Freezing greens for the winter at home 

Recipes for many dishes involve the addition of fresh herbs. However, greens can be found on the beds only in the warm season, and in winter you have to buy it, because then it is grown only in greenhouses. Not all housewives know that for the winter at home, you can save useful vitamins almost in their original form.

How to freeze greens for the winter in a conventional refrigerator, as well as which greens can be frozen and which are not suitable for this, can be found in this article.

Freezing greens for the winter in stages

First of all, you need to decide which greens can be frozen, and which is better to buy fresh in the supermarket. In principle, absolutely any greens from the garden can be placed in the freezer – there will definitely be no harm from this, because after such processing all useful vitamins and microelements are preserved.

The nuance lies in how the product will look after thawing: not all types of green herbs and roots look as appetizing after defrosting as they are fresh.

For example, it’s best not to experiment with freezing lettuce leaves. These greens are too watery and tender, so the structure of the leaves is severely damaged during the freezing process, and after thawing, the salad looks like a shapeless slurry.

In any case, you need to approach the freezing of products thoroughly. To freeze greens in the freezer of a household refrigerator, it must be carefully prepared.

Recipes for freezing greens are not complete without the following steps:

1. Collect greens at a time when the leaves are still young and juicy, but already quite developed and strong.
2. Rinse in several waters, fixing the result under a stream of running water.
3. Throw the branches in a colander and let the water drain.
4. Dry the leaves on paper or kitchen towels.
5. Chop the greens or collect them in bunches.
6. Arrange the blanks in the freezer drawer.

How to freeze any greens

Different recipes for freezing greens can differ significantly from each other.

Practice shows that at home it is better to follow these simple rules:

• Some types of greens are recommended to be blanched before freezing, but you should not get carried away with this process. After heat treatment, products still lose most of the vitamins, no matter how careful it may be. Therefore, most often it is enough just to thoroughly rinse the bunches and twigs under running water.
• More recipes often involve pre-drying the greens before laying in the freezer. It is better to dry the branches on thick paper towels, periodically they should be turned over and shifted, and soaked napkins should be changed. Do not forget about time: any greenery will simply fade if it lies in the open air for more than two hours.
• If green leaves are supposed to be packed tightly in containers or jars, short-term exposure to boiling water is recommended – the greens will soften, it can be compacted more tightly into a container.
• It is very convenient to finely chop the green twigs with a sharp knife before freezing, then the hostess will always have ready-made seasoning at hand.
• Each family has its favorite dishes, their recipes and must be taken into account when choosing the type and amount of frozen greens. Ready-made mixtures of several varieties of herbs work well: you just have to open the freezer and get the right amount of seasoning for a particular dish.

Then the greens from the freezer will be as fresh: with a maximum of useful vitamins and minerals, retaining an excellent appearance and characteristic aroma.

How to freeze greens for the winter so that they stay fresh and tasty

A few decades ago, housewives did not have the opportunity to store vitamins and aromas of herbs in their refrigerators. This has become available only thanks to modern freezers with fast and deep freezing functions. A significant role was also played by the fact that today’s refrigerators do not have to be defrosted regularly – food can remain frozen until the next season.

Today, there are several ways to store greens in the freezer or in the freezer of a conventional refrigerator. In order for the product to remain beautiful, retain the same useful substances as when fresh, and not lose its inherent aroma, it is necessary to choose one of the following freezing methods:

1. Freezing greens in bunches. This method of freezing is suitable for those housewives who always do not have enough time, but have extra space in the freezer. Any greens from the garden are washed, sorted and dried thoroughly. Then they collect herbs in bundles (you can arrange several types of plants in each bundle) and fix them with a thread. Bunches of greens are laid out in a single layer in the freezer and left for a couple of hours for the greens to freeze. Now you can collect the bundles and place them in plastic bags or in plastic containers – this way, the blanks will take up less space in the refrigerator. The disadvantage of this method is that the stems and legs of the plants are not cut off, the hostess will have to spend extra time on this when preparing the dish, besides, unnecessary parts of herbs will take up space in the freezer.

   

2. Happening very quickly frozen herbs wrapped in foil. This allows you to preserve the original appearance of greenery, the vitamins and essential oils contained in it. The foil packaging is airtight, but it is better to put the bundles in a plastic bag after a few hours so that the seasoning does not spread its aroma throughout the refrigerator.

   

3. If finely chop the greens and freeze In this way, you can significantly save cooking time. Only this method requires very high-quality drying of the washed plants, otherwise, as a result of freezing, a large green frozen lump will turn out. Well-dried grass is cut and placed in a container, from where the seasoning can be collected simply with a spoon.

   

4. Especially popular lately freezing spices in ice cubes. Indeed, this is very convenient, because the cube can be thrown into soup or added to stews, vegetables – the greens will quickly thaw and spread throughout the dish. The only downside to freezing this is that the finely chopped seasoning cubes won’t work in salads or other fresh dishes.

   

Not all containers can be used for freezing food, plastic or silicone dishes are best, as well as plastic bags of good density. It must be remembered that containers from frozen spices should not be used to store other products, because they are saturated with the aromas of herbs.

If bags are used, all excess air must be expelled from them. This will not only save space in the freezer, but also prevent ice buildup.

It’s great if the freezer has a quick freeze function – so the products will remain as fresh as possible. If there is no such regime, you need to try to ensure the fastest freezing of greens on your own: if possible, free the camera, spread the bunches in one layer, sort the greens in small batches. After the spices are frozen, you can pour them into a bag or container with a lid.

What greens can be stored in the freezer

Almost any spicy herbs and even their roots can be frozen, only for each plant you need to choose best way to freeze

• Parsley, dill, celery and cilantro it is allowed to store both in bunches and in sliced ​​form. It is very convenient to make mixtures of these herbs and sort them in single servings. These plants keep well fresh, just wash and dry the grass.
• Green onions it is recommended to cut and then blanch for no longer than 30 seconds in boiling water. Then drain in a colander and put into freezer molds.
• Leek freeze at very low temperatures – about -18 degrees. After freezing, it can be placed in a regular freezer with a temperature of up to -5 degrees. Cut the leek into large pieces 2-3 cm thick.
• Of spinach and sorrel it is better to make blanks in ice cubes – this greenery is too juicy and fragile. But it is enough to wash and cut the leaves, but you don’t have to dry them before freezing, since the molds are still filled with water. To preserve the color of the leaves, it is recommended to pre-blanch for one minute.

A properly frozen product is no less useful than one that has recently been plucked from the garden. Simple recommendations will help you get the necessary vitamins all year round and make dishes varied and beautiful.