Nothing beats the taste of fresh garden peas, especially if they’re home grown. If you have a glut of fresh peas then you need to find a way to store them. In this post I’ll show you how to freeze peas and preserve that just picked taste.
How To Freeze Peas
The first thing to decide is how long you want to keep them, if it’s between 6-8 weeks they can be frozen without being blanched. If you want to store your frozen peas beyond 8 weeks then they need to be blanched.
When Is The Best Time To Pick Fresh Peas?
To get peas with the right flavour they should be picked as soon as the pea is formed in the pods. Don’t wait until the peas get too large as they become hard and lose their sweetness. The whole point of growing your own is to get better than shop bought peas, and that means they might be smaller, but they will be tastier.
What Is Blanching And Why Is It Necessary?
Blanching is the term for subjecting vegetables to high heat for a short period and then plunging them in ice cold water. It is done to kill enzymes that cause the vegetables to discolour, lose flavour and generally deteriorate.
If you want to see how to freeze peas without blanching click here.
How To Freeze Peas A Step By Step Guide
It’s relatively easy to freeze peas and for the benefit of this post I’ll assume you want to store them for longer than 8 weeks.
How To Freeze Peas Step 1
Remove the peas from the pods and place in a colander.
How To Freeze Peas Step 2
Wash podded peas thoroughly.
How To Freeze Peas Step 3
Plunge peas into fast boiling water for 90 seconds. No less, no more, Any less will not get rid of the enzymes that cause deterioration. Any more will cook the peas too much and will make them mushy when cooked after freezing.
How To Freeze Peas Step 4
After the 90 seconds is up, immediately plunge the peas into ice cold water and allow them to completely cool.
How To Freeze Peas Step 5
Place peas on a tea towel and then cover them with another tea towel and dry them completely.
How To Freeze Peas Step 6
Once the peas are dry, place enough for one portion into a zip lock bag or similar and place in the freezer.
Remember that fresh garden peas don’t take long to cook, so once removed from the freezer just place in boiling water for around 2-3 minutes and serve.
To see how to freeze broad beans click this link.
For more information on how to freeze broad beans without blanching click here.
Frequently Asked Questions
To store for longer than 8 weeks the best way is to blanch peas before freezing.
Only if you want to store them long term. If you will be using them within 6-8 weeks, it is fine to freeze peas without blanching.
Peas should be blanched for 90 seconds only. That’s 1.5 minutes, no more, no less.
There is no need to thaw frozen peas before cooking, but if you do want to, just place them in a colander and run them under the cold tap.
Which Variety Of Peas Do You Grow?
I tend to grow meteor peas as they are relatively short plants, and we are subject to strong winds in my area. These can be sown in Autumn or Spring and I often get 2 and sometimes 3 crops of peas each year. So it’s over to you, which varieties have you had most success with? Let me know in the comments section below.
