Thread: Cooking frozen green beans?

On 8/13/2012 5:32 PM, Ross@home wrote:
> Managed to get enough green beans from the garden to make it worth
> while to put some down. Blanch, vac-pak and freeze.
> Just happened to be checking on line to confirm that I had the correct
> blanching time when I came across a publication from the University of
> Missouri Extension # GH1503, entitled Quality for Keeps: Freezing
> Vegetables.
> http://extension.missouri.edu/p/gh1503
> After confirming blanching time and while further perusing this
> document I came upon:
>
> Table 2 Timetable for cooking frozen vegetables
> Time to cook after water returns to a boil.
>
> For green beans it said to cook them for 12 to 18 minutes after the
> water returns to the boil.
> Do they want these beans to be cooked to mush?
> Do any of you home preservers of green beans ever cook them that long
> before serving?
> We find they are perfect for eating right after blanching. Once
> frozen, when we want to serve them they only need to be thawed and
> warmed.
> I can't imagine what they'd be like after boiling for just 12 minutes,
> let alone 18 minutes. They must have some really tough green beans in
> Missouri.
>
> Ross.
> Southern Ontario, Canada
>
Sounds like hogwash to me. I do pretty much the same thing you do, put
them in a pan, cover with water, put the lid on, heat at low temperature
for several minutes. Often I put a package in the fridge to thaw and
then heat them up, if in a hurry for something to eat I just open the
vac bag, dump them in the pan, cover with tap water, bring to a boil,
cook for a minute or two to heat through and then eat them. Sometimes I
put the frozen beans in the microwave steamer and nuke them for a couple
of minutes, check to see if hot, if not, nuke them again. Doesn't seem
to affect the texture nor test. Do broccoli and cauliflower the same way
with good results.

You might have to do that with frozen beets or potatoes but I think
their method would destroy the texture and taste of green beans.

On Mon, 13 Aug 2012 18:32:08 -0400, Ross@home wrote:

>Managed to get enough green beans from the garden to make it worth
>while to put some down. Blanch, vac-pak and freeze.
>Just happened to be checking on line to confirm that I had the correct
>blanching time when I came across a publication from the University of
>Missouri Extension # GH1503, entitled Quality for Keeps: Freezing
>Vegetables.
>http://extension.missouri.edu/p/gh1503
>After confirming blanching time and while further perusing this
>document I came upon:
>
>Table 2 Timetable for cooking frozen vegetables
>Time to cook after water returns to a boil.
>
>For green beans it said to cook them for 12 to 18 minutes after the
>water returns to the boil.
>Do they want these beans to be cooked to mush?
>Do any of you home preservers of green beans ever cook them that long
>before serving?
>We find they are perfect for eating right after blanching. Once
>frozen, when we want to serve them they only need to be thawed and
>warmed.
>I can't imagine what they'd be like after boiling for just 12 minutes,
>let alone 18 minutes. They must have some really tough green beans in
>Missouri.
>
>Ross.
>Southern Ontario, Canada

Following up on my own post.
I emailed the University of Missouri Extension questioning the
recommended 12 to 18 minutes cooking time for blanched green beans.
The reply from a food preservation specialists basically said green
beans are only blanched for 3 minutes and that doesn't even begin to
cook them. It would take 12 to 18 minutes to get them cooked after
they have been blanched and frozen. She also said it was my option to
undercook them if I choose.
I'll take that option ;-).


