I just fully cook (steam) mine, wrap them in parchment paper in individual servings, and put them in the deep freezer - I'm too busy to be cooking them twice. I've been doing that for years and stay healthy in winter, when I only eat my own greens from the summer, so I guess I'm not losing all the vitamins that way. I just baked at least 50 kale stems with spices and olive oil till crunchy - delicious.
I freeze mine raw. I put it n my smoothies and it stays sweet if you don't cook it. After it is frozen, it's easy to crunch it up so it takes up less freezer space. I'd probably blanch if I was gong to use cooked, but I'd use a much bigger pot, Dutch oven type, same water that you suggest. That a good idea to save nutrients.
thank you for the video I like the idea of steaming versus boiling the nutrients out. I boiled the stems to get any nutrients that I can out & let the water cool & gave it to my indoor herbs & plants, then threw the stems back in the garden to compost . If you have chickens they like to pick at the stems too they might also enjoy the water : - ) .
Thank you for this video. This is exactly how I prep and preserve all my leafy greens. It saves cooking time when you use it also. I don’t see much on steam blanching, instead of boiling in water, which takes out many nutrients. I would let it cool down before putting in the plastic container.
I once bought a green smoothie from a juice bar in Austin,Texas. The girl preparing it pulled a bag of prewashed greens from HEB grocery store out of the freezer and added a few handfuls to the blender. She said they froze their kale and spinach straight from the bag.
LOL my grandparents came door to door weekly with a HUGE harvest from their large back garden. We were both grateful...and bothered over what to do with all that food! Your harvest is quite the bounty, beautiful kale! (daily?!? holy smokes!)
I just freeze it fresh without blanching it. Also I dehydrate it an make like an herb to add to soups and stews. I like the way you do it. Great vid. 👍
My wife is not a big kale fan, and prefers to eat fresh beans this time of year. I make a lot of soups in winter, so I’m going to harvest my kale, steam it, and freeze it for adding to soup.
Thank you for this video. I always wanted to preserve my greens this way but thought they Had to be blanched. This way keeps most of the nutrients. I’ll be preserving my greens this way for the winter 😊 thank you.
I blanched them too sometimes. Not as many nutrients are lost as people think. Here's a podcast I did with an expert from Penn State Agricultural extension where we discussed this topic. ua-cam.com/video/gYAof6bAZVM/v-deo.html
WOW! I've been eating kale for 40 years and growing it for only ONE but I did not know about this way of prepping and retaining it frozen all winter. Thanks a 'bunch'. Can't wait for this new season~
OMG, I found a recipe online for Zupa Tuscana soup that is to LIVE for! It's one of my favorite soups! I plan to can it with the kale in my garden, minus the cream.
Hey Greg - thanks for doing these “preserve the harvest” type videos. Much appreciated! Have you considered doing your fermented tomato and squash-mush techniques? And the “searching for lego” sound was a very welcome trip down memory lane…a great part of childhood!
Now, inasmuch as I see the stem as important as the herb itself, the stems are so thick vs. the leaves, I've been cutting the stem off and dehydrating them each on separate trays. Once the leaves are dried, I leave the stems in another 4 hrs. I've been storing mine in mason jars w/ oxy absorbers. I have powdered mine, also. I only have oh so much freezer space, but smoothies are the best way to use the spring bounty. Thanks for showing your way.
Thanks for posting this. I have a question: Why not just buy a large stock pot with a steamer basket? Seems like that frying pan thing makes this task so much more tedious, no? And I don't think it's really steaming the kale because it's actually sitting in the water.
Switch out your aluminum pans to ceramic non stick. Aluminum is not good for you. Thank you for ALL of your kale videos. They are great and so helpful.
Because this way I don;t need a vacuum sealer, and I don't need to use a bunch of plastic with my vacuum sealer. You literally pop is out and put it in a bread bag. Takes seconds - nothing to be gained from investing in a vacuum sealer IMO.
lots of videos on the process, but none actually showing the result of when you unfreeze the thing. What does the kale look like? what state is it in and what can we do with it to prep it for dinner?
It looks like it does before freezing. to prep - just thaw it out. Good idea for a video - I'll have to do one this winter when I'm using this summer's kale.
