Potatoes are fit into mostly every household and used in many preparations of food. However, there are those occasions that you may get an excess of potatoes and in this case they end up becoming bad before you have used them all. This leads to the question: Can you freeze potatoes? The short answer is yes but extreme care is needed when handling the vegetables to ensure that the taste and texture is intact.

Freezing Raw Potatoes

It is unadvisable to freeze raw potatoes as these change their texture, when frozen, due to the high water content in raw potatoes and appear soggy when defrosted. In the process of freezing, the cell walls melt, which makes the texture not suitable for most dishes. However, if you are very keen on freezing raw potatoes, there is some good news, you can blanch them.

Blanching for Better Results

Blanching is one in which the potatoes are submerged in boiling water for some time before being transferred to cold water. This halts the enzyme-catalyzed reactions that spoil the potatoes on the aspects of taste, colour, and texture. To blanch potatoes, prepare and cut them, than put in boiling water for 3-5 minutes and then in the ice water. Afterwards, blot them dry and place on an baking sheet and place them in the freezer on the baking sheet before transferring into a freezer bag.

Freezing Cooked Potatoes

Potatoes that are cooked freeze significantly better than those which have not been cooked. Still, mashed potatoes, potato wedges as well as cooked hash browns are some of the foods that can be frozen with good outcomes. If you want to freeze mashed potatoes, allow them to cool down to room temperature before placing them in portions in airtight bowls or shipping containers or freezable bags. French fries, potato wedges or hash browns must be put on a baking sheet in single layer and frozen before bagging them.

How to Use Frozen Potatoes

It is essential to use frozen potatoes in recipes since it is better to cook potatoes while they are still frozen rather than defrosted. The process of thawing also poses a great danger to the potatoes as they are likely to become soft, and develop undesirable textures. There is simply no fuss – just incorporate the frozen potatoes into your soups, stews or casserole or bake until crisp.

Storage Time

They maintain their quality and can be sold for consumption even after being frozen for a period of not more than one year. But for maximum taste and texture, it is preferred that they be consumed before the three months elapse. Ensure that to freezers’ bags, you add a freezing date so that you are aware of the age of the food stored in the freezers.

Conclusion

In fact, potatoes can be frozen but the way in which they are frozen depends with the method you intend to use for cooking them later. The best way is to blanch the raw potatoes or freeze cooked ones as it will help you to get the tastiest and most suitable for further use potatoes. It is possible to avoid overstocking of potatoes and at the same time ensure that you always have potatoes for the next recipe.