How to freeze cucumbers for the winter correctly, is it possible to do this, reviews

Preparing cucumbers for freezing

Freezing allows you to preserve up to 80% of vitamins and microelements in fruits. The main thing is to pay attention to preparing raw materials for storage.

For preparations, take whole strong fruits. Cucumbers should not have a loose structure; it is better to take unripe vegetables. They are washed under cold tap water and wiped dry with a clean towel or napkins.

Important! Cucumbers for preparations are chosen fresh, without dents or signs of disease. Before cooking, they are washed and wiped dry.

It is better to freeze recently harvested crops. The longer the fruits lie, the worse they are stored in the refrigerator. Leftover vegetables lose their smell and taste and become soft.

Methods for freezing cucumbers for the winter

Depending on what dishes the vegetables will be used in, they are prepared in pieces, whole, fresh or salted.

For your information! Homemade frozen vegetables will protect the family from nitrates that are saturated with imported fruits. In addition, the harvest from the garden is more fragrant than store-bought cucumbers.

The better the housewife prepares the fruits for the freezer, the easier it will be to defrost them and the more pleasant it will be to serve. A properly frozen product retains its marketability and taste in dishes.

In circles

Cucumbers are cut into circles 3-5 cm wide and laid out on a plate, which is then placed in the freezer for 2 hours. This procedure is done so that the rings do not stick together. When the workpieces have strengthened under the influence of low temperature, they are transferred to a container with a tight lid.

Note! You can store the rings in bags, but there is a risk that they will break when moving other foods in the freezer.

There is no need to be afraid to freeze cut cucumbers. Chopped vegetables do not lose their taste and aromatic qualities. By cutting the fruits into rings, the housewife makes it easier for herself to work in the kitchen in the future. You can simply take a portion of vegetable preparations and throw them into a soup or salad.

Before the pre-freezing process, you need to allow excess juice to drain, then during cooking the cucumber slices will not let in moisture and will retain their elastic appearance.

Cubes

You can freeze cucumbers for the winter at home by cutting them into 0.5 cm cubes. The preparations are placed in plastic bags, from which the air is pumped out and tied tightly. It is important to remember that the number of cubes should be for one preparation. Otherwise, the remaining defrosted vegetables will spoil.

Note! If the cubes are later used to make okroshka, they are filled with kefir. In this form, vegetables are stored better and do not absorb foreign odors. Before cooking, you just need to defrost the portion.

The rough skin of the fruit should be removed; it is only used in dishes.

What dishes can be prepared from thawed cucumbers?

Fresh or pickled cucumbers, once frozen, can be used to make a huge variety of treats.

Sauce

Frozen cucumber sauce goes well with fish and meat delicacies and is suitable as a salad dressing.

Ingredients:

Frozen cucumbers – 300 grams.
Sour cream – 40 grams.
Garlic – 1 clove.
Mayonnaise – 40 grams.
Lemon – 0.5 pieces.
Salt – 7 grams.
Greens – 1 bunch.
Vegetable oil – 17 grams.

Cooking plan:

Thaw diced cucumbers or cucumber pulp in the refrigerator. To get rid of excess liquid, squeeze the vegetable mass with your hands.
Peel the garlic and chop finely. Squeeze the juice from the lemon. Chop the greens as finely as possible.
Add mayonnaise (you can make it homemade) and sour cream to the crushed fruits. Throw in the garlic, add vegetable oil and lemon nectar.
Grind the sauce with a blender at minimum speed for 4-5 minutes.
Add fresh herbs to the cucumber tartar and serve the dressing.

Salad

Ingredients:

Potatoes, apple, egg - 1 piece each.
Ham – 150 grams.
Green onion – 2 sprigs.
Cucumbers – 150 grams.
Yogurt – 50 milliliters.
Salt – 3 grams.
Oil – 17 grams.

