How to freeze rhubarb for the winter: home harvesting and storage

Many gardeners grow rhubarb on the plot, but not many know what to do with it. Although the plant is used for cooking various dishes and cooking compotes. Freezing rhubarb stalks for the winter is easy. But in winter you can cook delicious pies from it.

Choose rhubarb for freezing

Before you freeze the stems, you need to choose them correctly:

• Only elastic and juicy stems are suitable for freezing for the winter. Withered and dried out for freezing are not suitable.
• Mature stalks should be peeled, young ones should be left as is.
• Stalks must be free from insect and disease damage.

For freezing, both young and mature parts of plants are suitable. There is no fundamental difference.

How to prepare rhubarb for freezing?

The stems are harvested for freezing at any time of the season. The main thing is that the parts of the plant are large and fully formed. Before freezing, mature stems are peeled. Young ones do not need to be peeled, they have a thin skin.

After that, the stems are washed under running water and laid out on a towel. It is important that the blanks are completely dry from water. After the stems are dry, they are cut into squares. Further actions depend on the selected freezing method.

Ways to freeze rhubarb

Harvesting a plant for the winter at home can be done in various ways. Proper freezing preserves all the nutrients that this plant is so rich in.

You need to keep frozen blanks in the freezer for no more than two years. Although eating blanks is recommended in the first year. The longer the raw material will lie in the freezer, the less tasty it will be.

Freezing fresh rhubarb

Many prefer to freeze the plant fresh. To do this, cut the stems at the root. They should be juicy and thick. The peel is peeled, and the stems themselves are then thoroughly washed in cool water. The parts of the plant are then laid out on a towel or newspaper to dry the water.

When the parts of the plant become dry, they are cut into medium-sized squares. Put in plastic bags and put in the freezer. Be sure to dry the stems before freezing so that excess liquid does not accumulate in them during storage.

Freeze rhubarb with sugar

Another way to freeze is with added sugar.The first step of freezing rhubarb with sugar is exactly the same as in the first recipe. Then the chopped stem must be mixed with granulated sugar. For 2 cups take half the same glass of sugar. Leave the rhubarb for a few hours to soak.

Spread the workpiece into containers or plastic bags. Put in the freezer so that the workpiece is completely frozen. After that, you need to get the workpiece and separate the pieces.

How to freeze blanched rhubarb?

You can freeze raw materials in blanched form. First you need to process the raw material and cut it into pieces. Then proceed as follows:

• Pour water into a saucepan and put on fire. Wait for it to boil.
• Place part of the raw material in a colander and place in boiling water for 1 minute.
• After that, immediately place the raw materials in cold water for a few minutes.
• Wait until all the liquid drains and spread the raw materials on a towel. The pieces need to be dried.
• Put the raw materials into bags and place in the freezer.

Frozen blanched rhubarb tastes just like fresh frozen rhubarb.

Freeze mashed rhubarb

Before freezing the puree, the stems are prepared in the same way as in the previous methods. Then, when the blanks are ready, they are placed in a blender and ground to a puree state. Sugar is added to the puree if desired. The finished puree is laid out in containers and put into the freezer.

How to defrost rhubarb?

In order to preserve all the useful substances, you need to defrost it properly. It is best to defrost raw materials in a special compartment, which is found in some refrigerators. But if there is no such compartment, then there are other ways to simply defrost the product and preserve its benefits for the body.

It is not recommended to defrost food in hot water, as most people do. It is best to leave the blanks in the refrigerator 12 hours before cooking. Or leave it in the room for 4 hours. The blanks will gradually defrost, while not losing their nutrients. Also defrost the product in warm water. To do this, place the workpiece in another bag and put it in a plate of warm water for several hours.

You need to defrost as much product as is required for cooking. Re-freezing doesn't make sense. Raw materials will be tasteless and watery. The same goes for other vegetables.

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