Thanks, I don't have kale but I do have spinach which I froze using this method. Turned out great, other methods seem to leave me with a green slimy goo that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole, let alone eat. You have no idea how much greens I've chucked because it looked absolutely horrendous. I intend to grow more greens next season since I've found a way that I like to freeze them now. Would this method work for cauliflower and broccoli do you think. The last batch I tried disintegrated, after 'blanching' them for as long as the instructions said. Stella
I have to admit, I've never grown enough broccoli or c-flower to preserve - though I do intend to try next season because my kids love those vegs. I'm sure it would work - though I'd have to think traditional blanching would be ok too - but I'd only immerse for a minute and would use a healthy amount of salt.
Super! I'm going to do that. Then the rest for the chickens, they love it!! Do I do the green beans the same way? Side note: I had 13 tomato plants and 3 survived. I also lost most of my cabbage. I wish the weeds would die from all this rain on the east coast, lol!
Thanks for sharing, so many ways to do this, always good to know more. (one suggestion: the echo made it difficult to hear. I don't know if you had an external mic on or not)
Thanks, and yes sorry about the sound quality. Unfortunately, there's really nothing I can do about that. External mics and that sort of gear are quite expensive, and the channel just isn't there yet. At this point in time I make from $3 to $5 an episode, so the $300 camera I just bought is a massive investment relative to anticipated returns. My hope is that, for now, people like the content enough to overlook the technical imperfections. As the channel grows I'll get better gear, but those remote mics, and the type of cameras that support them cost $1000s of dollars.
No worries. I didn't mean to imply that I didn't or don't like your videos. I do. I purchased a mic to use on my channel once a few subscribers had mentioned that they had difficulty hearing me at times. It is not a cordless one, because I could not afford a fancy one, but I did pick one up for under $20, that works rather well from Amazon. Just a thought. Enjoy your weekend. Catherine
I love your show just the way it is......not slick or pretentious , and the kids playing in the background is a bonus....such a real life channel, and very informative, I've gone back and watched some of your episodes, and I have learned so much...changed my way of doing things
Ha ha - I that was beer. It was hot that day and I had a cold beer while setting up the kitchen for filming, then forgot to remove the glass out of the frame. It's funny because I usually have a beer or scotch or wine while I cook anyway :)
Love it ! I always have a glass of wine when cooking....do you remember The Galloping Gourmet cooking show with Graeme Kerr? He drank wine all through the show and was always looped, it was a hoot
My Canadian variant was Pasquales kitchen, out of Montreal - Awesome Italian cooking show, he always drank wine out of a coffee mug! ua-cam.com/video/nF6yVT5vMZc/v-deo.html
I just fully cook (steam) mine, wrap them in parchment paper in individual servings, and put them in the deep freezer - I'm too busy to be cooking them twice. I've been doing that for years and stay healthy in winter, when I only eat my own greens from the summer, so I guess I'm not losing all the vitamins that way. I just baked at least 50 kale stems with spices and olive oil till crunchy - delicious.
I freeze mine raw. I put it n my smoothies and it stays sweet if you don't cook it. After it is frozen, it's easy to crunch it up so it takes up less freezer space. I'd probably blanch if I was gong to use cooked, but I'd use a much bigger pot, Dutch oven type, same water that you suggest. That a good idea to save nutrients.
Great seeing someone else's process. We have a huge bed of kale and like to freeze it also!
thank you for the video I like the idea of steaming versus boiling the nutrients out. I boiled the stems to get any nutrients that I can out & let the water cool & gave it to my indoor herbs & plants, then threw the stems back in the garden to compost . If you have chickens they like to pick at the stems too they might also enjoy the water : - ) .
That's a great idea!
Thank you for this video. This is exactly how I prep and preserve all my leafy greens. It saves cooking time when you use it also. I don’t see much on steam blanching, instead of boiling in water, which takes out many nutrients. I would let it cool down before putting in the plastic container.
I once bought a green smoothie from a juice bar in Austin,Texas. The girl preparing it pulled a bag of prewashed greens from HEB grocery store out of the freezer and added a few handfuls to the blender. She said they froze their kale and spinach straight from the bag.
LOL my grandparents came door to door weekly with a HUGE harvest from their large back garden. We were both grateful...and bothered over what to do with all that food! Your harvest is quite the bounty, beautiful kale! (daily?!? holy smokes!)
