You should also let them dry or squeeze them between a paper towel. Water droplets will freeze within the beans. Also, try to take as much air out of the bag before sealing them or you will get freezer burn. I am glad I found this video. Just bought some fresh beans from the store and bought too much. I am also planning on buying some bulk quantities of beans this season to freeze. Very easy video to follow. You are a great teacher!
@@FaithfulFarmstead You can also lay them out on a tray once dried, just far enough apart that they're not touching, then put the tray in the freezer overnight. When you take them out in the morning you can bag them up, filling each bag completely rather than having to use one bag per portion. They won't then freeze into one solid block that needs defrosting. You can just tip as many beans as you need into hot water and cook from frozen. Also it's not necessary to cut the lower tip off the bean, just the stalk end, and it's faster laying half a dozen beans out level together and cutting the stalk ends off with a kitchen knife.
Thank you for sharing. I just needed a refresher on how long to blanch them. One thing that we like to do is after they are blanched and cooled, we placed them out on a towel to dry. Then we get out a half sheet, place a silicone mat on it and freeze the green beans in a single layer. After they are frozen, then we place them in a gallon sized Ziploc bag. We like to freeze all out produce this way and put them all in gallon sized bags. That way we can pull out as many as we want and put the bag back in the freezer. :)
For those struggling to keep them in tje fridge for long - the veggie saver containers (om Amazon or tupperware) have kept beans good in the drisge for me for 5 WEEKS!
Here’s a blanching tip. Add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda for every cup of water you use for blanching. It interacts with the chlorophyll and preserves the green color nicely.
Not recommended! The ONLY benefit to using baking soda is the bright green colour. If that's all that matters to you, then rock on! However, the baking soda will draw out many nutrients - vitamins and minerals from the plant. As a retired chef - I know - we would use this trick a lot to get bright green broccolini, asparagus, etc., but it harms the vegetable nutritionally.
I do mine with my thumb nail just below where it attaches to.the stem so I don't have to go back and trim.later. works perfectly and doesn't stress the plant. The tail-end is perfectly edible
"It won't be a lot to do", "every couple days". Lol!! She's not kidding folks, I have a scandelous amount of green beans and yes...every couple days you will need to pick alas they go soft and spongey. I love my garden but beans are a time consuming task, peas are the same. Love the video ma'am, keep em comin =)
Thank you for this video! Very clear and helpful. I'm glad there was no rush in explanation, and what you were saying answered all the questions I had. Also, the "limp" part was hilarious. Thank you again!
Thanks for the video. I've been freezing mine after washing them only. Why it's necessary to blanch first? What size ziploc bag do you recommend using? What is the ratio of vinegar to water for preserving them in fridge? How much sugar? Maybe you can do a video on that it sounds like a great idea.
Blanching them helps retain their color and locks in the nutrients. I’ve tried not blanching and prefer the taste of blanched beans. I have friends that like the opposite so it’s really preference.
I am getting some beans each day and I would like to keep them until I have enough to pressure can... what's the best way to hold them and keep them fresh
With other veggies I usually put them in a ziplock bag and store them in the crisper drawer until I’m ready to can. I think that would be fine to do with green beans
I have been blanching my half runners for close to 30 yrs I did pressure can a few times but they just are to mushy for me yuck! I love my veggies a little crisp.. I don’t hardly ever buy can beans from store it’s usually frozen cuz we only cook a few for a few Mins and they have tht right amount of crisp to them so I am only gonna freeze this yr but I am torn about blanching or not blanching I plan on doing a few quart bags of blanched verse not blanched does anyone have any tips or opinions on one being better than the other I know ppl say blanch is best due to it kills off the bad enzymes and many other bad things (can’t remember what I heard lol)
Because I Blanche them, they keep their color and look just like a fresh bean still. I use them just like fresh beans. My favorite way is to sauté them in a cast iron skillet with some butter
@@FaithfulFarmstead That sounds perfect! I have been trying to decide whether to try canning them or freezing them. I have not done either. But our favorite way to eat them most often is just sautéed with butter and garlic. So this method sounds like just what we need. Thank you for your reply!
Some of that depends on how long you blanch them, and also how you cook them. We pan fry them in a cast iron skillet in butter until they start to get a little golden char. They are delicious!
I saute them in a cast iron skillet in some butter to the desired texture. So yummy! If you don’t like that I would recommend trying to steam them instead of submerging them into boiling water. Typically boiled veggies are soggier then steamed or sauté veggies.
