This Make-Forward Vegetable Trick Is a Recreation-Changer for House Cooks

It is nearly unimaginable to purchase simply a few ribs of celery, though that is normally all you

want. As a substitute, it is available in a large bunch, leaving you to surprise what to do with the remainder earlier than it wilts in your crisper drawer. I discovered myself on this precise place one winter, after shopping for celery for soup and boldly declaring that I might waste much less meals within the new 12 months. As I diced up the ribs I wanted, I brainstormed methods to make use of the remainder. Not sure precisely what to do with it, I settled on freezing it for mirepoix—the French time period for the mixture of onions, carrots, and celery—which varieties the bottom for a lot of braises, soups, and stews. 

Many cooks I’ve spoken to advise towards freezing contemporary greens, since they will turn into mushy when cooked. However I made a decision to buck the recommendation of cooks and fellow meals writers: I chopped up the remaining celery, together with some carrots and onions for good measure, and organized them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Then, I popped them into my freezer. As soon as they had been frozen, I froze every vegetable in its personal zip-top bag. 

A number of weeks later, when a chilly struck and I urgently wanted rooster noodle soup, my frozen mirepoix got here to the rescue. As a substitute of chopping greens, I merely reached into the freezer and pulled out the aromatics I wanted, shaving 10 minutes off my prep time. Now, my freezer isn’t with no few luggage of diced onions, carrots, and celery—and I am at all times a number of steps forward when it is time to throw collectively a weeknight dinner. 

After I freeze mirepoix, I have a tendency to cut up no matter onions, celery, and carrots I’ve left over after shopping for a bunch. If I am feeling lazy, I escape the meals processor and pulse each to make fast work of it. (Simply watch out to not flip them right into a purée.) As I discussed above, I separate the greens and organize them in a single layer on a baking sheet. As soon as they’ve hardened barely, about quarter-hour, I switch them into zip-top freezer luggage. I eyeball the quantities: Every bag comprises about one medium onion, two carrots, or two to a few stalks of celery. Understanding that every bag comprises roughly the identical quantity helps me cook dinner extra exactly and makes it simpler to regulate the ratio by supplementing with extra contemporary or frozen greens as wanted. (You may, nonetheless, freeze every vegetable in its personal bag should you want.)

As a result of I take advantage of this mix for mirepoix, lots of the typical issues about freezing produce and its impact on texture grew to become moot. In mirepoix, the objective is to have the greens taste the bottom of your dish, then virtually soften into the background, so their texture is not as crucial as it might be in one thing like a stir-fry. Whereas prepackaged luggage of frozen mirepoix can be found, they’re normally bought as a premixed mix, and I want to manage the ratio of onions, carrots, and celery.

Mirepoix is primarily utilized in French cooking, however many different cultures have their very own variations of fragrant vegetable bases. Italians name theirs battuto or soffritto, usually together with garlic, parsley, fennel, and pancetta or prosciutto. Most of my cooking leans towards the red-sauce selection, so I usually add fennel to my stash of freezer greens as effectively. You may customise your freezer mirepoix mix as wanted: Leeks, carrots, and celery root are utilized in German suppengrün, which accurately interprets to “soup inexperienced.” (I’ve additionally frozen each leeks and celery root to be used in soups and stews, with a lot success.) For Spanish sofrito, you could possibly freeze the onions, garlic, and bell peppers, then add the tomato throughout cooking.

When frozen this fashion, the greens may be saved for about three months—however as Meredith Carothers, a meals security specialist with the USDA, advised me, that is extra a tenet for high quality than for security. When it is time to cook dinner, I don’t hassle with thawing the veggies—and also you should not both. Because the greens thaw, ice crystals within the veggies soften and pool round them, making the onions, garlic, and celery mushy. As a substitute, I toss the frozen greens instantly into scorching oil in a pan.  The additional liquid cooks off shortly, and the greens start to brown simply as they’d if used contemporary. From there, you have received the beginnings of a pot of soup, a hearty ragù, or a sluggish braise—minus the prep time.