Fresh, crisp green beans are easily available and bountiful in the summer. This simple guide on How to Freeze Garden Fresh Green Beans will demonstrate how easy it is to preserve green beans so that they can be enjoyed throughout the winter months.
Where to begin?
Tomatoes.
Beets.
Peppers.
Apples.
Pears.
Eggplants…
This is the time of the year where I wish I had an extra chest freezer on hand in order to preserve the abundance of garden fresh produce for consumption in the winter.
The focus today will be on How to Freeze Garden Fresh Green Beans. Not only is it economical and practical to preserve your own green beans, but it is so easy! As far as the taste is concerned, it is so much better than any store-bought commercial variety.
Freezing vs. canning: We can have a day long discussion comparing the pros and cons of freezing vs canning vegetables. Personally, I find that freezing green beans helps preserve their texture in comparison to canning. As is usually the case, it is all a matter of personal preference.
To blanch or not to blanch: Since we are on the subject of personal preferences, I would like to bring up the topic of blanching. As you know, blanching is the process where by fruits and vegetables are partially cooked by immersing in boiling water. This quick high temperature exposure will destroy the enzymes which are known to affect the quality of the produce and today the focus is green beans.
You have probably read that you can skip this step and simply proceed to freezing the green beans -with claims that there is no change to the texture, color, nutritional value or safety of the green beans. I would encourage you to get your facts and once again, it is all a question of personal experience and preferences.
My philosophy is to err on the side of caution, especially when it comes to food safety. I don’t mind investing just a few minutes to blanch my green beans if it ensures a higher quality and safer product. If interested, here is a great article on home food safety on the topic of blanching.
Here is How to Freeze Garden Fresh Green Beans so that you too can enjoy them in the dead of winter.
- Start with green beans which have no blemishes and are pencil thin in size. Ideally, the fresher the better;
- The green beans need to be thoroughly washed in cold water;
- Snap the ends off;
- The green beans can be left whole or can be snapped in 2-3 inch pieces.
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a full rolling boil;
- You also need to prepare a large bowl of ice water;
- Working in batches, drop the green beans in the boilng water and set the timer for 3 whole minutes. Start your timer when the water returns to boil.
- Once the three minutes have elapsed, immediately remove the green beans from the boiling water and immerse them in an ice water bath for another three minutes;
- You will immediately notice the transformation to a bright green color!
- Transfer to a colander and drain properly.
- Spread out the green beans and gently pat dry.
- Place the beans in sealer or zip bags;
- Properly label your bags by indicating the date.
- Use a vacuum sealer (if you have one) to efficiently remove air from the bag or use a straw with freezer bags that zip;
- Place in freezer until ready to use.
Frozen green beans will keep for up to nine months in a chest freezer. Just in case you are wondering, the same procedure can be used to freeze yellow beans.
When ready to use your frozen garden fresh green beans, there is no need to thaw. Just add them to your vegetable soups or may I suggest this Italian Style Stewed Tomato Green Beans… and enjoy the taste of garden fresh green beans throughout the winter.
That’s it! You now know How to Freeze Garden Fresh Green Beans.
Economical, practical and so easy to achieve.
Thanks for dropping by,
Ciao for now!
Maria 🙂
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Nicoletta @sugarlovespices says
Pinned it to our How To board! This is exactly how we do ours! Teachings of my mother in law 🙂 . Only, we don’t have a vacuum sealer… Thanks so much for this info. I was planning on doing a tutorial like this, now no need to!
Maria says
I think we are all scrambling to preserve as much as we can for the winter months… Thanks for dropping by ♥♥♥
Barbarito-Levitt Paula says
Excellent instructional post – much needed when the garden is bursting. Thank you for addressing something that perhaps has less sizzle than a standard recipe yet is fundamental.
Maria says
At times, one must be practical…plus those humble green beans will be so appreciated in a couple of months. Thanks for dropping by Paula ♥♥♥