Wonderful Women Magazine May 2010 - Freezing fruits and vegetables

Freezing fruits and vegetables

Best vegetables to freeze (See recipes for apple and tomato sauces at the end)

Vegetable	Packaging	Serving	Storage Time
Beans – Broad, French & runner	Blanche for 2 minutes. Open freeze. Pack in polyethylene bags. Seal & label	Boil in lightly salted water 5-10 mins.	Up to 1 year
Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts	Blanche for 3-4 mins, open freeze. Pack in rigid containers with headspace. Seal & label.	Boil in lightly salted water 5-8 mins.	Up to 1 year
Carrots	Freeze baby carrots whole, large ones sliced. Blanche for 2 mins, open freeze, pack like beans.	Boil in lightly salted water 5-10 mins.	Up to 1 year
Cauliflower	Blanche florets for 3 mins, open freeze, pack as you would sprouts.	Boil in lightly salted water 4-6 mins. Best served with a sauce.	Up to 6 months
Corn on the cob	Blanche small cobs for 4 mins, medium for 6. Open freeze, pack in poly bags, seal and label.	Thaw at room temperature for 2 hours. Cook in boiling unsalted water for 12-15 mins.	Up to 1 year
Courgettes	Blanche small, young courgettes for 1 min, open freeze, pack as you would broccoli. Slice large courgettes, blanche for 2 mins. Pack like broccoli.	Boil whole in lightly salted water - 3 mins. Thaw slices for 2 hrs at room temperature. Saute in butter.	Up to 1 year

Packing: Packaging needs to protect the food from direct contact with the very cold air of the freezer or foods get freezer burn and dry out.

Most vegetables require blanching in boiling water before freezing to stop the enzymes working and retain full colour and flavour. This is best done using a blanching basket which is lowered into boiling water for time required, then plunged into iced water, drained and dried thoroughly before freezing.

The open freeze process is mostly used with vegetables as it keeps them separate and stops them from turning mushy in a container.

Method:
Lay the blanched veg in a single layer on baking sheets, freeze until solid, then pack into poly bags or rigid containers, in which case you should leave 1cm of room between the top of the food and the lid.

The “unfreezables”

Avocado pear (although an avocado dip or mousse will freeze)
Boiled old potatoes
Salad greens

Best fruits to freeze (See recipe for apple sauce at the end)

Fruit	Packaging	Serving	Storage Time
Apples	Slice into acidulated water. Dry. Free flow freeze or pack in light syrup or freeze as puree.	Thaw in wrappings for 2-3 hrs at room temp. Use sliced fruit in puddings. Thaw puree as per recipe.	Free flow pack or syrup – 1 year. Puree- 6 months
Berries	Free flow or dry sugar pack or pack in medium syrup	Thaw in wrappings for 2-3 hrs at room temp. Use just before fully thawed	Up to 1 year
Citrus Fruits	Freeze whole tightly wrapped in polyethylene or sliced.	Thaw in wrappings for 3-4 hours. Use as required	Up to 1 year
Currants (blackcurrants freeze best)	Free flow or dry sugar pack or pack in light syrup	Thaw in wrappings for 3 hours at room temp.	Up to 1 year
Gooseberries	Free flow or pack in medium syrup or freeze as cooked puree	Thaw in wrappings for 3 hours at room temp. Thaw puree overnight in the fridge.	Up to 1 year
Rhubarb	Blanche for 1 minute. Free flow pack.	Thaw in wrappings for 4 hrs at room temp. Add sugar.	Up to 1 year

Many fruits can be prepared using the open freeze technique, especially if they are to be used in pies or tarts.

You may need to dip fruit slices in water first, to which lemon juice has been added to prevent discolouration. (Ascorbic acid, available at chemists, can be used instead of lemon juice: 500mg to every 600ml of water.) This applies especially to apples, peaches and pears.

Method:

Peel the fruit, or in the case of peaches and apricots, blanche in boiling water, then rub off the skins
Removes stones or cores, then slice directly into acidulated water
Dry the fruit thoroughly before open freezing
Frozen fruit keeps longer if packed in sugar or sugar syrup

There are 4 methods for preparing fruit for the freezer:

1. Free-flow pack: Open-freeze then pack in rigid containers or poly bags.

2. Dry sugar pack: Open freeze, then pack in sugar. When the fruit is thawed, the fruit juice combines with the sugar to form a syrup. This method is particularly good for whole or sliced soft, juicy fruit. As a guide, use 450g castor sugar to each 2kg fruit.

3. Sugar syrup: There are 3 strengths; medium, heavy and light. Medium is most often used. Light is better for fruits with delicate flavours. Heavy is especially suitable for tart fruits that are not especially juicy, such as apricots or pears.
To make the syrup, dissolve sugar in water and cool completely before using.
Recipe:1.2 litres of water + 225g sugar (light), 450g sugar (medium) or 1kg sugar (heavy).

4. Puree: Puree fruit, lightly cooked if necessary, in a blender or food processor or press through a sieve. Add sugar to taste: 50-100g sugar to every 450g of fruit.
Pack in rigid containers allowing 1cm headspace between food surface and lid.

Recipe for Tomato Sauce (makes 1.2 litres)

Freezing Fruits and Vegetables

4 Tblsp. vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1.5kg ripe tomatoes, skinned and chopped or 3 x 397g (14oz.) tins tomatoes, drained
2 tsp. sugar
2 tblsp. tomatoe puree
2 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
300 ml beef stock
Salt and pepper to taste

Sauté onions and garlic in oil until onions are transparent.
Add all other ingredients.
Season, bring to the boil, stir well then cover.
Reduce heat, simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally
Remove from heat, take out bay leaves and puree the sauce in a blender.
Return to pot and simmer gently uncovered for about 20 minutes or until reduced.

To freeze:
Cool quickly and pour into rigid containers, in small quantities if desired. Cover, seal label and freeze for up to 1 year.

To serve:
Turn frozen sauce into pot, ad 2 tblsp water and reheat gently for 30 minutes, turning block now and then.

Recipe for Apple Sauce (makes about 250ml)

Freezing Fruits and Vegetables

450g cooking apples peeled, cored and sliced
50ml water
25g butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Bring apples, water and butter to the boil in a non-stick pot
Reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 15 minutes, or until apples are soft and fluffy.
Beat with a wooden spoon to make a smooth paste.
Season with salt and pepper
If you like your sauce sweet, leave out the pepper. Add 1 tbsp castor sugar with the apples when cooking.

To freeze:
Cool quickly and pack into small containers
Seal, label and freeze for up to 6 months

To serve:
Thaw, covered for 4 hours at room temperature and serve cold. Or melt a little butter, add the frozen sauce, and in a pot reheat gently for about 15 minutes.