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Learn how to Freeze Fresh Garden Vegetables

As the garden harvest comes rolling in, many of us are left with more vegetables than we can comfortably eat. As always, to help your neighbors, offer some to them, trade with other gardeners for things they both of you didn’t grow, hot water can some, and freeze some for the winter.

Have you ever tried freezing your own vegetables? Because many of them contain enzymes that will cause them to lose color while frozen, it can leave you with a colorless bunch of vegetables, which don’t look appealing. I recommend blanching them before freezing them, it helps keep their color vibrant, and also makes cooking them from frozen easier.

 

Homemade frozen vegetables are healthier than store bought ones, since you know you’re vegetables have been grown organically. They are also friendly to the wallet, since you spent your sweat equity instead of your hard earned money. There is no reason to not be doing this.

So, what is blanching?

Blanching is the process of boiling your vegetables, then dropping them into ice water to stop the cooking process. Simple!

 

How to freeze fresh garden vegetables:

  • Wash the vegetables, to remove any bugs, dirt, or unwanted dinner additions.
  • Peel them(if desired)
  • Chop into bit sized bits; better to get a consistent blanche and aid in reheating
  • Drop the vegetables into boiling water, until barely cooked
  • Use a slotted spoon to pull from the boiling water and drop into ice water to stop the cooking process
  • Place on a paper or cloth towel to absorb excess water
  • Pack into resealable air tight bags or containers. This is when you can mix up tasty combos, like peas and carrots for quick heating meals or soup mixes.

 

Blanching Times for Vegetables

Beans 2-3 Minutes
Beets 30-40 Minutes
Broccoli 3 Minutes
Cabbage 3-4 Minutes
Carrots 2-5 Minutes
Cauliflower 6 Minutes
Celery 3 Minutes
Corn(off the cob) 2-3 Minutes
Eggplant 4 minutes
Peas 1-2 Minutes
Peppers 2-3 Minutes
Squash 2-3 Minutes

As always, we encourage sharing, so here is an infographic, on How to Freeze Fresh Garden Vegetables, for you to share on your site, with an easy to use embed code included

blanche fresh vegetables for proper freezing

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The post Learn how to Freeze Fresh Garden Vegetables appeared first on Downtown Homestead.



from Downtown Homestead http://downtownhomestead.com/freeze-fresh-garden-vegetables/
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