use fresh produce and try to freeze it as soon as possible.
- Wash and dry all produce. If desired, remove seeds or pits and cut into smaller pieces. Hint: If you cut everything into small pieces, it makes your meal prep a breeze – all you have to do is pull your frozen produce out of the freezer and use it. (You can defrost it in the fridge first, or if you’re like me and whipping up supper on a whim, you can add a hunk of frozen veggies into whatever’s simmering.
- Spread the washed and dried vegetables, fruit, or herbs on a cookie sheet and freeze. Once frozen, transfer your produce to containers or freezer bags for long-term freezing.
Easy frozen veggies
Yesterday I shared that I’m choosing not to can our produce partially because of the time commitment and level of difficulty. I like simple things. I also prefer simplicity when it comes to freezing vegetables. Some need to be blanched before frozen – but that’s not for me. (To see how to blanch certain vegetables, check out a handy reference on Garden Guides.)
I like vegetables that you can simply wash and freeze. And I can do that with garlic, ginger, onions, peppers, and tomatoes. (I’ve never tried this with tomatoes before!) I’ve frozen diced onions and peppers and have found that it’s so convenient when I need them for a recipe.
As long as you sauté eggplant, pumpkin, squash, and zucchini, you can freeze them, too. It’s another preparation that’s not too labor intensive.
Talk back
What are some of your tricks for freezing fresh produce? What works? What doesn’t work?
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