We do our own freezing of eggplants for the winter
Unlike other vegetables, eggplants, after freezing, change their structure and taste beyond recognition. Therefore, there are special tricks for freezing eggplants for the winter at home. The Indian newcomer is so fond of culinary specialists that home freezing methods are being used more and more often. Moreover, dishes made from frozen eggplants are indistinguishable in taste from those prepared from fresh fruits.
What are the benefits of eggplant?
The homeland of eggplant is India. They belong to the nightshade family. A heat-loving culture is demanding in agricultural technology. Eggplants occupy a worthy place in cooking due to their beneficial ingredients. The trace elements presented in its composition have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system. Special properties are present in fruits:
- Eating eggplant reduces cravings for tobacco, as the pulp contains the amount of nicotine the smoker needs.
- Activates the process of removing bile from the body, which is important for liver diseases.
- A large amount of fiber improves intestinal peristalsis. Copper stimulates the hematopoietic system.
- The solanine present in eggplants gives them bitterness, but is easily removed by soaking with salt.
- The fruit is a perishable product.
You can prolong the use of eggplant using canning. But with heat treatment, the amount of nutrients is halved. With the advent of household freezers, there was a way to preserve the health benefits of green foods by freezing them. Can eggplants be frozen for the winter? Yes, you can. At the same time, the useful composition is almost completely preserved. The faster the freezing is carried out, the more vitamins there are in greens and fruits. However, products must not be frozen repeatedly. The product taken from the freezer must be used without residue. In addition, unlike carrots, beets, parsley and dill, eggplants need special processing before placing them in the freezer.
When stored in the light, eggplants produce solanine, which is poisonous. It is also contained in fruits in small quantities, giving them bitterness.
How to freeze eggplants for the winter?
There are general guidelines to follow when placing eggplants in the freezer:
- Do not freeze the fruit without first soaking it. In this case, the pulp becomes rubbery.
- Soaking is always carried out in a salty solution, which removes the bitterness of the product. The soaking time is several hours. You can sprinkle the slices with salt for an hour and squeeze out the juice.
- Regardless of the method of further processing, the mass or fruit ready for storage should be wrapped so that there is no air and no oxidation occurs.
- Before storing, the workpieces should be dried from excess moisture or oil on paper towels.
- Store the finished product in an airtight container or food bag for no more than 6 months.
- When placing various bags and containers in the freezer, it is necessary to sign the product. During winter storage, the packages become indistinguishable.
The preparation methods differ in different recipes. You can find a lot of recommendations on how to properly freeze eggplants on culinary websites. This uses blanching, frying in a pan or oven until soft.
The fastest way is to prepare a whole eggplant. Fresh elastic fruit is washed without damage and allowed to dry. Remove the tail and fry on all sides in a dry, oil-free frying pan. At the same time, it is important to turn the fruit so that the bitter juice flows out. After that, remove the skin and, after cooling the eggplant, swaddle it in cling film, put it in the freezer.
If the same eggplant is sprinkled with salt and greased with vegetable oil, then after baking in the oven until soft, it will be ready, like a semi-finished product. We remove the skin and also pack it in cling film.
If cutting is performed, then here you should prepare cubes, strips, slices for a certain dish. At the same time, take into account that the smaller the fragment, the faster it will freeze and retain more vitamins. After cutting and salting, the slices and can go to blanching, to the oven for baking or to the pan for frying. Sometimes eggplant slices are fried after breading in flour or breadcrumbs. Baked and fried eggplant pieces are ready to eat after thawing.
Blanching - heat treatment for several minutes and subsequent cooling in water:
- Dip the prepared slices into boiling water and boil them for 2-4 minutes, until they become soft. Drain quickly in a colander and cool with water.
- Put the pan with eggplant in the microwave for 3-4 minutes at 800-900 watts.
- Process vegetables in a double boiler for 3-4 minutes.
The semi-finished product is ready, it remains to dry and lay in a thin layer to freeze. Only then are the products packaged for storage.
It will take 4-5 hours to deep freeze one layer of eggplant slices. If more than one layer is stacked, the freezing time increases, and this is not entirely beneficial for the preservation of vitamins. Freezing eggplants for the winter at home is a time consuming and responsible process.
For preservation, choose medium-sized fruits without the slightest damage, with elastic pulp. At the same time, late ripening varieties will be the best for harvesting.
Winter storage of frozen vegetables
During the entire period, it is necessary to ensure that a mixture of aromas does not form in the freezer. Workpieces such as frozen dill should be kept in an airtight container, preferably in a separate chamber. He manages to spread his scent throughout the refrigerator. Other blanks add unnecessary odor. Therefore, it is better to use special containers. It is good to have disposable packages. I took it, opened it, used it.
In the event of a power outage, do not open the cabinet door. Modern equipment keeps the cold for more than 12 hours, if the circuit is not disturbed. Later, of course, a revision is required. If some of the products have melted, then you need to make caviar. Do not freeze eggplants again.
How to defrost food correctly?
A portion of frozen eggplant can be set to gradually thaw in the refrigerator for several hours. You can arrange the slices on a plate and leave them on the table. At the same time, cooks are not advised to use a microwave.