Fresh red cabbage is definitely he althier than the jar version. We explain how you can freeze red cabbage and eat it all year round.
If you want to preserve vegetables and at the same time ensure that as many of the valuable nutrients as possible are preserved, you will happily decide to freeze them. So why not freeze red cabbage if there is plenty of it in the garden or it is currently cheap at the weekly market? In fact, red cabbage can be frozen without any problems, as long as a few important basic rules are followed. So that winter vegetables can still be enjoyed in summer, they must be prepared appropriately before freezing. So it means cleaning, chopping, blanching, quenching and so on the red cabbage. We provide a detailed guide below that shows the steps to freeze red cabbage in an easy-to-understand way.Why should you freeze red cabbage?
Red cabbage is not only considered a particularly nutritious vegetable, but also a very tasty one. The fresher the red cabbage, the more nutritious it usually is. In addition, finished red cabbage from the jar or bag usually has sugar and other additives added to it. If you want to avoid them and eat even he althier, you can keep fresh red cabbage in winter so that you can enjoy it longer. In addition, frozen red cabbage in its raw form without additives will often not be found in the freezer section of most supermarkets. This also speaks for freezing on your own.
While he althy cabbage belongs in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator, it can only be stored there for a maximum of ten days. Depending on how fresh the cabbage was placed in the refrigerator and how exactly the cooling device was set, red cabbage should only be kept in the refrigerator for five days. Freezing is therefore of tangible advantage in that it can be stored in the chest freezer or deep freeze for up to six months.
Freezing red cabbage - the correct procedure
In order to be able to freeze fresh red cabbage, the cabbage must first be cleaned. The following procedure has been usedproven:
- Remove the outer leaves from the red cabbage and discard
- Rinse the cabbage now, if this makes sense
- Quarter the cabbage - please use a knife that is as large and sharp as possible
- Remove the stalk
- Cut the red cabbage into strips as narrow as possible (this works best across)
- Use a sieve to thoroughly clean the cabbage strips under running water and remove any dirt
Red cabbage is one of the strong coloring types of cabbage. It is therefore particularly important to wear gloves and an apron when processing fresh red cabbage in your own kitchen. Otherwise unsightly stains on clothing may be the logical consequence. After the red cabbage has been prepared accordingly, it should be steamed briefly. This preserves the valuable vital substances while the cabbage is optimally prepared for freezing.
Expert Tip:
If you have trouble chopping red cabbage, are worried about your fingers or want to chop the cabbage as evenly as possible, you shouldn't use a knife. Rather, a vegetable slicer has proven its worth. With this practical tool, even large quantities of red cabbage can be chopped up in no time. Anyone who grows large quantities of red cabbage themselves and would like to preserve it year after year in winter by means of targeted freezing should consider this investment. After all, vegetable slicers are available in specialist shops for little money.
Tips for blanching fresh red cabbage
If you want to freeze fresh red cabbage, you should blanch the cabbage first. Please use a large enough pot. Bring lightly s alted water to a boil. Now you have to wait until the water boils completely. Then add the head to the bubbling s alt water. The cabbage should cook on the stovetop for between one and three minutes in the next step.
After cooking, it is extremely important that the cabbage is deterred. Only then will the vegetables stay crisp and taste much better after defrosting. Therefore, it is best to put the actual winter vegetables in a sieve again. Then quench with tap water that is as cold as possible.
If the tap water doesn't want to be cold enough, ice water is an alternative. Fill a bowl with cold water and ice cubes. The red cabbage can now cool down in the ice bath for a minute or two. This kind ofQuenching has proven to be particularly effective in practice. In principle, the red cabbage can then be frozen.
In which container can I freeze red cabbage?
When freezing red cabbage, it is also important to choose the right container. Because if the container is not suitable for the permanent freezing of food, freezer burn is almost guaranteed. This would be a shame, since freezing fresh red cabbage involves the effort just described. A frost-proof container is therefore a must. Whether a fresh storage box or freezer bag should be used is a question of personal taste. The advantages and disadvantages of these different containers can be seen below:
- Freezer bags are cheaper
- Storage boxes are more environmentally friendly as they can be reused more often
- Freezer bags take up less space in the freezer and can be stowed more easily/flexibly
- Inferior food storage containers may take on the red color of the cabbage and become permanently discolored
- Freezer bags can cause freezer burn if they are not sealed properly
- Freezer bags can be labeled with the freezing date directly on the bag
After the red cabbage has been poured into a container of your choice, the freezing date should be noted on the container. This is important in order to guarantee that the red cabbage is still durable and ready to be eaten at the time it is removed. This can be easily checked later by looking at the freeze date. To freeze the red cabbage particularly quickly and evenly, it is best to use the shock freeze function.
Alternative: Boil red cabbage first and then freeze
Not only fresh red cabbage that has been blanched can be stored in the freezer for up to six months. It is also possible to finish cooking red cabbage and enrich it with the desired spices before storing it in the freezer.
Big advantage: After defrosting, the red cabbage only needs to be warmed up and can be eaten immediately as a side dish. However, the possible uses are then limited, although a ready-made red cabbage side dish can be prepared more quickly later.
How the cabbage was prepared beforehand (e.g. first marinated and then stewed) is irrelevant for freezing. However, it is important to ensure that the cabbage is consumed in practical portion sizes that are tooto fit your own eating habits.