43º 17' 26.75" North
80º 13' 29.46"West

Ross@home wrote:
....
> Following up on my own post.
> I emailed the University of Missouri Extension questioning the
> recommended 12 to 18 minutes cooking time for blanched green beans.
> The reply from a food preservation specialists basically said green
> beans are only blanched for 3 minutes and that doesn't even begin to
> cook them. It would take 12 to 18 minutes to get them cooked after
> they have been blanched and frozen. She also said it was my option to
> undercook them if I choose.
> I'll take that option ;-).

ok.

i much prefer beans with a bit of a crunch too
as i wander around the gardens all beans are fair
game.


songbird

In article <[email protected]>, Ross@home
wrote:

> Managed to get enough green beans from the garden to make it worth
> while to put some down. Blanch, vac-pak and freeze.
> Just happened to be checking on line to confirm that I had the correct
> blanching time when I came across a publication from the University of
> Missouri Extension # GH1503, entitled Quality for Keeps: Freezing
> Vegetables.
> http://extension.missouri.edu/p/gh1503
> After confirming blanching time and while further perusing this
> document I came upon:
>
> Table 2 Timetable for cooking frozen vegetables
> Time to cook after water returns to a boil.
>
> For green beans it said to cook them for 12 to 18 minutes after the
> water returns to the boil.
> Do they want these beans to be cooked to mush?
> Do any of you home preservers of green beans ever cook them that long
> before serving?
> We find they are perfect for eating right after blanching. Once
> frozen, when we want to serve them they only need to be thawed and
> warmed.
> I can't imagine what they'd be like after boiling for just 12 minutes,
> let alone 18 minutes. They must have some really tough green beans in
> Missouri.
>
> Ross.
> Southern Ontario, Canada

I'm with you, Ross. When I buy a couple quart baskets of green beans
from the farmers markets, I cook them in a large quantity of salted
water for about 3 minutes, until barely tender - still have tooth to
them. I drain and chill in ice water then keep them in the fridge for a
week while we eat them nightly, one way or another. Truth be known, I'd
rather eat canned green beans than frozen cooked -- I don't like the
bite of the frozen ones.
--
Barb,
http://www.barbschaller.com, as of June 6, 2012

On 8/17/2012 11:38 AM, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>, Ross@home
> wrote:
>
>> Managed to get enough green beans from the garden to make it worth
>> while to put some down. Blanch, vac-pak and freeze.
>> Just happened to be checking on line to confirm that I had the correct
>> blanching time when I came across a publication from the University of
>> Missouri Extension # GH1503, entitled Quality for Keeps: Freezing
>> Vegetables.
>> http://extension.missouri.edu/p/gh1503
>> After confirming blanching time and while further perusing this
>> document I came upon:
>>
>> Table 2 Timetable for cooking frozen vegetables
>> Time to cook after water returns to a boil.
>>
>> For green beans it said to cook them for 12 to 18 minutes after the
>> water returns to the boil.
>> Do they want these beans to be cooked to mush?
>> Do any of you home preservers of green beans ever cook them that long
>> before serving?
>> We find they are perfect for eating right after blanching. Once
>> frozen, when we want to serve them they only need to be thawed and
>> warmed.
>> I can't imagine what they'd be like after boiling for just 12 minutes,
>> let alone 18 minutes. They must have some really tough green beans in
>> Missouri.
>>
>> Ross.
>> Southern Ontario, Canada
>
> I'm with you, Ross. When I buy a couple quart baskets of green beans
> from the farmers markets, I cook them in a large quantity of salted
> water for about 3 minutes, until barely tender - still have tooth to
> them. I drain and chill in ice water then keep them in the fridge for a
> week while we eat them nightly, one way or another. Truth be known, I'd
> rather eat canned green beans than frozen cooked -- I don't like the
> bite of the frozen ones.
>
How do you freeze your blanched green beans? I blanch them for three
minutes, then into ice water until cold to the touch, then into a big
sieve, then into a large salad spinner. Once fairly dry I put them on a
bun sheet and into the freezer for about an hour. After that I vacuum
bag them and store them in two-serving bunches. So far the mouth feel is
not much less than the canned ones.

I just boxed up the canned green beans, we put up 24 pints of canned, 28
pints of frozen this year. One little row, about 20 feet long provided
us with all those fresh beans. The tally doesn't include the ones we ate
fresh nor the ones we turned into dilly beans. Also boxed up 20 pints of
canned carrots plus ten pints of dilly carrots. Our great grands love
those things and it's a good way for old folks to get lots of hugs and
kisses. <G>