Freezing and frozen garden vegetables

[BermudaKen]

Greetings gardeners. I have been trying to find the best way to freeze our veggies. A few years ago, I just washed them, put them in a freezer bag, then
stored them in our freezer. When winter came, I pulled the veggies out, but was disappointed with the flavor and texture after they thawed.
A relative told me to blanch them first, so a couple years ago I did. Things looked and tasted even worse the following winter. Last year I didn't even bother; I just distributed the excess to the neighbors.

What methods are best for freezing and thawing fresh garden vegetables?
Raw,cooked or blanched? Whole or cut up into pieces? Thaw in the fridge or at
room temp? We usually have an abundance of okra, zucchini, peas, and several varieties of peppers.

Thanks!

[LAC]

Originally Posted by BermudaKen

Greetings gardeners. I have been trying to find the best way to freeze our veggies. A few years ago, I just washed them, put them in a freezer bag, then
stored them in our freezer. When winter came, I pulled the veggies out, but was disappointed with the flavor and texture after they thawed.
A relative told me to blanch them first, so a couple years ago I did. Things looked and tasted even worse the following winter. Last year I didn't even bother; I just distributed the excess to the neighbors.

What methods are best for freezing and thawing fresh garden vegetables?
Raw,cooked or blanched? Whole or cut up into pieces? Thaw in the fridge or at
room temp? We usually have an abundance of okra, zucchini, peas, and several varieties of peppers.

Thanks!

I freeze tomatoes and peppers. For the tomatoes I simply put them in very large vacu-seal bags........whole, suck out the air and throw them in the freezer.....perfect for making big pots of sauce later.
For the peppers, I slice and dice and vacu-seal.
Last year, I put into small VS bags just enough peppers.....hot and mild of all colors to make pepper jelly whenever I wanted to. I hated heating up the kitchen to do it when the peppers were vine ripe. Worked just fine.

I've tried freezing beans and didn't care for the texture much.

[Durgan]

Originally Posted by BermudaKen

Greetings gardeners. I have been trying to find the best way to freeze our veggies. A few years ago, I just washed them, put them in a freezer bag, then
stored them in our freezer. When winter came, I pulled the veggies out, but was disappointed with the flavor and texture after they thawed.
A relative told me to blanch them first, so a couple years ago I did. Things looked and tasted even worse the following winter. Last year I didn't even bother; I just distributed the excess to the neighbors.

What methods are best for freezing and thawing fresh garden vegetables?
Raw,cooked or blanched? Whole or cut up into pieces? Thaw in the fridge or at
room temp? We usually have an abundance of okra, zucchini, peas, and several varieties of peppers.
Thanks!

For what it is worth. Few vegetables after being frozen are palatable. At best freezing is a method of preserving meat.

Find another method if you are serious about preserving vegetables. There is pressure and water canning, juicing, dehydrating, pickling, smoking, salting. All these methods attempt to store food at room temperature. All have limitations, and eventually one can find a method that suits your taste for any particular produce. To ingest these products it takes a complete change in mindset, since seldom do they resemble what one is use to if fresh. They become much more desirable during times of famine, which is seldom encountered in our society.

The competition is severe, Big Mac, KFC, Pizza, sugar laced, fat laced, salt laced, which we all like the taste of, hence the popularity, much to the detriment of our waistline, and general health over the long term.

Few people eat to live, but now with affluence live to eat. And there are consequences, many detrimental.

[LuvsToPlant]

Originally Posted by BermudaKen

Greetings gardeners. I have been trying to find the best way to freeze our veggies. A few years ago, I just washed them, put them in a freezer bag, then
stored them in our freezer. When winter came, I pulled the veggies out, but was disappointed with the flavor and texture after they thawed.
A relative told me to blanch them first, so a couple years ago I did. Things looked and tasted even worse the following winter. Last year I didn't even bother; I just distributed the excess to the neighbors.

What methods are best for freezing and thawing fresh garden vegetables?
Raw,cooked or blanched? Whole or cut up into pieces? Thaw in the fridge or at
room temp? We usually have an abundance of okra, zucchini, peas, and several varieties of peppers.

Thanks!

I have been freezing my veggies for the past 32 years with good success.

The method does involve blanching and cooling before freezing.
...blanching anywhere from one to three minutes depending on what vegetable and size. If done properly it will improve the color, texture and taste.

With this method....blanching is...adding the vegetables to boiling water...and
immediately start timing...Don't wait for the water to start boiling.
After the specific time is up remove and put into very cold water to Stop the heating.
A pot with a strainer...is good for this.

