BS: Help! Freezing onions

Subject: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 01:55 PM

Does anyone know: can you freeze onions? Do they have to be cooked first? Our stash of edible alliums has started to go critical, and it will soon be dangerous to go into the kitchen.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: olddude
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 02:02 PM

No
this is what my granddad and I would do ... we would put them out in the sun after we picked them to dry them .. not completely just to get the moisture off the outside and turn them every few hours .. we then would put them in the root cellar wrapped in newspaper .. or you can in your basement .. they kept pretty much all winter - don't freeze them, I mean you can .. you would need to par boiling them for a bit .. they will keep that way .. but whole onions will keep wrapped in a cool place in newspaper .. ours did

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Amergin
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 02:08 PM

I just through my onions in the rubbish bin where they belong....

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: gnu
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 03:18 PM

I read that you shouldn't freeze them as they will lose their flavour. But I am not sure about cooked onions... let's ask Mr. Google....

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Maryrrf
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 03:19 PM

I freeze onions all the time. If I chop an entire onion and it's more than I need, I put the excess chopped onion in a ziplock bag and pop it in the freezer. Next time a recipe calls for sauteed onions, that's what I use.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: gnu
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 03:22 PM

Yes, you can. The problem with this is as it freezes, the liquid inside the cells will rupture the cell membranes and when you thaw it out again, you wind up with an onion flavored mush. The best thing to do is stew them till they are "broke down" and freeze the onions, stew and all.

Vegetables that are similar in cellular structure like peppers, celery and leafy greens such as collards, spinach, turnip greens and kale will not hold up to being frozen as the same thing will happen.


=And there are lots of other "answers" that say yes.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: gnu
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 03:24 PM

Well! If Mary says you can, then you can.

I would never freeze onions. There's never any left. I can eat a half dozen fried onions and call it a meal.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Sorcha
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 03:43 PM

If I have a LOT, I put them thru the electric grinder, bag in 1/4 cups with sandwich baggies, use a twist tie and freeze. NO, they are NOT like fresh onions....they go soggy, but work just fine to saute, stews, etc. I have frozen onions for a long time.

I guess chopped would work too, but the grinder makes less work of it.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Tangledwood
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 05:13 PM

Any supermarket will probably have bags of frozen onions, and most of the other veggies that Gnu mentions, so it can be done. We just need to know how.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: bobad
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 05:20 PM

If you cure them as old dude says, they will keep for several months in a cool, dry environment such as an unheated corner of your cellar. We let ours dry in the sun for a couple of weeks then store in mesh bags in a root cellar where they keep for around eight months.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Maryrrf
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 05:24 PM

You can't really go by frozen stuff that you buy in the supermarket - sometimes the items are flash frozen and you can't duplicate that at home. The chopped home frozen onions do fine for cooking - you wouldn't want to defrost them and eat them raw, as in putting them on a hamburger or in a salad, because the texture would be too soggy.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 06:35 PM

Sounds like we need a Challenge Song based on the George Formby song

"Help! I'm freezing Onions!"

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: IvanB
Date: 26 Aug 10 - 07:43 PM

If you dice onions, celery, peppers, etc. and spread them on cookie sheets to place in the freezer, they'll freeze quickly and then can be poured into bags for storage. With this method, they won't all stick together, so just the needed amount can be poured out when used.

Yes, the frozen forms of these veggies are suitable only for cooking, but they'll hold together enough as to be recognizable in the finished dish.

I also throw the top leaves of celery stalks in a container in the freezer and use them to flavor soups, stews, etc.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: GUEST,Patsy
Date: 27 Aug 10 - 06:05 AM

I asked for help with the same thing and was told that they don't freeze well so not recommended as they tend to go mushy and lose their flavour. It wouldn't quite so noticable cooked as an ingredient for a stew or casserole but not so good if used in for example as a vegetable on it's own or a stir fry. The same with freezing mushrooms the result isn't very good with them either.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 27 Aug 10 - 06:20 AM

What about pickling, making chutney or relish or dehydrating the onions?

Dehydrate onions with tomatoes, garlic and fresh herbs, course grind and put in jars. Can be added to soup, stew, sauce and casserole. Or reconstitute with bit of hot water, olive oil and sweet balsamic vinegar, spread on ciabatta, pizza base, tortilla wrap, add cheese of choice and other goodies, peppers, mushrooms, chicken or beef mince, etc. to make snack or meal.

I am hungry now.

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 27 Aug 10 - 08:44 AM

I do exactly what Maryrrf does -- and then use the leftover onions for cooking. Same thing with leftover green peppers, celery, etcet etcet.

Linn

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: olddude
Date: 27 Aug 10 - 08:51 AM

No kidding try curing them in the sun ... you will have fresh onions all winter long .. like Bobad said just keep them in a cool place away from heat

Subject: RE: BS: Help! Freezing onions
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 27 Aug 10 - 04:03 PM

Very helpful advice -- thanks!

In return, here's a recipe for freezing strawberries, as used for centuries by countless generations of my Suffolk in-laws. Put a good layer of sugar on a tray; lay the strawberries on top, not touching; sprinkle more sugar over them; pop into the freezer. Works a treat.