Well Preserved
The Well Preserved news
column is prepared by Lan
caster County Cooperative
Extension. It includes food
preservation information and
questions.
Freezing Vegetables
Last week’s article looked at
some general guidelines for suc
cessful freezing of foods. This
week we will look at specific
techniques for freezing vege
tables. Most vegetables freeze
well with the exception of salad
greens and those high in starch
content such as potatoes. Some
of the vegetables most difficult
to can-corn, peas, and green
limas-are among those easily
frozen.
Select fresh, young, tender
vegetables for best quality. Some
varieties are more suitable for
freezing than others. Sort for
size, ripeness and color for un
iform results. Work quickly to
prevent loss of quality and nu
trients. Freeze only five or six
containers at a time. Ideally the
vegetables will be frozen imme
diately after picking. If you can
not freeze them immediately, re
frigerate them.
Wash and drain vegetables
before peeling skins or removing
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shells. You want to remove sur
face dirt, bacteria, and insects.
Wash small amounts at a time
and use several changes of cold
water. Lift the vegetables out of
the water so that the dirt does
not settle back on the food. Also,
do not let the vegetables soak in
water. Blanching is the key to
success for freezing most vege
tables. Blanching is scalding
vegetables in boiling water or
steam for a short time to slow or
stop enzyme action.
Enzymes are the chemicals in
vegetables that cause produce to
ripen and unless inactivated will
continue to be active during fro
zen storage. This results in a loss
of flavor, color, and texture.
Blanching also brightens the
color and helps retard the loss of
vitamins. Many vegetables are
also easier to pack when the
blanching causes wilting and
softens them. Water blanching
is the most common method
used in home freezing. Use one
gallon water per pound of pre
pared vegetable. It is easiest and
safest to put the vegetable in a
blanching basket and lower it
into water that is vigorously
boiling. Place a lid on the
blancher and start counting
blanching time immediately.
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Keep heat high for the time
given in the directions for the
vegetable you are freezing. The
water should return to a boil
within one minute of when you
added the vegetables. Change
the water after every three to
five batches to prevent its add
ing strong off flavors to
blanched vegetables.
Steam blanching works well
for broccoli, pumpkin, sweet po
tatoes and winter squash. It
takes about 1 Vi times longer
than water blanching. Steam
blanching involves putting the
food in a basket that holds it at
least 3 inches above the bottom
of the pot. Put an inch or two of
water in the pot and bring the
water to a boil. Put the vege
tables in the basket in a single
layer so that steam reaches all
parts quickly. Cover the pot and
keep heat high. Start counting
steaming times as soon as the lid
is on.
Some references exist for mi
crowave blanching. Research
shows that this method may not
be effective because some en
zymes may not be inactivated.
Those choosing to run the risk
of low quality vegetables by mi
crowave blanching should be
sure to work in small quantities,
using the directions for their
specific microwave oven. Micro
wave blanching will not save
time or energy. Blanching time
is crucial and varies with the
vegetable and size. Under
blanching stimulates the activity
of the enzymes and is worse
than no blanching. Blanching
too long causes loss of flavor,
color, vitamins and minerals. A
few blanching times for some
common vegetables are as fol
lows: Green or wax beans-3
minutes Lima beans- medium
size— 3 minutes Broccoli-1 inch
flowerets-3 minutes Brussels
Sprouts-medium size-4 minutes
Cauliflower-1 inch flowerets-3
minutes Com on the Cob-medi
um ears-9 minutes Corn-cut
from cob after blanching-4 min
utes Onions for cooking (blanch
until center is heated)-3 to 7
minutes Green peas-2 minutes
Summer Squash-2 minutes As
soon as blanching is complete,
cool the vegetables quickly to
stop the cooking process. Plunge
the vegetables immediately into
a large quantity of cold water,
60 degrees F or below. Change
the water frequently or use cold
running water or iced water.
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If ice is used, about one
pound of ice for each pound of
vegetable is needed. Cooling
vegetables should take the same
amount of time as blanching.
Drain the vegetables thoroughly
after cooking. Extra moisture
can cause a loss of quality when
vegetables are frozen. Vege
tables can be dry packed or tray
packed (individually quick fro
zen). Remove as much air as
possible. Vegetables that pack
loosely such as cauliflower do
not need headspace. Vegetable
juices need 1 to 1 Vz inches
headspace. Allow Vi inch head
space for other vegetables. Tray
packing involves spreading the
blanched, cooled, and drained
vegetable in a single layer on
shallow trays or pans and plac
ing them in the freezer just long
enough to freeze firm. Check
them often after the first hour
because long exposure of uncov
ered vegetables will result in loss
of moisture. Vegetables packed
by this method will remain loose
and can be poured from the
container and the package re
closed.
If you have food preservation
questions, a Home Economist is
available to answer questions on
Wednesdays 10 a.m.-l p.m., call
(717) 394-6851 or write Penn
State Cooperative Extension,
Lancaster County, 1383 Arcadia
Rd., Rm.l, Lancaster, PA,
17601.
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