Blanching Vegetables
Directions on blanching vegetables and how to then freeze them so you have vegetables through the winter without the extra cost.
Equipment
- 6-Quart Pot
- Kitchen Scale
- Sink Colander
- Cutting board
Ingredients
- Corn
- Carrots
Instructions
- Begin by washing and peeling the carrots in a sink colander.
- Cut both ends off of the carrots and place in a bowl to be sliced.
- Slice the carrots either on a cutting board or using a Cuisinart Food Processor to get a more even result.
- There are two different ways to cook the carrots.
- Parboiling is where you place the carrots immersed in boiling water and cook for 2-5 minutes depending on size, however I used a steamer basket in a 6-Quart pot and steamed them for 5 minutes.
- Blanching/Parboiling vegetables helps to keep the brightness and freshness of vegetables and they get cleaned while maintaining their crispiness and texture.
- Prep your water bath by placing a large bowl in the sink, then fill it up with water and ice cubes.
- The ice water, when the vegetables are submerged, stops the cooking.
- Use a slotted spoon and transfer the carrots into the water bath in small batches, then scoop them out and place in a sink colander.
- Rest the carrots in a sink colander and then let the water drip out of them completely.
- While the carrots are drip drying, set up a baking sheet with wax paper, which will be to lay out the carrots to freeze.
- The wax paper will help them to not stick to the baking sheet and allow for easier bagging.
- Then lay the dried carrots out on the baking sheet in a single layer.
- When the carrots are all laid out, place the baking sheet into the freezer for 1-2 hours, or until they are completely frozen.
- Using a measuring cup and kitchen scale, set the amount to 0.0 ounces.
- If you do not have a scale, use a straight measuring system to put as much or as little in your bags as you'd like. For the sake of consistency, I filled them to 12-ounces because that is what we would typically buy pre-packaged in a steamer bag.
- Measure out the blanched carrots, or whatever vegetable you are using.
- Fill a freezer bag with the blanched vegetables and use a straw to suck out all of the air you can out of the bag.
- One thing discovered in my research of blanching vegetables is to double-bag them before you put the bag in the freezer, which helps to cut down on freezer burn.