I harvest it about twice a week, right up until December usually.
I just freeze it fresh without blanching it. Also I dehydrate it an make like an herb to add to soups and stews. I like the way you do it.
Great vid. 👍
I think you'll find that the flavour, texture and colour are better preserved using this approach.
Never be sorry for playing with Legos. haha. :)
Great video. Exactly what I was looking for. First time growing kale this year.
My wife is not a big kale fan, and prefers to eat fresh beans this time of year. I make a lot of soups in winter, so I’m going to harvest my kale, steam it, and freeze it for adding to soup.
That will be my job for tomorrow ! 🌿Nice presentation Greg and loved hearing the sound of little hands playing with their Lego bricks too 💚
Thanks. They grow up quickly. They're not so little anymore. :)
Thank you for this video. I always wanted to preserve my greens this way but thought they Had to be blanched. This way keeps most of the nutrients. I’ll be preserving my greens this way for the winter 😊 thank you.
I blanched them too sometimes. Not as many nutrients are lost as people think. Here's a podcast I did with an expert from Penn State Agricultural extension where we discussed this topic.
ua-cam.com/video/gYAof6bAZVM/v-deo.html
@@maritimegardening4887 Thank you so much 😊 I’ll check out the podcast.
WOW! I've been eating kale for 40 years and growing it for only ONE but I did not know about this way of prepping and retaining it frozen all winter. Thanks a 'bunch'. Can't wait for this new season~
You are so welcome!
Great video. I use muffin trays to freeze than l get individual servings for use in omelettes. Great idea tp use a frying pan. Thanks
Thank you for the video! Going to do this tomorrow 😊
Good luck!!
Get in there , get at it , and have fun in your kitchen !
I use kale for the Zuppa soup. Growing for the first time
Great!
OMG, I found a recipe online for Zupa Tuscana soup that is to LIVE for! It's one of my favorite soups! I plan to can it with the kale in my garden, minus the cream.
Hey Greg - thanks for doing these “preserve the harvest” type videos. Much appreciated! Have you considered doing your fermented tomato and squash-mush techniques?
And the “searching for lego” sound was a very welcome trip down memory lane…a great part of childhood!
Still need to do a squash vid, thx for the suggestion :)
fermented tomato: ua-cam.com/video/jFK0XLjRZxA/v-deo.html
Now, inasmuch as I see the stem as important as the herb itself, the stems are so thick vs. the leaves, I've been cutting the stem off and dehydrating them each on separate trays. Once the leaves are dried, I leave the stems in another 4 hrs. I've been storing mine in mason jars w/ oxy absorbers. I have powdered mine, also. I only have oh so much freezer space, but smoothies are the best way to use the spring bounty. Thanks for showing your way.
Great tip!
A very good idea ! I will try this method. Makes sense.
Thanks hope you like it :)
Just planted Kale for the first time in a Fall garden(seeds were free). Not expecting it to be my favorite veggie :-) but got to try it !
Just cook it up with a couple diced up slices of bacon, some garlic, salt, and a little hot sauce - it's good eats man :)
Sounding better already. Thanks !
Thanks for posting this. I have a question: Why not just buy a large stock pot with a steamer basket? Seems like that frying pan thing makes this task so much more tedious, no? And I don't think it's really steaming the kale because it's actually sitting in the water.
You can do that too - or just immerse in boiling water.
Switch out your aluminum pans to ceramic non stick. Aluminum is not good for you.
Thank you for ALL of your kale videos. They are great and so helpful.
Check out the beer on the left. Total Chad energy 👑
Going try this this season thanks. Can I do the same with spinach and Swiss chard?
Yes, absolutely
Nice video. If you're going to bag your frozen kale anyway, why not get a vacuum sealer and skip the container and repack steps?
Because this way I don;t need a vacuum sealer, and I don't need to use a bunch of plastic with my vacuum sealer. You literally pop is out and put it in a bread bag. Takes seconds - nothing to be gained from investing in a vacuum sealer IMO.
Thank you for this..
Thank you for this. Do you pre wash the greens prior to blanching it?
Yes you do
I'm so glad you asked. I was wondering if I missed that step.
lots of videos on the process, but none actually showing the result of when you unfreeze the thing. What does the kale look like? what state is it in and what can we do with it to prep it for dinner?
