How to freeze zucchini for the winter at home fresh in the freezer

During the summer season, the body can get enough vitamins and minerals from fresh vegetables and fruits. With the onset of cold weather, it is recommended to freeze a certain amount of fresh vegetables from the garden in order to be able to receive all the nutrients at any time. Below is detailed information on how to freeze delicious and he althy zucchini for the winter, what recipe options are available, and how to properly store blanks.

Can I freeze zucchini

Before you start stocking up, the owners of their own gardens, first of all, ask themselves the question - is zucchini suitable for freezing at all? Does it make sense to store it in the freezer, hoping that it will not lose the vitamins it contains?

Zucchini is recommended to be frozen for the winter if you want to have preserved vegetables during the cold season, the beneficial properties of which cannot be compared with canned or imported products that are offered on store shelves.

After all, only self-grown fruits can be sure that they do not contain preservatives, nitrates and other harmful substances that are added to vegetables and fruits during industrial production.

And freezing is a great way to preserve 100% natural food so you can eat it any time of the year.

How to choose vegetables for harvesting for the winter

In order to be able to eat he althy and tasty in winter, you need to choose the right vegetables for freezing. When harvesting, all fruits should be divided into two categories - those that are best eaten now, fresh, and those that are suitable for freezing for the winter.

For storage in the freezer, young zucchini or squash squash will be the most successful. It is recommended to choose light fruits of a small size - later, when preparing a frozen vegetable, they will turn out best - for too large zucchini, the middle will begin to boil, and the skin will turn out to be hard and dry.

Frozen small zucchini will cook evenly and retain taste.

Zucchini is considered not a very good option for freezing for the winter - such fruits contain too much liquid, which is not suitable for storage at low temperatures. Zucchini with the least amount of liquid in them are suitable for freezing - then the cooked vegetables will not be tough and retain their good taste. It is recommended to choose zucchini with thin skins and small seeds.

Preparing the refrigerator

The refrigerator does not need to be especially careful before placing zucchini in it, but, nevertheless, in order to preserve the best taste of vegetables, you must follow a few recommendations:

1. Remove from the freezer or from a separate edema where zucchini will be stored, all products that emit strong odors. If the flavors are mixed with each other for a long time, it will affect the taste, therefore, in order to preserve the pure taste of the fruits, it is recommended to store them separately from other products.
2. Put the freezer on a low temperature to create the effect of stress freezing (this method preserves the taste and vitamins of zucchini). For primary freezing, zucchini should be sent either to the “Fast / Super freeze” compartment, or set the lowest temperature in the common chamber, and increase it to the usual after a certain amount of time has passed.
3. Another important point is the preparation of containers in which vegetables will be stored. Plastic bags are considered the best option, from which it is necessary to remove the air as much as possible (this will allow the vegetables to last longer).

Ways to freeze zucchini at home

Below are some of the most popular ways to freeze zucchini for the winter, while maintaining its good sweet taste and all its useful qualities.

Freezing fresh zucchini rings

In fact, there is no single option on how to properly freeze zucchini for the winter. Modern cooking knows several ways, and the choice of one of them depends on the intentions in the further preparation of frozen vegetables and, of course, on individual preferences.

One of the most popular options for storing zucchini in the freezer is freezing a vegetable cut into rings.

This option will be convenient for further cooking dishes with zucchini (for example, fried side dishes or casseroles) and easy to perform.

Step by step instructions:

1. Cut washed and well-dried vegetables into rings, the thickness of which should vary between one and one and a half centimeters.
2. Put the rings on a pre-prepared dish (it is recommended to cover it with plastic wrap or a bag to prevent the vegetables from freezing to the dishes).
3. If you plan to freeze a lot of zucchini - they are laid out in several layers, separated from each other by polyethylene, so that the fruits do not freeze together.
4. Place the dish in the freezer. It is recommended to use "stress" freezing.
5. After the vegetables are frozen, remove them from the dish and transfer them to a separate bag or container for storage.

Diced

Freezing zucchini with cubes is no more difficult than freezing with rings. The fundamental difference is only in the form of cutting vegetables - for this method they should be cut into small cubes of equal sizes (1.5-2 centimeters). Storage for this type of freezing is recommended in portions, because small cubes will be difficult to separate from each other to add to dishes.

With vegetables and rice

One option for preparing a full-fledged zucchini dish in the freezer is to freeze the vegetable mixture with rice. Thus, it turns out a ready-made side dish that does not need additional ingredients - it is perfect for meat or as an independent diet dish.

Cooking method:

1. Prepare vegetables: onions, carrots, zucchini, tomatoes. Cut into cubes of the same size.
2. Sweat the vegetable mixture in a pan with olive oil. Simmering time - about half an hour, on low heat. Add s alt, pepper and spices to taste.
3. Stir stewed vegetables with boiled rice. Cool the stew and portion it out in separate containers, then send it to freeze.

With greens

To better preserve the taste of fresh zucchini and give it a special charm, you can freeze vegetables with fresh herbs. The cooking method is not very complicated - everything is done in the same way as conventional freezing with rings. The only difference is that before sending the vegetable to the freezer, it must be sprinkled with herbs (preferably dill, this is the most successful combination for cooking).

For baby food

From zucchini you can prepare food for the winter for a child - made independently from vegetables from the garden, it will come out tastier and he althier than store-bought counterparts.To prepare baby food, finely chopped zucchini is ground in a blender and poured into ice molds.

In this form, the vegetable is sent for primary freezing, after which the resulting forms should be folded in portions and stored in the freezer. For one reception, two or three cubes will be enough for a child.

Freeze fried zucchini

Another popular way is to freeze ready-made, fried zucchini. In this case, the dish will only need to be reheated in the microwave before consumption. Before frying, zucchini must be treated with the necessary spices (s alt, pepper) and roll both sides in flour. After frying, they must be cooled and after that sent to the freezer, separating each layer of vegetables with polyethylene.

Grated zucchini and zucchini puree

Freezing zucchini in grated form involves the use of all fruits, regardless of size and amount of liquid in them.

Before cooking, remove all large hard seeds and remove the peel from large fruits (it is acceptable on young zucchini). Vegetables are rubbed on a coarse grater, and moisture is removed from all the resulting pulp before being frozen. Zucchini puree is frozen in the same way, and other root vegetables are added to it, such as carrots or pumpkin.

Temperature and shelf life

The main storage rule is that frozen zucchini should not be taken out of the freezer for a long time and then sent there again. Temperature drops are highly undesirable, otherwise the vegetable will lose its taste and useful properties. The optimum temperature for permanent storage is between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius. Shelf life - no more than 10 months.

Rules for defrosting zucchini

In order for the workpiece to defrost properly, it is placed at room temperature.It is not recommended to immediately spread frozen vegetables on a hot stove - the frozen ice will turn into water, which will affect the taste and quality of the dish. The exception is vegetable stew, which is suitable for simmering until cooked right out of the freezer.

Recommended