Is it possible to freeze cabbage

It is allowed to freeze cabbage, in which case its shelf life will reach 10 months. After defrosting, it is suitable for making cabbage rolls, as thawing will make its leaves soft, and you can easily wrap the stuffing in them. Shredded cabbage can be added to vegetable casseroles, cutlets and borscht, vegetable stews or even pies.

However, you should follow the rules of competent freezing, besides, thawed cabbage can not be added to all dishes.

Consider how to prepare cabbage for storage in the freezer and what needs to be taken into account.

Freezing advantages and disadvantages

Frozen cabbage is a ready-made and always available semi-finished product that has retained all its useful properties. It is stored for a long time, and its defrosting occurs in a matter of minutes.

Good option — freezing a vegetable in the form of a mixture with carrots and bell peppers. As a result, you will always have a blank for many delicious dishes.

Frozen cabbage also has disadvantages: it takes up a lot of space in the freezer, and after defrosting it is not crispy. You can no longer use it for making salads. When storing cabbage in the freezer, you need to make sure that it is isolated from other foods with strong odors, otherwise this vegetable will absorb them.

To freeze white cabbage, you need fresh, strong heads of cabbage. Make sure that the leaves are not damaged by insects (and that the insects themselves are also not inside). Rotten, damaged areas should be thrown away immediately.

How to freeze a head of cabbage

If there is free space in the freezer, you can freeze a whole head of cabbage at once.

The procedure is simple:

1. Remove the top, as well as sluggish and spoiled leaves from the cabbage. If there are stains, they need to be cut off.
2. Get rid of the leg and cabbage stalk (from its part).
3. Rinse the head of cabbage in running cold water.
4. Wait until all the liquid drains from the cabbage.
5. Put the cabbage in the microwave for up to 3 minutes at maximum power to eliminate enzymes that spoil the product.
6. Wait until the vegetable has cooled.
7. Wrap the head of cabbage in a film, pressing it tightly, and transfer it to the freezer chamber.

It is advisable to store cabbage at the bottom of the box, close to the bottom of the chamber or radiator. The temperature must not exceed -18 °C.

How to freeze cabbage leaves

This option may be more convenient, and it will also save space in the freezer. Having disassembled the cabbage into leaves, you will additionally check if there are any caterpillars or other insects among them.

Procedure:

1. Carry out all stages with cabbage, from removing sheets, ending with heat treatment and removing the legs, stalk.
2. Remove all leaves from the head.
3. Fold the leaves 1-in-1 for 10-15 pieces. If there are thickened areas on some leaves, it is enough to cut them off with a knife.
4. Wrap each batch of leaves in plastic wrap, keeping air out.
5. Place all leaves in bags.

The shelf life and temperature are similar — up to -18 ° C and up to 10 months.

When packing leaves in cling film, it is worth indicating their quantity on a paper label. As a result, you will be able to select the required number of leaves, and you do not have to defrost the entire volume of the workpiece.

How to freeze shredded cabbage

Another option is to freeze shredded cabbage. You can use a regular grater, chop the cabbage by hand with a knife, or use a food processor with a special attachment. The method of cutting the vegetable is at your discretion: small straws — for cabbage, large — for stews, borscht.

After that, it is enough to place it in portioned plastic bags, release all the air that has got inside and place it in the freezer chamber. To let all the air out, take an ordinary juice straw, insert it into the bag and pull the air out through your mouth. After that, just pull out the tube and close the package. The less air in the bag, the easier the cabbage will endure being in the freezer.

To get rid of the bitterness, immediately after shredding, place the cabbage in boiling water for 5-10 seconds, and then transfer it to a colander. This pre-treatment will eliminate the enzymes that spoil the product during storage.

As soon as the water drains, lay the cabbage on a dry cotton towel, then transfer it to packing bags — and into the freezer.

Attention! Before placing chopped cabbage in the freezer, it should be dried as thoroughly as possible.

A waffle or other towel that quickly absorbs excess moisture will do. Turn the cabbage regularly, change the towel. It is useful to put a fan nearby or even provide a draft in the room. If it is bad to dry the cabbage, then in the freezer it runs the risk of sticking together, and after defrosting it will become homogeneous and sticky.

How to defrost cabbage correctly

It is enough to put the package overnight from the freezer into the refrigerator. In 5-6 hours, the vegetable will thaw, and it can be added to various dishes according to the recipe. The same goes for frozen cabbage leaves.

If the cabbage was chopped, then it is not necessary to defrost it — just add it to a hot frying pan with butter, to the broth or to boiled water. A chopped vegetable after freezing also becomes soft, so the cooking time is reduced to a minimum.

Immediately after freezing, cabbage should not be kept under hot water or placed in a microwave oven — otherwise it will lose all its useful properties and taste. Remember that after defrosting, cabbage cannot be re-frozen.

How to store cabbage in the refrigerator

If you don’t need to freeze cabbage for almost a year, there are several ways to increase its shelf life.

So, late varieties of cabbage with dense elastic heads, saturated with fiber, are stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 months. If the cabbage is early, then it will deteriorate in a week or two, so you can’t leave it in the refrigerator for a long time. The optimum storage temperature is t -1 to +1 ° C, and at temperatures below the vegetable will begin to freeze.

Cauliflower or broccoli is best placed in membrane bags, and then put in the refrigerator. At zero temperature, such cabbage will remain fresh for 30 days.

Another option is to store cabbage in the basement. In this case, it must first be treated with fungicidal checkers so that it does not become moldy. It is also worth choosing late varieties of cabbage.

Thus, storing cabbage in the freezer or refrigerator will provide you with a delicious product for months to come. With thawed cabbage, you can cook many hearty dishes in a hurry. It retains all its beneficial properties and vitamins.