This year I have an excess of Brussels Sprouts and want to freeze them in. The question is: First to blanch them or not. Who knows the answer to this? Please voter and add commentary. Thanks for your advice.
We had a plot for a number of years Sjoerd and we always blanched prior to freezing. Don't boil to death more a few seconds dip in/out and straight under the cold tap for however long. Bag and label product and date on the bag. You could follow this page. http://extension.psu.edu/food/preservation/news/2012/blanching-vegetables-is-a-must-before-freezing K
I think the ones you buy at the stores frozen are blanched first. I would blanch in lightly salted water about a minute or less !
Although not a fan of brussel sprouts, I did grow them for a few years. I always blanched them for one minute in lightly salted water, dipped them out into an ice-cube water bath (a big bowl with ice cubes and just enough tap water to cover the sprouts), drained them, and then froze them in two-serving size bags. I'm glad your crop was so generous!
Thanks for your comments, KATE. I appreciate the link. I appreciate your advice MART. You mentioned blanching in water that has salt in it. What is the philosophy for adding salt? Oké JANE--Cheers for your idea. I see that you use saltwater as well. What are your reasons for that?
We rarely freeze sprouts as they last on the plants for so long that there is no need to fill the freezer space with them. No salt in the water for us and blanching is only done on things which are going to be kept for any length of time.
How many and how long it will take you to consume your sprouts aught to be the driver for how you store them. If you think you can eat up your supply in 45 days or less. I wouldn't bother to freeze them.
Thanks PALUSTRIS--We plan on keeping them for perhaps a year. We have picked a large amount (~the half) and we shall freeze them in. The rest we will leave on the plants and eat from them fresh, during the winter. COPPICE--Thanks for your thoughts. As I told Palu., we have picked half of them already and will freeze those in...the ones still on the plants we will pick p.r.n. and eat them fresh.
Adding a small amount of salt to the blanching water helps preserve the color of the vegetable. We use very little salt, perhaps a teaspoon per quart of water and I can't tell that it affects the taste of the vegetable at all.
Never had any problem with loss of colour when freezing Sprouts and both of us are on Salt free (well, very reduced) diet. Personal preference really.
Thanks JANE--I had not thought of preserving colour. I shall consult my bride on that, KK--she likes the pickled flavour, but I am not crazy about it. Cheers for your input, PALU.
I think either salt or a splash of vinegar added to the water just keeps the flavor fresher as well as keeping them from looking that nasty shade of green
No Mart no vinegar, just salt, some turmeric, galangal and some rice flour. The sourness come naturally. This is what I use to pickle my veggies. Brining Ingredients for 1kg of veggie : 2 Litre water 2 tbsp salt a few slices of galangal (blue ginger) 1/4 tspn turmeric powder 1/2 tbsp rice flour (mix with some water) Boil it and let it cool before putting in the veggie. Salt the veggie with 70gm of salt by rubbing it all over the veggie for about 6 hours. For Brussel Sprouts I would recommend cutting it into half and squeeze it after the 6 hours to remove all the water before putting them into the brining solution. Type of veggie I had pickled: Mustard Green - all species Cabbage Long Beans I have no experience with Brussels Sprouts but I think it will work well. Enjoy!
