I shred the zucchini and then place it in a colander which is sitting on a plate to let it drain awhile. It stays there an hour or two and I "fluff" it when I think of it. Some cooks salt the zucchini just a little to help take the moisture out but I prefer to let it sit in the colander since I'm using all of it for quick breads.
I then fill snack size ZipLoc bags with two heaping half-cup measuring cups of the green stuff. It's a little more than a cup total.
All of these bags came from just three zucchinis.
The snack size ZipLoc bags are placed in a gallon size ZipLoc bag. Since I'm putting a "bag within a bag", neither of them have to be freezer strength. I love snack size bags... use them for lots of things.I froze the sliced zucchini exactly as above except they went into quart size ZipLoc bags and then in the gallon size for extra protection. I have read that some people like to blanch their sliced zucchini for about a minute but I didn't. I'm using them in soups and casseroles.
4 comments:
Brenda: This is great information - I am printing it out!
Hi Brenda! Thanks for the information! I have been freezing bags and bags and bags of zucchini! I thought I had read this info on your blog and then Marie told me to look at your blog for the info on how to freeze it. I have some zucchini from my little garden and then I bought some from a farmer. (He must have decided that I was a good customer because on my second trip there, he threw in a lot more!) I might freeze some more this week if I get the chance! Have a lovely weekend! Beth
By the way, I have a question...do you have any trouble with your zucchini becoming too watery? I had someone tell me that she could only use hers for soup after she had frozen it. I have used frozen zucchini purchased from the store in stir fries and haven't had any problems. She said that she doesn't blanch it first...just wondering what you use yours for and if you have that problem!
I've shredded mine, cubed some, and cut some like french fries for whatever I come up with to use it for. Thanks!
I make sure I drain mine for a couple of hours and I haven't had a problem.
I read recently that sprinkling a little salt on it first and then pressing the zucchini a few times will get even more water out of it.
Sliced zucchini can be blanched for one minute and then dried completely but I only use my sliced zucchini for soups or casseroles, anyway, so I don't bother.
Squash has a lot of water in it (which is why they can grow into baseball size zukes overnight) so it is necessary to get as much water out ahead of time before freezing.
Also, I believe younger squash (picking it while it is six inches or less) has less moisture in it.
Post a Comment