How to Freeze Green Beans
If you like frozen green beans in the winter, just imagine how good it would taste if you had picked a bag yourself and then quickly froze it at home! It is also one of the simplest ways to put up a vegetable for the winter. Here's how to do it, complete instructions in easy steps and completely illustrated. The green beans will taste MUCH better than anything you've ever had from a store.
Directions for Freezing green beans
Ingredients and Equipment/b>
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Instructions
Step 1 - Get yer green beans!
Start with fresh green beans - as fresh as you can get. If there
is a delay between harvesting and freezing, put it in the refrigerator
or put ice on it. And don't use beans that are old, overripe or dried
out (see below):
Step 2 - Wash the green beans!
I'm sure you can figure out how to rinse the green beans in plain
cold or lukewarm water.
Step 3 - Trim the ends and cut into smaller pieces
Just take a sharp knife and cut of both ends (about 1/4 of an inch, or
half the width of an average woman's little finger). Then cut them
into pieces of the size you prefer, usually
about 1 inch long.
Of course, if your prefer French cut green beans, you can cut the beans lengthwise instead, or you can use a "bean Frencher" (No, that does not make the beans want to wear a beret, "mime" or surrender quickly, it's just the name.. ). The "Frencher" enables you to prepare a huge quantity of beans quickly!
See the bottom of this page for makes, models, prices and ordering info for bean frenchers.
Step 4 - Get the pots ready
Get the pot off boiling water ready (about
2/3 filled) and a LARGE bowl with ice and cold water.
Step 5 - Blanch the green beans.
All fruits and vegetables contain enzymes and bacteria
that, over time, break down the destroy nutrients and change the color,
flavor, and texture of food during frozen storage. green beans requires a brief
heat treatment, called blanching, in boiling water or steam, to
destroy the enzymes before freezing. Blanching times for beans is 3
minutes (the duration should be just long enough to stop the action of
the enzymes and kill the bacteria).
Begin counting the blanching time as soon as you place the green beans in the boiling water. Cover the kettle and boil at a high temperature for the required length of time. You may use the same blanching water several times (up to 5). Be sure to add more hot water from the tap from time to time to keep the water level at the required height.
Step 6 - Cool the green beans
Cool green beans immediately in ice water. Drain
the green beans thoroughly (this shouldn't take more than a minute).
After vegetables are blanched, cool them quickly to prevent overcooking. Plunge the green beans into a large quantity of ice-cold water (I keep adding more ice to it). A good rule of thumb: Cool for the same amount of time as the blanch step. For instance, if you blanch sweet green beans for 7 minutes, then cool in ice water for 7 minutes.
Drain thoroughly.
Step 7 - bag the green beans
I love the FoodSavers (see
this page for more information) with their vacuum
sealing! I am not paid by them, but these things really work.
If you don't have one, Ziploc bags work, too, but it is hard to get as
much air out of the bags. Remove the air to prevent drying and freezer
burn. TIP: If you don't a vacuum food sealer to freeze foods, place
food in a Ziploc bags, zip the top shut but leave enough space to insert the
tip of a soda straw. When straw is in place, remove air by sucking the air
out. To remove straw, press straw closed where inserted and finish pressing
the bag closed as you remove straw. It works fairly well, but
I'll stick to the Foodsaver, since the bags are microwaveable and much
thicker than a Ziploc bag (even the Ziploc "freezer bags")
Step 8 - Done!
Pop them into the freezer, on the quick
freeze shelf, if you have one!
Tips:
- Harvest early in the morning, especially if the weather is hot, to get peak flavor.
- Harvest the green beans at its peak maturity (firm, straight, not lumpy)
- Process promptly after harvesting, or keep cooled in the fridge or with ice until then.
Frequently Asked Questions
- I've frozen green beans but they seem so rubbery after being cooked. Any
idea why?
Generally, that means the beans were either old to being with, or they were overcooked. It only takes 3 minutes to blanch the beans, then plunge them immediately into ice water.
- How long can they be frozen?
It depends upon how cold is your freezer and how you packed them. Colder (deep freezes) are better than frost free compartments, which actually cycle above freezing (that's how they melt the ice). Vacuum packing results in longer storage capability, too. Thicker bags also help prevent freezer burn.
In general, up to 9 months in a ziploc bag in an ordinary freezer, and 14 months in a deep freeze in a vacuum packed bag. After that, the beans won't make you sick; they just won't taste as good.
- When blanching green beans you say to cook for 3 minutes only. When
we put the beans into the boiling water the boiling stops for several
minutes before starting again. This may add 5 or 10 minutes to the process.
Is this good or should we take the beans out after 3 minutes even if the
water hasn't come back to a boil?
Excellent question. The directions from the USDA assume that we're using a large enough pot and a large enough burner that it returns to a boil quickly (say 2 or 3 minutes). If you can, use a larger pot on a hotter burner. If that's not practical, I just add a couple of minutes to the time - otherwise the food gets overcooked!
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