Freezing Vegetables For Soup
Most of the vegetables freeze well, while there are still exceptions. Talking about soup recipes, you can add almost any vegetable to your soup recipe. But I know it takes time to prepare the vegetables for soup. Sometimes, it gets even more difficult.
So, freezing vegetables for soups is the best idea. Not only this will save you time, but you will have ready vegetables in your freezer, whenever you wish to have vegetable soup. That said, you can freeze vegetables for soups in two ways.
One, if you intend to make some particular soup recipes, what you can do is section the veggies as per the ingredient list of your soup and freeze. Second, freeze the vegetables as you would normally do, and then use them later in any way you desire.
Vegetables That Can Be Frozen
Vegetables that contain less moisture like carrots, beans, peas, etc. freeze the best. They keep for very long in the freezer and retain their crunchiness even after defrosting. Also, they freeze much better, when blanched.
Blanching locks in the nutrients and preserves the color and texture of the vegetables. However, some vegetables like onions, peppers, and shallots should not be blanched before freezing. This is because they will not benefit from blanching and will lose texture. Freeze them raw.
Vegetables That Cannot Be Frozen
While you can add almost any vegetable to your soup if you desire. There are some vegetables, especially leafy vegetables that cannot be frozen. For instance, cucumber, lettuce, and radish might not freeze well, because they contain a lot of moisture. They might go mushy.
In that case, what you can do is, try adding them fresh in your soup. This will not only protect the texture of the soup from mushy vegetables but also enhance the flavor of your soups. The moisture content of vegetables is crucial when it comes to freezing them.
How To Freeze Vegetables For Soup?
Freezing vegetables is quite simple. All you have to do is follow a stepwise method, and ta-da! Your veggies for soup will be frozen in no time.
Check out the following steps to freeze your veggies effectively:
- Wash and rinse your vegetables under running water. This will remove all the dirt. Use a paper towel to dry the vegetables.
- Next, take a sharp knife and cut the vegetables into dices. Not all vegetables need to be peeled, so cut them accordingly.
- Spread the cut vegetables on a baking tray, and flash-freeze them for a couple of hours. This will boost the freezing process. Make sure there are no clumps.
- The next step is to transfer the vegetables into freezer bags. You can also use airtight containers for this purpose.
- Seal the packages tightly, write the date and contents, and stack them into the freezer. Your veggies for soup are all set to be frozen.
Tips For Freezing Vegetables For Soup!
I have some tips for you that you can use to get better results while freezing vegetables for soup.
Check them out below:
- While blanching may increase the time of preparing veggies for freezing, blanched vegetables retain more freshness and nutrients. They are also much more freezer-friendly than unblanched vegetables.
- Always use freshly harvested vegetables for freezing. Avoid the ones that are overripe or blemishes. Also, if possible freeze the veggies without refrigerating them. This will provide the best freezing results.
- It is better if you freeze similar kinds of vegetables together. For example, you can freeze carrots and peas together, or onions and peppers together. This will keep their freshness locked for longer as they have similar properties.
How Long Can You Freeze The Vegetables?
You can freeze your vegetables for soups for up to three months. And if you are freezing them blanched, the veggies might as well extend the freezer-shelf life to four months. Post that the vegetables will start losing their texture and might turn mushy.
Therefore, it is advised that you use your frozen veggies as soon as possible for the best results. Because you would not want your soup recipe to have mushy vegetables, right? The crunch in vegetables is what enhances the taste!
Do The Vegetables Freeze Well?
Yes, most of the vegetables freeze well, when they are frozen properly. And since the vegetables do not last for very long in the refrigerator, it is best to freeze them to increase their shelf life. This way, you can also store seasonal vegetables for your soups.
However, you know that some vegetables are not suitable for the freezer. Therefore, they are exceptions in this case. While they might not freeze well, you can still add them fresh to your soup recipes.
How To Defrost Frozen Vegetables?
Well, when it comes to defrosting the vegetables for soup, you do not need to worry about anything. This is because if you are adding vegetables to your soup recipes, you can use them directly from the freezer. The veggies are going to be cooked anyway, so no need to defrost them.
But, if you wish to prepare the soup later, what you can do is, remove the frozen vegetables from the freezer and place them in the refrigerator. This will reduce the temperature gradually, and you can use them within 1-2 days for your soups.
