Freezing pepper for stuffing for the winter: fresh, whole, boats, cups

Freezing peppers for the winter for stuffing is a popular harvesting method. The semi-finished product retains useful properties and taste for a long time. In the process of preparing a stuffed dish from a frozen product, less time is spent. You can put whole or cut into pieces fruits, raw or blanched in the freezer.

Processed vegetables before putting them in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator

How to freeze peppers for the winter for stuffing

For freezing, do not use a vegetable crop of early ripening, because the fruits have thin pulp. Medium and late varieties are more suitable for this processing method. Bulgarian pepper is sold in supermarkets all year round, but in winter the varieties are greenhouse or early ripening, their composition of nutrients is lower and the taste is inferior to autumn grown in open ground.

The process of freezing peppers for stuffing is a seasonal event, like conservation, so in a short time it is necessary to stock up as much as possible for the winter.

Vegetables for stuffing are frozen without a core and a stalk, it is cut off with a part of the pulp, which can be used when pickling other blanks.

Peppers with certain characteristics are subject to freezing for the winter as a blank for stuffing:

1. The fruits must be fully ripe, elastic, the variety and color do not play a role.
2. The surface should be free of mechanical damage, dark spots, soft and rotten areas.
3. It is advisable to take vegetables of the same size.
4. If a large amount of raw materials is to be frozen, it is better to divide it into packing or vacuum bags into portions necessary for one preparation.

Quick freezing whole sweet peppers for the winter for stuffing

There are several ways to freeze, some of them require lengthy preparation, others save time, but in any case, the raw materials for subsequent stuffing are pre-treated. On clean fruits, a circular incision is made and the inside is removed along with the stalk. Then the workpiece is washed so that there are no seeds left, put down with slices on a napkin to drain water, and only after that they start processing.

Recipe for quick freezing peppers for stuffing for the winter:

1. The inside of the processed and dried fruits are rubbed with a small pinch of salt.
2. Leave for a couple of hours, during which time the vegetables will give up some of the juice and become more elastic.
3. The resulting liquid is drained, the remaining salt is washed off under running water.
4. A teaspoon of citric acid is added to boiling water with a volume of 5 liters, the workpiece is lowered and the stove is turned off.
5. After 2 minutes, the vegetables are removed with a slotted spoon and placed in cold water.

The structure of vegetables for stuffing becomes elastic and elastic. The two parts are easy to connect. The fruits are stacked on top of each other in a bag and immediately placed for freezing in the chamber.

Freezing blanched bell pepper for the winter for stuffing

Blanched vegetables for freezing for the winter are an ideal option, the structure of the workpiece becomes unbreakable and the semi-finished product is completely ready for subsequent stuffing.

Preparation of the product before freezing:

1. Processed vegetables are poured into boiling water.
2. Put on fire and cook for 4 minutes, turn off the oven, cover the container and leave the fruits in hot water until cool.
3. Spread the workpiece on a napkin so that moisture completely evaporates from the surface.

Packed in portions for single use and put in a freezer for freezing.

Freezing bell pepper for stuffing for the winter in portioned packages

Before the main freezing, vegetables are processed, washed, and allowed to drain. To remove residual moisture, the fruits inside and out are wiped with a dry cloth or paper towel.

Blanched vegetables in bags

Set the freezer to fast freeze. Polyethylene is placed at the bottom, fruits are laid out on it so that they do not touch each other. Leave until completely frozen. Then they are packed in a bag, let out air, tied up. And they immediately return it.

How to freeze peppers for the winter in a freezer for stuffing in vacuum bags

Vacuum bags are a convenient container for freezing and storing food. They can be packaged blanched semi-finished product or raw. If the product does not undergo heat treatment, it is pre-frozen so that the fruits in the container do not freeze together. Then, in any convenient way, they are placed in a vacuum bag, the open end is sealed, and air is removed with a special device.

Freezing pepper “boats” for stuffing

This method is convenient in terms of the space occupied in the chamber. Freezing methods and packaging in bags are no different from laying whole fruits. The difference is that the vegetable is cut lengthwise into 2 parts – boats. You can apply the recipe with heat treatment:

1. Boats are poured with boiling water and left to cool.
2. Spread in a colander, then allow the remaining moisture to evaporate.
3. Parts are stacked on top of each other.

Packed and sent for freezing.

If the workpiece is not subjected to heat treatment, the parts are laid out on a tray and placed for primary freezing in the chamber for about 40 minutes. Then they are quickly laid out in bags and sent back to the freezer.

How to freeze peppers in “glasses” for stuffing in winter

For this method of freezing pepper for stuffing for the winter, a raw billet is often used. The preparatory work is standard, the laying is carried out only with processed and dry raw materials:

1. From a cling film or a packaging bag, squares about 8×8 cm in size are cut.
2. A square is placed in the middle of the fruit, then the next vegetable. The main task is to ensure that there are no points of contact between vegetables without a film.
3. A stack is made along the length of the packaging container.

Freezer bags are placed horizontally.

Do I need to defrost peppers from the freezer before stuffing

If you completely thaw a pepper processed in its raw form, it will become soft and stuffing will be impossible. After removing the product from the freezer, it is taken out of the bag and after 5 minutes they start stuffing.

The blanched semi-finished product is completely thawed, the elastic structure will not change after that, and it will not work to fill the newly extracted product, because the parts are connected and there is no empty space between them.

How long can you store frozen peppers for stuffing

Vegetables harvested for the winter for stuffing, at the lowest possible constant temperature, do not lose their useful chemical composition for more than 10 months. The extracted product is not subject to secondary freezing, especially if it is processed raw.

Conclusion

Freezing peppers for the winter for stuffing is a convenient and quite popular way of harvesting. The semi-finished product saves time in the course of preparation of a dish. It can be used for any kind of stuffing. Fruits completely retain their taste, aroma and useful chemical composition for a long time.