Can You Freeze Bok Choy? You Can, If Done Properly
A friend of mine absolutely adores stir-fries and, as a consequence, eats these types of meals at least iii times a week. She uses a variety of vegetables and frequently includes meat or fish. Notwithstanding, her favorite addition to the stir-fry is bok choy.
Bok choy is a blazon of Chinese cabbage, relished for its crisp, mild, and cabbage-like flavor. Equally common with the vast majority of leafy greens, the green office of bok choy has a moderately bitter season. The white stalk is predominantly water and has a crunchy notwithstanding juicy texture.
aye, you can freeze bok choy, blanched, raw, or cooked for up to 12 months.
My friend was great to know if y'all could freeze bok choy so she could buy information technology in bulk, saving her money and ensuring she had it readily available. I was pleased to inform her that yeah, you can freeze bok choy, blanched, raw, or cooked for upwardly to 12 months.
Are yous wondering what is the best method to employ to freeze this vegetable so it doesn't go mushy when defrosted? Or you may exist wondering what is the best fashion to defrost this delicious crunchy vegetable so information technology doesn't get mushy. Keep on reading every bit we respond these and other questions!
Tin I Freeze Raw Bok Choy?
At that place are different schools of thought on this. A lot of people agree that blanching earlier freezing stops enzyme action that tin cause loss of flavour, texture, and color.
Blanching requires heating vegetables in boiling water or steam for a brusk time and then submerging them into iced water or placing them nether cold, running h2o to finish the cooking procedure.
However, others discover that blanching bok choy prior to freezing results in information technology being mushy and withered. And then, yes, y'all can freeze raw bok choy, but it appears that it is a less mutual approach.
If yous do freeze raw bok choy, some preliminary steps are required. These steps are outlined beneath.
Pace 1
Wash and dry the bok choy. Ensure that information technology is completely dry as any residue h2o could take chances it going mushy.
Step 2
Throw away any pale leaves or ones turning yellowish.
Step iii
Cut it set up for utilize
Shred the bok choy into smaller, bite-sized chunks that could be used in stir-fries or soups. This is unnecessary for baby bok choy every bit this tin can be frozen whole.
Stride iv
Place the sliced bok choy into freezer numberless. Expel whatsoever excess air, seal them and characterization with the date on the handbag. Put the bok choy in the freezer, avoiding any heavier foods being placed on top so it does not get damaged.
Practice You lot Accept To Flinch Bok Choy Earlier Freezing?
Equally stated in the "Can You Freeze Raw Bok Choy" section higher up, information technology is proven to be quite popular to blanch bok choy before freezing but others think it is not a necessity. In fact, they believe that blanching prior to freezing more likely results in a wilted vegetable every bit you are adding water in the training process.
So, no, you do not accept to blanch bok choy before freezing it. Nevertheless, the bok choy may require a damp newspaper towel wiped over information technology to clean it and remove any bits of clay. It is too recommended that you lot cutting the unblanched bok choy into smaller pieces that you would employ in your noodle dish or stir-fry, for case.
By not having to flinch the bok choy earlier freezing, y'all are conspicuously saving fourth dimension and energy. Therefore, it'south good to know that others have tried and tested this method out and with success.
How Practise You lot Freeze Fresh Bok Choy?
Fresh bok choy can be frozen either raw or blanched. Either style, wink freeze it to ensure y'all maintain its quality and structure longer.
It is important that when you go to the grocery store to buy your bok choy, presuming y'all haven't grown your own, that you lot select the greenest, freshest looking ones. Any bok choy that looks hobbling or is turning yellow should be avoided.
Many people believe blanching fresh bok choy is essential earlier you freeze it to preserve its flavor, texture, and color.
To flinch your vegetables follow the steps below:
Step ane
Rinse the bok choy under running water to remove whatever dirt or debris.
Step ii
Cut the ends of the stems off using a sharp knife. If the vegetable has not been trimmed. If you are dealing with a larger bok choy, cut off the tough white base where the leaves emerge. Shred the bok choy into bite-sized portions for your dishes.
Step 3
Eddy a pot of water over medium to high heat.
Step four
Put the bok choy in a steamer basket or a colander and then submerge the basket in the pot.
