OT freezing vegetables

[yeahdisney]

Anyone every freeze celery or onions? You know chop them, get the extra air out and then freeze them for the next pot roast or stock? Cause usually here, with celery it is use it once, throw the rest away.

 

[michellejed]

I have never tried it with celery by itself but have made chili with it in and freezes just fine, so I would think you could

 

[C.Ann]

I do it with onions all the time.. Never tried it with celery though.. Would be interested to hear the answer to that because I use it so sparingly and end up throwing the rest away..

 

[clh2]

This works great with onions! I just add the frozen onions to whatever I am cooking (i.e. chili, sloppy joes etc.)

I have not tried this with celery, however, if you would google freezing celery, there is a ton of stuff on it. I will certainly try this the next time I get some celery.

 

[missypriss19]

I have done it with onions, celery, and bell peppers. Find them on sale and chop away. It is very convienent on the days I work and cook.

 

[jax677]

I started doing this a few months ago. I would end up throwing so much celery away because we can't use it fast enough. I just clean, chop and put whatever amount is 1 serving into ziplock bags. I throw it in the freezer and take it out when needed. You don't even have to thaw it out before using it in soups and stews.

I have started looking in the veggie bin towards the end of the week and doing this with anything that will go bad over the weekend. The only thing I don't do this with is asparagus, gets too stringy/mushy for our taste.

 

[pampam]

With celery, I wash and chop the stalks and the leaves too.
Onions I skin, and leave whole, or chop.
Green peppers I slice in half, take the seeds out and freeze.

I find it best to lay these veggies on a cookie sheet, freeze and then bag.

I know with most veggies they say to blanch first but some of these I will be frying, so I don't want to boil them first. I find it makes no difference in quality.

 

[momejay]

The men in our house don't know how to shop. I ask for onions & get 25 lbs of them. Onions will freeze fine. I usually chop them first. Garlic works too just add a bit of olive oil or it burns in the saute.
Celery will freeze well too. (not leaves) Although I have chopped & blended celery (with leaves) with carrots & onions to make a quick stock. My DD won't eat veggies in soup if she can see them so I blend them into stock for soups. I tell her it is soup stock not blended veggies! LOL!
In the summer, when we have tons of bell peppers, I chop them up too. I then throw them in stir fry or soup as needed. My DS will eat them frozen. I also freeze them cut in half for stuffed peppers.

 

[susanrose73]

I have also had good success with freezing it & using them after.

 

[Justsyd2]

Yes - to both of them. Wash, chop, and freeze. Take out what you need. Works like a charm!

 

[crisi]

I have started looking in the veggie bin towards the end of the week and doing this with anything that will go bad over the weekend. The only thing I don't do this with is asparagus, gets too stringy/mushy for our taste.

Pickling is amazingly easy to do - if you don't mind the taste of pickled foods, and would work well for your asparagus. Its really just a matter of pouring hot vinegar and sugar over the jarred vegetables and putting the lids on (everything must be very clean - that's the only tricky part).

 

[Mom23Disneybelievers]

I have frozen almost all veggies at one time or another. Just lay them out on a cookie sheet first, then transfer them to freezer bags. It makes it easier to take out smaller portions, later on, because they are not all stuck together.

 

[pampam]

I had potatoes start to sprout in the bag, so I decided to boil, mash and freeze. They say you cannot freeze potatoes, but we cannot tell the difference. I package the mashed potatoes in baggies, enough for a meal. When I need them, I take them out of a baggie, nuke them in the micro for about 3 minutes, mash them lightly, and they are ready. I will do this all the time now, because it is such a timesaver when I'm trying to get a hot meal on the table.

 

[JLiz]

When they defrost they will be mushy so they won't work for tuna or potato salads. But, they work great for anything that will be cooked like soups or stews. I do this frequently and it also works with onions and peppers.

 

[WDWorBUST]

I had potatoes start to sprout in the bag, so I decided to boil, mash and freeze. They say you cannot freeze potatoes, but we cannot tell the difference. I package the mashed potatoes in baggies, enough for a meal. When I need them, I take them out of a baggie, nuke them in the micro for about 3 minutes, mash them lightly, and they are ready. I will do this all the time now, because it is such a timesaver when I'm trying to get a hot meal on the table.

I have read repeatedly that potatoes don't freeze well so I never tried it. Next time I will give it a shot. What do I have to lose - it doesn't work for us and we throw it out....or we just throw it out?

 

[tavettava]

I have read repeatedly that potatoes don't freeze well so I never tried it. Next time I will give it a shot. What do I have to lose - it doesn't work for us and we throw it out....or we just throw it out?

Do you mash them with the milk and butter? Or just add that when you nuke them?

 

[pampam]

Do you mash them with the milk and butter? Or just add that when you nuke them?

I myself don't use milk or butter on our potatoes. We just top with good gravy ( not that white slop, but good northern beef gravy)

On the serious side, if I was going to add milk or butter, I would do it after I heated them up, and then maybe nuke for another minute if it needed it. That way, if they seemed too loose perhaps you could use skim milk powder. Just an idea.