Eat eggplant all year round? This works out! Finally, you can also freeze the vegetables. But beware: there are a few things to consider.
Like courgettes and tomatoes, aubergines are one of the vegetables that are in season in summer and are rarely on the menu during the rest of the year. It's a shame, isn't it? After all, aubergines taste really delicious when prepared properly. Keyword aubergine lasagne and Co. If you don't want to dry the aubergines extra so you can enjoy them in winter, you can of course freeze them. And both raw and prepared. However, you have to pay attention to a few things, especially with the raw version.
Freeze raw eggplant:
1Basically, you should only freeze firm, flawless aubergines that are not overripe. If you then want to freeze them unprepared, you must first wash them, peel them and cut them into slices about 8 mm thick. Of course, this is not necessary for immediate processing. Do not leave the slices for too long afterwards, otherwise they will quickly turn brown, like apple slices.
2Now bring about 2 to 3 liters of water to the boil in a saucepan, depending on the amount of aubergines, and add 200 to 300 ml of lemon juice - also depending on how many slices you want to freeze. The lemon juice prevents the slices from discolouring. Then put the aubergine slices in portions in the boiling water and let them blanch for about 3 minutes.
3Then, lift the slices out with a slotted spoon and place in a large bowl with ice cubes to cool for 5 minutes. Then drain the slices and put them in a freezer bag, which you have previously labeled with the date and contents. But you can also use freezer boxes.
Prepared like this, the aubergine slices will keep in the freezer for up to 9 months.
Freeze prepared aubergines:
Aubergines are not only easy to freeze raw. You can also put baked or roasted aubergines in the freezer without any loss of quality. Aubergines baked or fried in the oven must be done after baking or frying in olive oilfirst let it cool completely. You can then place the slices in a freezer bag or freezer box.
You can also bake a whole aubergine. To do this, poke the aubergine several times all over with a fork and then bake it in the oven at 200°C for 30 to 60 minutes, depending on the size, until the skin becomes dented and small cracks appear. Leave to cool after baking, cut in half lengthways and then scrape out the flesh with a spoon. You can then pour this into a freezer and freeze it. You can also freeze the remaining eggplant.