Stride 5
Blanch the bok choy for 40 seconds or until the leaves become bright green.
Remember yous volition cook your vegetable subsequently on when you are prepare to add it to your dish, so no need to overcook your bok choy at this stage.
Afterward forty seconds, have the basket off the pot and submerge it into ice water until information technology is completely cool. This step is important to do immediately, as it will halt the cooking process. Fail to do submerge your vegetable in the cold water immediately will effect in the bok choy being cooked and potentially becoming mushy when defrosted.
Step 6
Shake off whatsoever excess wet from the leaves and absorb any residual h2o using a paper towel.
Footstep 7
Wink freeze your cuts before permanently freezing them. This helps the bok choy retain its quality and structure longer.
To flash freeze your bok choy ensure the leaves or cuts are as dry as they can exist, extra moisture will cause your vegetable to turn mushy when defrosted. Then spread the leaves or cuts into a pan lined with blistering paper. place the tray in the freezer for 15 – xx minutes or until the bok choy is firm to the touch on. And then your vegetable is ready to be transferred to a more permanent storage container.
Stride 8
Transfer your flashed freeze pieces to a ziploc handbag.
How Do Y'all Store Bok Choy In The Freezer?
Firstly, you lot need to decide how much bok choy yous want to freeze and how much room you have available in your freezer. Once this is ascertained, you can cutting upwards your bok choy into bite-sized pieces and place them into a labeled Ziploc pocketbook. A Sharpie (permanent) pen to label the appointment that yous froze the bok choy will ensure information technology is not smudged off when in the freezer.
Lay your Ziploc bag flat and seal it about all the way, leaving merely enough space to skid in your straw. The straw is there for you to suck out equally much of the air in the bag as possible before you immediately seal information technology. If you have a vacuum-sealer, this would be even ameliorate and very helpful if you are using multiple bags as information technology volition salve yous time and breath!
Brand certain you lay the freezer/Ziploc bag flat in your freezer. Once the bok choy has frozen flat, you can movement the bags around to accommodate other foods, if necessary.
How Long Does Bok Choy Terminal In The Freezer?
Bok choy, if properly stored, will maintain its all-time quality in the freezer for approximately 12 months.
While information technology will remain safe to eat across this time period, as long as the Bok choy has been kept consistently frozen at 0°F, its quality will reduce with every passing calendar month.
How To Defrost Frozen Bok Choy
Very little is required in the way of thawing frozen bok choy. You tin can merely add the bok choy directly into the meal yous're cooking, and it will defrost near immediately. This is especially true if you are cooking stir-chips, stews, or soups. The bok choy will defrost, retaining its flavor and structure.
Yet, if yous'd similar to defrost the vegetable prior to cooking, it is possible to do so. But quickly submerge the frozen bok choy in a bowl of room-temperature tap water for ii hours, and it will be ready for adding to your abode-cooked meal. This method is more advisable for meals different from those stated to a higher place or if you want to eat them fresh.
Practice not exist tempted to submerge the bok choy into warm or hot h2o to reduce the defrosting time, every bit you could run the risk of really cooking the vegetable. This could
issue in a mushy bok choy with reduced flavor-power.
How To Cook Frozen Bok Choy
If you are preparing a stir-fry, stew or soup, it is then piece of cake to add together bok choy that you take frozen in your freezer. Merely remove the amount of bok choy you lot crave from the freezer, unseal the freezer/Ziploc bag in which it rests and add it directly into your repast during the cooking stage. The heat volition naturally defrost the bok choy, releasing its flavors into the meal while maintaining its crunchy texture.
Bok choy can besides exist defrosted in the refrigerator for ii-iii hours and used when thawed. The bok choy volition not be as house as it was before being frozen, just it volition not exist entirely soggy either. It should be eaten within two days.
Determination
Without a doubt, bok choy is a flavorsome and food-rich vegetable that tin exist frozen either directly from purchase with no training or with a few steps that involve blanching or flash-freezing.
It is a not bad improver to a stir-fry or soup and with the added simplicity of no defrosting, it is a win-win for the cook and the consumer. Personally, I cannot wait until bok choy is back on sale at my grocery shop. I plan to buy in bulk and freeze it so I always take some to hand.
Source: https://www.diys.com/can-you-freeze-bok-choy/
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