Freezing Asparagus

 

I listened to a podcast that encouraged freezing or preserving vegetables because harvests were going to be so horrible due to this summer's drought.  Even if I liked canned veggies, I don't pressure can, so anything I choose to preserve is going to have to be frozen.

I looked at frozen asparagus in the grocery store, and it was $3.59 for half a pound.  Ouch.  A few weeks later, Ralphs (Kroger) had a coupon for $1.79/lb.  That was a perfect price for this experiment.  I picked up two bunches, which at the rate I cook with asparagus is six months.

The frozen veggies you buy at the market have been blanched and flash frozen in industrial freezers.  They do not have the texture of fresh, especially leafy greens like spinach.  I'm explaining this because you have to understand that you are not coming out of this with crisp spears of asparagus.  I happen to like my asparagus overdone and a little mushy, which is why it's one of the few vegetables I like canned.  (They were out of canned.)

The process is very simple and only takes a few minutes of active time.  The resulting bags of frozen asparagus are best used in soups, stews, and similar dishes where you won't notice the texture.  I don't mind putting blanched asparagus in salads or stir frys.  You can roast them from frozen, but again, they won't be quite the same.

The advantage to this process is having a product you want out of season.  You can buy something at a good price, blanch and freeze it, and have it when it is not available in the market.  As produce becomes more scarce and of poorer quality, this is a skill we all should learn.  That and gardening.

1.  Set a pot of water to boil.  If you're doing full spears, it should be a wide pot.  If you're cutting them into 2" lengths, any width will do.  Separately, set up a large bowl of water and ice.

2.  Trim off the woody bottoms of the asparagus.  Ralphs only had very thin ones, which are actually my favorites.  Thickness depends on the age of the asparagus crown.  These were probably from the first usable year, about the third.  Those very thick stems you have to peel are 10+ years old.

3.  Drop the asparagus in the boiling water.  For these super-thin spears, I only left them in one minute.  For finger-thick ones, you need up to four.

4.  Drop the asparagus in the ice water bath and allow to cool, about 5 minutes.  Set out an absorbent towel or two.

5.  Remove the asparagus from the ice water and set on the towels.  Allow to dry completely, or the moisture will form ice crystals in the freezer.

6.  For spears, arrange in a thin layer in a freezer bag and squeeze out as much air as possible.  For cuts, line up on a parchment-lined sheet.  Freeze either method flat, then put the cut ones in their own freezer bag, again squeezing out the excess air.

7.  Store 3-6 months in the freezer and use as any pre-cooked asparagus item.

Difficulty rating  π