It's that time of year. The garden is winding down and you've exhausted yourself trying to find creative ways to cook all of the veggies it has provided. Now it's time to preserve some for the remainder of the year. Today's focus is on peppers.
Peppers are the easiest vegetable to preserve. No blanching required, you can literally chop and
freeze. If you prefer to roast or blanch them first, by all means do that, however, they freeze beautifully without any prep at all.
Think of how you'll use them and prep them accordingly.
For instance, I halved my jalapenos before freezing them because we like to make baked stuffed jalapenos but this also gives me the option of removing one or two halves and chopping it to add to a dish as needed.
Our poblanos I froze whole {minus the seeds, membrane and top} because they will mostly be stuffed but this also allows me to remove them, roast and add to additional dishes.
Our bell peppers I prepped 3 ways: I blanched a few whole peppers {minus the seeds, membrane and top} and stuffed them before freezing them in foil pans for future baking. My husband does not like crunchy peppers, and these tend to hold their firmness when baked, which is the only reason I blanched them before stuffing them. For the stuffing I combined 2 cups cooked rice, 1 pound of raw lean burger and 1/2 a pound pork sausage along with 1 cup chopped green pepper, 1 cup chopped onion, 1 teaspoon garlic salt, 1 1/2 cups grated cheese and 1 can tomato sauce. I mixed this all together and stuffed them full.
The rest of the bell peppers were split between slices and finely chopped. We use a lot of pepper slices for Cheesesteak Sandwiches, Fajita's, Brats, etc. and chopped peppers for rice dishes, Breakfast Burritos, Soups, Casseroles, etc. I freeze them in large, gallon sized freezer bags so that I can remove only what I need when I need it.
Freezing Peppers
Wash and dry your peppers. Remove stem, seeds and interior membrane. Chop, slice or leave whole - as desired. For chopped and sliced peppers, freeze in batches. Spread out on freezer paper on a baking sheet and freeze. Once frozen, put in gallon sized freezer bag. Continue with remaining peppers. For whole peppers, put in freezer-safe bag or container and pack as you can.
These will last at least 1 year in the freezer.
Additional Posts on Freezing the Bounty:
Freezing Green Beans
Freezing Vegetables - A Basic Overview
Freezing Pumpkin or Squash Puree