Shakin & Bakin Foodie Blog

This past year my garden did extremely well, especially when it came to growing an abundance of fresh tomatoes, onions, zucchini, cucumbers and bell peppers. Seriously, this was the best crop and harvest we've had in at least the past 10 years.

I had a reader email me to ask how you can freeze bell peppers and after I answered her question, I thought I would also publish the instructions right here on my foodie blog for all of you.

How to Freeze Bell Peppers

Wash and towel dry your peppers. If you have any bad spots on them, you'll want to cut those away or totally toss it. Use a sharp knife to cut away the stem & core. Rinse them underneath cool running water to help loosen the seeds and membranes. Toss them away.

I like to prepare mine on a glass cutting board. I first slice them in half and then I slice them into strips or dice them into chunks, depending on how I plan to use them in the future. Every season, I make batches of both, but more strips than chunks, since we use our strips in a lot of stir-fry's, soups and stews.

Once you have them diced up or cut into strips, place them into a large measuring cup. I like to freeze mine in 2 cup portions, so I measure out 2 cups at a time. Pour them onto a baking sheet in a single layer and use paper towels to blot up any moisture that remains on them. Place the tray into your freezer for one hour to start the freezing process.

Remove from freezer and blog them again with paper towels. Pour into freezer bags (I use quart-size bags) or freezer containers. Purge out all of the air that you can. Seal the bag or container, label them appropriately and then freeze.

When you want to use them, you don't thaw them out at all! You simply remove as many that you need from your package and toss them into whatever it is your preparing. In addition, there is NO NEED to blanch them during the preparation/freezing process either. It's totally not necessary. Furthermore, freezing them does change their texture a little bit, so you don't want to toss them into a salad or eat them plan. They are meant to be used in your cooking, slow-cooker and baking recipes.