Topic: Which fruit/veg do you think freeze well?

[Sparkly]

We have just bought a chest freezer (finally!).

I am planning to try and freeze alot of the summer produce from the plot for winter.


Which do you think freeze well? Obviously books say which COULD be frozen, but I don't want to do it if it will taste rubbish!

We have already frozen 17lb of broad beans....

[macmac]

Peas,sweetcorn and soft fruit.We do a few french beans but the rest we eat fresh although this year we are going to freeze borlotti beans instead of drying them

[steve76]

1st year with a lotty for me but going by what other plot holders have said to me i have so far frozen -peas, runner beans not blanched ,courgettes, beetroot and turnips blanched.
 Have had peas from the freezer and they were fine and so was the beet.
Going to freeze some of my summer cabbage and cauli this week before it bolts.

[non-stick]

runners freeze well as do braod beans. Prefer french beans fresh rather than frozen - hard to explain but they taste better. We also freeze apples (stewed) and many of our rapsberries.

Cauli wasn't as nice frozen. We also tend to make pumpkin, beetroot and cauliflower soups to freeze. Oh and tomato soup.

[macmac]

non stick's just reminded me ,when blight doesn't steal our tomatoes(like the past two years)i make a sauce using toms,onions and garlic ,cooked down and pureed(stick blender)pour into freezer bags inside cut down milk cartons(for stability) and freeze.these"bricks"they're great as instant pasta sauce or as a base for curry or spag bol :)

[saddad]

We are still using last years Tomato "slop" (lots of greenhouse toms!)
Romanesco courgette keeps it's texture after cooking/freezing/reheating..  :)

[GRACELAND]

runners freeze well as do braod beans.sweetcorn

and i pick parsley put in tub and freeze stays supper

[Lizann]

If I have a big batch of carrots going spare I grate them and put in the freezer in bags just the size needed to make a pot of soup, then just lift out the bag and put straight in the soup when I need it.   

Also do much the same with leeks, chop them up with the food processor and put them in bags the amount required for soup and freeze them.  They freeze well but can be a bit of a strong smell in the freezer, so I tend to double bag them and put them in a plastic container to stop the smell stinking out the freezer! 

[shirlton]

We had to buy another freezer last year cos we had so much produce. We do store whatever we can like potatoes carrots and beetroot in sand but the rest goes into the freezer. Last years harvest is in the upstairs freezer while this years is downstairs. We have almost finished last years thank goodness cos we will have the beans coming soon and we will need all the room we can get, Most of the stuff left from last year gets made into soup eventually. We never throw anything away ;D

[Ishard]

Everything you grow can be frozen for later including spuds :)

[PurpleHeather]

It is easier to tell you what wont freeze. The taste of the end results are a matter of personal taste. I think green beans loose a lot of flavour but peas and sweet corn seem to be fine.

My best tip is to check out what is available in the freezers at the supermarkets. If it is not there. It probably wont freeze well.

Some things like  potatoes and swede are best cooked first and then mashed and frozen. Spinach needs to be wilted first. Cabbage can be made into bubble and squeak.

With soft fruit it goes squashy but it can be made into a puree, even jam later.

Otherwise make up sweet pies. gooseberry, plum, rhubarb, Freeze unbaked or baked. but defrost before putting them in the oven to cook. Or freeze stewed fruit for pies and crumbles later.

I buy those oblong plastic containers and when the food is frozen transfer the lump into freezer bags. They stack better and use up less room. Bagging saves collecting loads of plastic containers which take up a lot of storage space over winter.

MUST Do:-put a label on with contents and date. We all think we will remember but...........

Enjoy yourself. It will soon be full and leave you wondering how you ever managed without.