Preparation:

Chop boiled potatoes, eggs, apples and a piece of ham into cubes.
Finely chop green onions.
Mix salad ingredients in a bowl. Add diced cucumbers straight from the freezer to the bowl.
Season the delicacy with natural yogurt, olive oil and salt to taste. Stir the dish with a spoon, leave for 30 minutes and serve for lunch.

Okroshka

Components:

Potatoes – 200 grams.
Eggs – 4 pieces.
Smoked chicken ham – 300 grams.
Milk sausage – 200 grams.
Cucumbers – 200 grams.
Green onion, parsley - 1 bunch.
Radish – 100 grams.
Kefir – 1 liter.
Whey – 1 liter.
Mustard, salt, lemon - to taste.

Algorithm of actions:

Chop boiled potatoes, eggs, chicken and sausage into cubes.
Remove the chopped onion and parsley, cucumbers and radishes into cubes from the freezer.
Mix all ingredients in a deep bowl.
Season the okroshka with whey and kefir. Add spices and herbs to the treat to taste.
Let the food brew and start eating.

Olivie

Products:

Pickled cucumbers – 3 pieces.
Potatoes – 4 pieces.
Eggs – 5 pieces.
Peas, canned food – 250 grams.
Chicken fillet – 300 grams.
Mayonnaise – 30 grams.
Salt – 3 grams.
Greenery - for decoration.

Preparation procedure:

Cut boiled potatoes, eggs and chicken fillet into squares and place in a salad bowl.
Add canned peas and diced pickles straight from the freezer to the bowl.
Mix salad ingredients with mayonnaise and salt. Decorate the treat with chopped herbs.

Shelf life

Frozen cucumbers can be stored for up to a year in the freezer. It is important to protect the workpieces from temperature changes and not to defrost or clean the refrigerator while storing the workpieces.

The safety of the packaging is affected by the tightness of the packaging. The bags in which cucumbers are packaged must be tightly closed. Air and foreign odors that penetrate the packaging spoil the taste of the fruit.

Important! Vegetable preparations are stored separately from meat and fish.

Thus, it makes sense to freeze cucumber preparations, since frozen vegetables retain more vitamins than pickled ones.

How to defrost cucumbers correctly

To defrost cucumbers, place them on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. Of course, they will no longer be as crispy and hard as fresh ones, but they will retain their aroma and some strength. The correct way to defrost is to let the cucumbers thaw slowly.

Do not heat frozen vegetables in the microwave or speed up the defrosting process with hot water. In this case, the fruits will become soft and lose their presentation.

For soup, it is not necessary to defrost the raw materials; the cucumber mass is taken out of the freezer and thrown into the dish during the cooking process.

Important! Cucumbers cannot be re-frozen.

Whole specimens are not completely defrosted; they should be slightly firm. In this form, the fruits are easier to cut and the portioned pieces will be beautiful. A half-thawed cucumber is more convenient to grate for sauce and dressing; it does not fall apart in your hands.

Use in cooking

Cucumbers frozen for the winter are used in recipes for pickles, salads, and stews. Housewives note that frozen summer cucumbers are tastier and more aromatic than store-bought ones that were grown and brought from other countries.

Slices of vegetables decorate salads and place them on sandwiches. Cold cucumber rings are an excellent remedy for puffiness under the eyes; they are placed on the eyelids to relieve inflammation.

Pickled frozen cucumbers are used in sauces, roasts, solyankas, Olivier salad, and cut into vegetable slices. You can make a vitamin cocktail from vegetable juice for a healthy diet.

Small cucumber cubes or gruel are added to dressings for various dishes. The types of ingredients can be very diverse. You can cook grated cucumbers with dill, parsley, egg, apple. For the binder, use vegetable oil or sour cream with mayonnaise. Vegetable sauce will pleasantly complement the taste of fish, potatoes and meat.

The secret to successfully freezing cucumbers is following step-by-step winter preparation technology. Frozen vegetables preserve all the vitamins that people need so much during the winter and spring periods. By preparing a cucumber harvest at home for the winter, the housewife will provide her family with tasty and healthy products.

