Freezing Vegetables

From: "The Backyard Homestead"

If you've ever bought fresh green beans from the supermarket in mid-winter and compared them with your frozen grean beans, the merits of freezing should be obvious--there's no comparison in quality. Following are general tips for freezing vegetables:

• Check the seed cataloges and seed packages to be sure you've chosen a variety that freezes well.
• Pick only tender young vegetables ready for table use.
• Wash the vegetables thoroughly by rinsing, repeatedly if necessary. Lift the vegetables out of the water rather than draining the water, which allows the dirt to settle back on them.
• Blanch the vegetables (by quickly steaming or immersing in boiling water) before freezing. This procedure sets the color and stops the action of the enzymnes that will otherwise continue to mature the vegetables.
• Cool vegetables promptly after blanching, to keep them crisp.
• Dry vegetables thoroughly after cooling, to prevent the formation of large ice crystals.
• Pack vegetables into freezer bags or containers, leaving at least an inch of head space if using a rigid container.

~Krissy Van Criss~