It looks like it does before freezing. to prep - just thaw it out. Good idea for a video - I'll have to do one this winter when I'm using this summer's kale.
Great video!
Thanks!
Looks great! How much water did you add to the pan?
There was about a cup of water in there
Thanks, I don't have kale but I do have spinach which I froze using this method. Turned out great, other methods seem to leave me with a green slimy goo that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole, let alone eat. You have no idea how much greens I've chucked because it looked absolutely horrendous. I intend to grow more greens next season since I've found a way that I like to freeze them now. Would this method work for cauliflower and broccoli do you think. The last batch I tried disintegrated, after 'blanching' them for as long as the instructions said. Stella
I have to admit, I've never grown enough broccoli or c-flower to preserve - though I do intend to try next season because my kids love those vegs. I'm sure it would work - though I'd have to think traditional blanching would be ok too - but I'd only immerse for a minute and would use a healthy amount of salt.
@@maritimegardening4887 Cool thanx
Great video,is it to late to grow kale here in the south?I might try.My late beans are doing goodand Im getting ready to sow turnips in a few weeks.
I don't think so. Even here, If I planted some right now I could probably get a fall crop.
Awesome!
Super! I'm going to do that. Then the rest for the chickens, they love it!! Do I do the green beans the same way? Side note: I had 13 tomato plants and 3 survived. I also lost most of my cabbage. I wish the weeds would die from all this rain on the east coast, lol!
Different trick for the beans - video coming soon :)
Eat the weeds. They are more nutritious anyway.
Thanks for sharing, so many ways to do this, always good to know more. (one suggestion: the echo made it difficult to hear. I don't know if you had an external mic on or not)
Thanks, and yes sorry about the sound quality. Unfortunately, there's really nothing I can do about that. External mics and that sort of gear are quite expensive, and the channel just isn't there yet. At this point in time I make from $3 to $5 an episode, so the $300 camera I just bought is a massive investment relative to anticipated returns. My hope is that, for now, people like the content enough to overlook the technical imperfections. As the channel grows I'll get better gear, but those remote mics, and the type of cameras that support them cost $1000s of dollars.
No worries. I didn't mean to imply that I didn't or don't like your videos. I do. I purchased a mic to use on my channel once a few subscribers had mentioned that they had difficulty hearing me at times. It is not a cordless one, because I could not afford a fancy one, but I did pick one up for under $20, that works rather well from Amazon. Just a thought. Enjoy your weekend. Catherine
I love your show just the way it is......not slick or pretentious , and the kids playing in the background is a bonus....such a real life channel, and very informative, I've gone back and watched some of your episodes, and I have learned so much...changed my way of doing things
How did you pair that up with your camera?
Thanks
Awesome, I'm going to do it this way too....hey, is that a wee dram of scotch in that glass on the counter ?
Ha ha - I that was beer. It was hot that day and I had a cold beer while setting up the kitchen for filming, then forgot to remove the glass out of the frame. It's funny because I usually have a beer or scotch or wine while I cook anyway :)
Love it ! I always have a glass of wine when cooking....do you remember The Galloping Gourmet cooking show with Graeme Kerr? He drank wine all through the show and was always looped, it was a hoot
My Canadian variant was Pasquales kitchen, out of Montreal - Awesome Italian cooking show, he always drank wine out of a coffee mug! ua-cam.com/video/nF6yVT5vMZc/v-deo.html
Oh, I remember him, singing opera !....thanks for the link, watching him now...what a treat, can't stop laughing....can you sing?, hhahaha
:)
I just dehydrate mine.
I think that, flavour and texture-wise, this is the best option. You thaw them out and they taste fresh.
What does your family use the frozen kale for?
We eat it :) Honestly - we cook it with garlic & spices
Hi how do you use this after its frozen? thanks.
I thaw it and cook it. I just put it in a bowl in the morning before leaving for work, and it's thawed and ready for cooking when I get home
@@maritimegardening4887 so it gets cooked twice, kale can be frozen raw can't it? in that way it would only get cooked once when defrosted?
Take up too much
Talks too much. Repetitive. Just freeze it raw. Take a speech class.
Don't listen enough. Poor attention span. You need to blanch it.
Your rude! Learn manners