Freezing Zucchini

Freezing zucchini is a quick and easy way to handle the extra zucchini that grows in your garden. You can even freeze those gigantic zucchinis that just appear overnight.

Supplies & Equipment

• Fresh Zucchini

• V-Slicer or Food Processor

• Freezer or Storage Bags

Picking and Preparing Zucchini

If the size of your zucchini is small to medium, just wash off the dirt and cut off the ends.

If your zucchini is one of those monster zucchinis, then slice the zucchini in half lengthwise and scrape out the big seeds with a spoon. You don’t want big seeds or pieces of big seeds in your frozen zucchini. Big seeds stay hard and crunchy.

Using a V-Slicer

I don’t have a lot of kitchen gadgets, but this is one that I absolutely love. I bought mine about 15 years ago and use it several times a week. You can tell by the pictures that my V-Slicer is well worn. I use the V-slicer when I have less than 5 zucchinis to shred because it’s quick and easy to get out, wash, and put away.

If you are going to use the V-Slicer, don’t cut off the top of the zucchini. You can use it as a handle when you are shredding your zucchini.

There are three slicing blades that come with your V-Slicer: Shredder, Dicer, and Slicer. Use the Shredder blade.

Using a Food Processor

I use my food processor when I have a big pile of zucchini to shred or if my zucchinis are huge.

If you are using a food processor, use the shredding disc. Cut off both ends. If the zucchini is too wide to fit into your food processor, cut it lengthwise to the right size before shredding.

You can also put your zucchini in the blender and turn it into a liquid. You can use this in soups and sauces. It doesn't have a strong flavor and adds great nutrition to any dish.

Bagging & Freezing Zucchini

Fill your plastic bags with shredded or liquid zucchini leaving about an inch at the top.

Zip up your plastic bag leaving one corner open. Squeeze out the air and finish zipping up the bag. Taking the air out of the bag helps to eliminate freezer burn.

A Note About Freezer Bags: I use regular storage bags for freezing because they are cheaper. I’ve used both freezer bags and storage bags for freezing and both of them sometimes leak when the food is thawing. The remedy for this is to put your bag of food in a bowl or on a plate when you take the bag out of the freezer. I don’t have any problems with the storage bags ripping while the food is still frozen.

The last step is to put your bagged zucchini into the freezer.

Using Frozen Zucchini

When you thaw your zucchini, it will be more watery than fresh zucchini. This doesn’t make a difference in most of your zucchini recipes like: Zucchini Bread, Rice & Zucchini, Spaghetti Sauce & Zucchini, etc.

Another great way to preserve zucchini is to make zucchini chips in your dehydrator.

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