Somethings...don't need to be blanched such as peppers...Like Lac...
I slice ...only difference is... I lay them on a cookie sheet... separated... and allow to freeze...then put them in a freezer bag.
This will keep them from clumping together...and I can grab the amount I need.

...Peas I put into boiling water....cover....and heat 1 minute and thirty seconds
...remove from water and put into cold water. Drain...and freeze up the amount needed.

Summer squash (zucchini)...I cut into 1/2" slices...heat three minutes and chill.
Drain...and freeze up amount needed.

Notice... I say Heat?...because sometimes the water will not come to a boil ...by the time it is to be removed from hot water and immediately put in to Very cold water...to chill.

Okra?...I never have froze
But anyone can go to their" University Extension Service" and get all the info they need to freeze.

Reap what you sow...
Enjoy your harvest!

[MVNewf]

I agree with Luvs method........get the water boiling first..............do not add fresh veggie's to the pot of water and then start the boiling process, thats what makes them freeze mushy

[RozieDozie]

BermudaKen, I agree with the boiling ladies; boil water first then plunge them into ice water after blanching.

Okra doesn't need blanching but freezes better if it's cut up rather than frozen whole. I freeze lots of okra every year; just cut it into circles and pop it into freezer bags, suck the air out with a straw and that's that. It's great in soups, gumbo or fried; not so good steamed as it tends to be slimy after it's frozen and steamed.

I blanch peas, yellow squash and zucchini but not sweet peppers. I just chop up the peppers and toss them in a bag. After they freeze, clumps can be broken off, as needed.

We freeze hot peppers whole, but I roast them first and remove the skins. My sis freezes hers with skins on but I don't like the skins. We also dry and smoke hot peppers.

I don't like frozen green beans, either; we pressure can green beans. But if you don't have a pressure canner, cooked green beans freeze well. Sometimes I cook a big pot of Kentucky/Missouri Wonder pole beans and freeze them in meal size portions. The more tender green beans don't freeze as well after cooking, but the sturdier beans are good.

I do what LAC said with tomatoes, although when they're coming in gang busters I don't even cut them up; just throw them into bags whole and freeze. When I have time, I turn them into sauce or ketchup or preserves.

Have fun!

[atl.veggie]

interesting how people differ in their likings

mama used to blanch things in an old deep fryer basket, so we could get the batch out and in ice water, yet reuse the boiling water for the next batch
I micro-blanch things that would take up too much room raw, like spinach or collards
everything else I cut pan ready and freeze, mostly in zipper bags, so I can take out however much I need, zip back up and throw back in the freezer
hot peppers, garlic, herbs I chop up and freeze in tiny containers
some herbs I freeze a pesto in small containers
the mayority of tomatoes get's micro-canned as-is or a tomato paste
cucumbers and not-so-hot peppers get pickled
lately I started dehydrating, mostly collards and zucchini for soup

[meatburner]

We freeze all kinds of vegs and herbs without issues. Most are blanched and dumped into ice water. I will usually freeze them on a cookie sheet to keep them from sticking together and then vacumn seal. The herbs are put in ice cube trays and add warm water and then freeze. When frozen, pop them out and put in bags. Same process with canned or fresh chicken, beef, and veggie stocks in the ice cube trays. We can things as well but freezing is just fine. Corn especially is better frozen IMO.

[BermudaKen]

Thank you for all the input!

I see where my blanching method is faulty. I would boil water in my big crawfish pot, dump the veggies in the basket, and wait for the water to return to a boil.
Won't do that again.

Will try cutting and dicing, then placing on a cookie sheet, too. (thanks for that idea)

I usually made a sauce with my tomatoes, then froze in small containers.

Maybe my expectations were too high. I was kind of hoping for something that looked like the big national brand's frozen product.


Kenny

[BermudaKen]

Originally Posted by Durgan

Find another method if you are serious about preserving vegetables.

Wife and I tried canning and pickling last year, with some success.

Personally, I've "pickled" plenty of fruit from our citrus trees in vodka or rum...if that counts!

Originally Posted by Durgan

The competition is severe, Big Mac, KFC, Pizza, sugar laced, fat laced, salt laced....

I don't remember the last time I stopped at a fast food outlet. Once or twice a year with DD, maybe.

Originally Posted by Durgan

Few people eat to live, but now with affluence live to eat...

I agree that's a healthy motto~~~ "eat to live"~~~but here in SE Louisiana, it's not the easiest (or most delicious) path to take.

Kenny