freezing veg

[ntcrane]

I have decided to save the few remaining carrots and parsnips from my chicken ravaged veg patch before they are dug up and or pecked into submission.

My dream (pre - chicken ) was to go out Xmas morning and pick some carrots and parsnips for xmas dinner! So i would like to save some or all of what i have got (probably a couple of pounds).

Is there anything i can do to store these. I have heard that you blanch them and then freeze them but I havent got a clue what that is! (or even if i spelt it right!?)

any tips or advice?

[kate egg]

Not sure about carrots and parsnips but I blanched my runner beans - bring a pan of water to the boil and drop small amounts in for about a minute take out and cool quickly before freezing

[lancashire lass]

Earlier this year I dug the rest of my parsnips, celeriac & swede up to clear space for other things that needed the space in spring. I asked on another forum & was told it wasn't necessary to blanch.

However, for long term storage I thought they tasted funny, and wished I had gone to the trouble of blanching.

You can store them in boxes of sand, but to be fair I have not tried this so cannot comment. It is based on a "clamp" where the root vegetables are dug up & piled together, then straw & earth piled on top which was a traditional way of storage before fridges & freezers. As I seem to have a serious slug & woodlouse problem, I've given this a miss too.

[4 french hens]

There is a perfectly sound reason for blanching :- it destroys the enzymes that cause the vegetables to deteriorate and also any bacteria on the vegtables.

Another tip is to seal the produce in bags that have had the air extracted from them, after blanching. For this it is possible to buy a piece of equipment called a vaccum bag sealer. I recently saw one mentioned on this forum with a link posted, but I cannot remember where it is.

Mike

[lancashire lass]

It was mine in the food section under dehydrators:

This is the vacuum bag sealer I got from Westfalia

[Meanqueen]

I have eaten all the carrots from my garden, but I buy them cheap in big bags and blanch and freeze. Big pan of water to the boil, put your peeled and chopped up carrots in, bring back to the boil then take off heat, wait a couple of minutes, strain and cool down quickly with cold water, strain again. Lay out clean teatowel on worktop and spread carrots on that, leave to go cold, and also remove as much of the water as you can by dabbing with kitchen towel, best if you can get them virtually dry. Put into one portion size small plastic bags, squeeze the air out, by hand is ok, tie bag and freeze.

Ilona

[Mo]

I tried the carrots in boxes of sand last year. They went all slimy.
I rescued some and part cooked and froze. Not sure when we'll eat them as I've got some of this years still in the ground. How long do you reckon they'll last if I pull them as I need them?

[lancashire lass]

How long do you reckon they'll last if I pull them as I need them?

I think they should last most of winter - after all, they are biennial, and will flower next year. As I have no freezer space for bulk freezing, I'm in the same boat so this will be a good experiment . Basically I'll be treating them like a parsnip and will harvest them as & when needed.

[Babycakes]

I sort-of blanched carrots and parsnips for the freezer - I buy bags of them when they're in reduced to clear. Most of the time they either go into stews and casseroles or are for mashing, so am not too worried that sometimes they come out of the freezer less than crisp - thye still taste fine. I must try cooling them quickly with cold water before freezing, maybe that will help.

[seahorse]

I peel and chop root veg to put into the freezer for soups. I have never blanched anything yet and the veg always tastes good.

[elljay]

How long do you reckon they'll last if I pull them as I need them?

I always just leave them in the ground and only clear that bit of ground when I need it to replant in spring. They're absolutely fine. The only problem is when the ground freezes and it's harder to dig them out and wrecks your nails!! But I always think of them as the ultimate convenience food, - just go down the garden and dig as you need. I tend to do the same with spuds too, just dig as you need. They go right through to spring too, specially those that are deeper. Don't do it with onions, marrows etc, yuk, they're the worst for slime! Parsnips are better for being a bit frozen anyway.