swiss chard has been the biggest success in the garden this year. i started my chard from seed in the early spring months at our old home in missouri. i planted them in my spring garden & then dug them up & re-planted them in pots. after traveling across state lines & surviving 115 degree summers, i'd say my swiss chard plants are troopers.
we are still harvesting basket fulls of chard for our summer dinners, but the chard just seems to keep growing. for that reason, i decided it was necessary to preserve some of our chard for later. i always pinch myself in the grocery store, wishing i had saved some of my greens, when purchasing kale, swiss chard & spinach during the winter months.
after some research & experimenting, i found that blanching & freezing greens (swiss chard, collards, kale, spinach, etc.) is the easiest & quickest way to preserve your harvest:
1. gather your greens.
2. wash your greens.
3. cut off & remove stems & other blemishes from leaves.
4. bring large pot (3/4 full of water) to a full boil. submerge greens into pot & keep in pot for three minutes.
5. once those greens have been in the pot for three minutes, drain & add to a large bowl full of ice water for three minutes.
6. drain & add to plastic freezer bag. remove air from bag (tip: use a straw & suck out air). make sure to label bag with name of greens & date.
7. place in freezer for later use!
happy freezing, friends!
thanks for the tutorial. it is amazing how that big basket of greens shrinks down so much after blanching.
ReplyDeleteGood idea. We love kale and chard so much. Didn't plant any this year but next year, we hope to, so this will come in quite handy.
ReplyDeleteWe've been experimenting with freezing greens, too--looking forward to buying a little less frozen spinach this year!
ReplyDeleteA very useful tip! I do this for all my greens and even when I have the grocery story variety instead of from the garden, it's a very economical way to save portions of greens if you know you won't be able to use them before they spoil or have to go to the compost.
ReplyDeletegreat tutorial, I do prefer fresh than frozen but I think if I'd pre-prepared a heap this way it would be quick for dinner time and I might use more.
ReplyDeletegirl you are so SMART! in the kitchen, garden, and otherwise. thanks for the great tip.
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