The fashion for healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle has made freezing vegetables and berries one of the most popular ways to store the summer harvest.
It is very convenient to harvest frozen eggplants for the winter.
After defrosting “blue” do not lose any useful properties or taste. They can be used for cooking as well as fresh vegetables. The main thing is not to spoil the eggplant improper handling and storage.
How to freeze eggplants for long-term storage?
Frozen eggplants for the winter - the general principles of cooking
For freezing suitable young, thin-skinned "blue" with small seeds. First of all, whole, with no signs of spoilage, the fruits should be washed well, cut off the tails, dried. What's next? It is tempting to just chop the vegetables, put them in a bag and put them in the freezer. But you can not do this.
Eggplants must be processed before freezing: first soak in salt water, then subject to any heat treatment. If this is not done, then after the frosting, the beautiful slices or cubes will turn into an unappetizing bitter gruel, which can only be thrown away.
Soaking in salt water is necessary in order to rid the fruits of the characteristic bitterness. Heat treatment can destroy the enzyme, which leads to deterioration of eggplant. Eggplants can be fried, blanched, baked, stewed. Only after that they are sent to the freezer.
Frozen eggplants for the winter can be left whole, but so they will take up a lot of space in the freezer. If the freezer is small, you need to cut the vegetables. Compact cubes, circles, plates, straws, sticks are more convenient to store. Small pieces freeze faster.
Prepared eggplants are poured with salted water, then dried with a paper or woven towel. It remains to heat treat the vegetables, pack them up and send them to the freezer.
How to freeze eggplants after heat treatment?
The first way is to simply arrange them in a suitable container in small portions. For storage special dense packages for a freezing or plastic food containers will fit. The second method is to pre-freeze (before folding the vegetables into bags or containers). To do this, you need to spread the slices in a thin layer on a cutting board. Frozen slices of eggplant for 3-5 hours, depending on the thickness.
Fried frozen eggplant for the winter
The easiest recipe for frozen eggplant for the winter. The fruits remain whole, so the harvesting can be done very quickly. Each eggplant is wrapped in a separate bag, so getting and using them is very convenient.
Ingredients:
• 3-5 medium eggplants.
Preparation:
Prepare vegetables, dry well after washing.
Heat the pan, then reduce the heat to low.
Put the eggplants on the dry bottom of the pan, fry on all sides. Turn in time so that the vegetables are not burnt.
When the eggplants are softened a little, the excess moisture and bitterness will go away from them.
Remove from the "blue" skin, cool.
How to freeze eggplants in solid form? Each fruit is put in a plastic bag or piece of cling film and sent to the freezer.
Blanched frozen eggplant for the winter
Another way of harvesting frozen eggplant for the winter involves blanching small slices in boiling water.
Ingredients:
• five small eggplants;
• tablespoon of salt;
• two liters of clean water for blanching;
• two liters of ice water.
Preparation:
Carefully washed and dried eggplants cut into neat cubes or beautiful circles no thicker than one and a half centimeters.
Fold the vegetables in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and leave alone for half an hour.
To boil water.
Separately prepare ice or just very cold water.
Transfer the eggplants to a colander and put them to boiling water for two minutes.
Remove and immediately immerse in ice water.
Arrange blanched eggplants on a dry napkin or towel and wait until it is completely dry.
Arrange the slices in plastic containers, trying to form single portions.
Put in the freezer.
Periodically check for moisture.
Fried frozen eggplant for the winter
It is very tasty to prepare eggplants for the winter, after frying them in oil. It turns out completely ready-to-eat dish, which can be eaten immediately after defrosting. How to freeze eggplants in this way? Ingredients:
• four medium sized young eggplants;
• Spoon medium ground salt;
• three tablespoons of oil.
Preparation:
Wash and dry "blue" cut into smooth circles and dry.
Pour a portion of oil into the pan and heat well.
Spread eggplants in one layer, fry the slices on both sides until a delicious crust.
Fried eggplants spread out on plastic wrap in one layer and put in the freezer for the night.
Remove the frozen slices, quickly decompose into bags or containers and return to the freezer.
Frozen eggplants for the winter from the oven
Does not require much preparation processing eggplant in the oven. The main thing is not to overdo the slices in the oven.
Ingredients:
• several eggplants selected for freezing;
• vegetable oil tea boat.
Preparation:
Eggplant cut into cubes of small size, as for the usual vegetable stew.
Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
Lubricate the baking sheet or baking dish with a small amount of vegetable oil.
Put the eggplant cubes in the prepared form and send to the oven for ten minutes.
Remove the mold several times to mix the eggplants for even quenching. This should be done very carefully to keep the shape of the cut.
Remove the mold from the oven and let the vegetables cool completely.
Cold stewed eggplants packaged in portions and freeze.
Whole Baked Eggplants for Winter
The easiest way to prepare an eggplant for the winter is to take note of working women. Everything is done very simply. The beauty of the recipe is that you can make almost any dish from such a blank.
Ingredients:
• three or four eggplants;
• Dining room boat oil for greasing baking sheet.
Cooking method:
“Blue” wash, wipe with a towel.
Make a fork punctures the surface of vegetables in 3-4 places.
Turn on the oven at 200 degrees.
Grease a baking sheet and spread eggplants.
Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes.
Let the eggplants cool.
Carefully peel off.
Put in separate bags and freeze.
Frozen eggplants for the winter on the grill
Instead of an oven and a frying pan, it is possible to thermally process the eggplant slices on the grill. It is very convenient to do this on a special grill pan. Only cut vegetables need beautiful long stripes. Of these blanks is very tasty to do eggplant rolls, wrapped in strips of cheese, nuts, minced meat. Ingredients:
• three large eggplant.
Preparation:
Each eggplant carefully, using a sharp knife, cut into long thin strips.
Preheat the grill pan (do not add oil).
Fry the eggplants on both sides.
When the barrel is reddened, put them on napkins and cool.
Pre-freeze in one layer, then packaged in portions.
Frozen eggplants for the winter - tips and useful tips
- Eggplants that are frozen for the winter can be thawed in different ways: in a microwave oven, on the shelf of a refrigerator, in the kitchen at normal air temperature. It is unacceptable to defrost slices in hot water: they will turn into tasteless and completely useless porridge.
- For many dishes, thawing of eggplants is not required. Slices can be immediately sent to the pan or on a baking sheet to fry with other vegetables or bake with fish, meat, chicken and cheese.
- It is not allowed to keep frozen products with strong odor next to eggplants. "Blue" is easily absorbed by other flavors. That is why you should not place them for the winter either near the fish or near the bag with dill.
- You should try to remove all air from plastic bags. You can iron the bags with your palms or draw out the air using a regular cocktail straw.
- If eggplants are frozen in different ways, containers or bags should be signed. So you will know exactly what vegetables to get and what dish of them to cook.
- At temperatures below 14 degrees, frozen eggplants are stored for no longer than six months. During this time they need to be eaten.