Tips from housewives

Experienced housewives are happy to share the secrets of freezing fresh cucumbers:

prepare vitamin soup sets for the winter from dill, parsley, cucumber, green peas and onions - all ingredients are packaged in portions for preparing one dish;
preparation for okroshka - freeze diced cucumbers, radishes and dill in a portioned bag;
for okroshka, freeze cucumbers in whey - pour the dairy product into a bag with chopped pieces of the vegetable;
Re-freezing cucumbers is prohibited, so it is better to freeze vegetables in small bags;
before placing the bag with the preparation in the freezer, remove all the air from it - you can use a cocktail straw for this;
Cucumbers are stored in the freezer away from meat.

Methods for freezing cucumbers for the winter

Whole cucumbers frozen for the winter

Clean, dry cucumbers are placed in plastic bags and placed in the freezer. In winter, these cucumbers can be grated and used to make cucumber sauce. It is important not to defrost the cucumber before using it!

The taste and aroma of the vegetable remains unchanged, but if you defrost it whole, it will be very thin and watery.

See video from Irina Danilova – Frozen cucumber

You can freeze cucumber rings

This method is more often used in freezing practice. Cucumbers are cut into rings and frozen. To prevent the cucumber slices from sticking to each other, they are first frozen in one layer on a cutting board and then poured into one container.

A very convenient way to freeze fresh cucumbers in rings, in foil and bags, is suggested by Valentina Prokudina in her video - Freezing Vegetables. cucumbers

How to freeze cucumbers for the winter for okroshka

The most popular way to freeze cucumbers is in cubes for okroshka. The cucumbers are chopped into small pieces, placed in bags or containers, and stored in the freezer.

There is a rule here: the amount of vegetables needed for one-time use should be placed in the packaging container.

See the video Channel “Splash of Ideas” - How to properly freeze cucumbers for okroshka for a long time

How to freeze fresh grated cucumbers

This freezing method will appeal to women who use cucumbers in home cosmetology to prepare face masks.

Clean cucumbers are grated through a coarse grater and, along with the juice that has been released, placed in freezer bags or ice cube trays. The second option is preferable, since you don’t have to take out the whole package to separate the necessary part from it.

See the video from the channel “Olga and Mom” - Freezing cucumbers is an excellent proven method for the winter

How to freeze cucumber juice

Clean cucumbers are crushed through a meat grinder or grated through a grater, and then squeezed through cheesecloth. The resulting cucumber juice is poured into ice trays and placed in the freezer. After a day, the cucumber ice cubes are transferred to a separate bag or container.

It is very useful to use such cubes for wiping the face instead of toning and moisturizing lotion.

How to freeze pickles

In addition to fresh ones, you can also freeze pickles. This becomes necessary when you opened a large jar of salted vegetables, but were unable to consume it all. To avoid product spoilage, cucumbers can be frozen.

Undoubtedly, the crunchiness of the pickled cucumber will be lost, but using such freezing to prepare pickle or vinaigrette is very appropriate. In this case, the cucumbers can first be chopped into cubes or frozen not entirely.

Use after defrosting

Whole frozen vegetables can be used to make sauces. The taste and aroma will remain as if you just picked them from the garden.

Important! Do not defrost whole vegetables before use. If the fruits are defrosted, they will lose their flavor and become watery.

Diced vegetables are convenient to use for preparing okroshka, Olivier salad, vinaigrette and sauté. The main condition for such a preparation is that they must be cut into small pieces.

You can decorate a sandwich, fresh vegetable salad or any other dish with slices or slices of cucumber. Grated cucumbers are suitable for sauce lovers.

Frozen cucumber juice is used in home cosmetology. Ice is used to wipe the face instead of toning and moisturizing lotion. Thawed juice is suitable for making masks - one cube is thawed before making the product. Cucumbers are used to lighten age spots, tone the skin and smooth out fine wrinkles.