Freezing salsa?

[shannon in KS]

Has anyone ever tried freezing salsa? We always have a big garden and this year, I have 26 THRIVING tomato plants! Canning takes SO long though, and it seems last year, I recall quite a bit of produce going to waste before I could get it all done.

I did a search the other day, and came up with quite a bit of information and recipes. I was sure the texture may be a little different, and most information did mention that. I figured I would let it "brew" for a few days before freezing it also.

Any suggestions, hints, tell me I am crazy and wasting my time...? haha!

 

[mcnerd]

Freezing seems to work quite well for most salsas and is preferred over canning of homemade recipes that could cause a possible safety issue.

http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/newsarch/2003/Sep03/salsa.htm
"You could also can crushed tomatoes and create salsa with seasonal vegetables throughout the year."

 

[shannon in KS]

great article, another tip on the balance scale towards freezing! Thank you for your help, mcnerd!!

 

[sparrowgrass]

Another idea, if you are overwhelmed with tomatoes, is to core the tomatoes and freeze them whole. When you get ready to use them, thaw slightly and the skins will just slip right off. Chop or crush the tomatoes and add the rest of your salsa ingredients.

Peppers can also be frozen whole--just throw them in the bags.

 

[GB]

And if you want one more idea for using them up, you can oven dry them.

Sice in half and scoop out the seeds. Put on a baking pan and sprinkle with salt and drizzle with a touch of olive oil. You can put other spices on if you want as well. Put in the oven at the lowest temperature. They will dry for hours. The drier they get the longer they will last. I usually keep them in for 8-10 hours, but depending on how you like them you can take them out at any point or leave them in for almost as long as you want. When they are very dry they will keep quite well in an airtight container. I snack on them like they are potato chips.

 

[lynseysnatural]

I don't know if there is anything "scientific" behind this, but when I've tried this I found that salsas with a finer texture - more pureed/less chunky - have less of a texture change after freezing than chunkier salsas. Good luck!

 

[Wyogal]

That's what I was thinking, lynsey. I would think that with chunky-type salsas the texture would change with freezing. I like more of a pico de gallo (sp?) myself. I also like to freeze tomatoes, very easy. I skin them before cutting them, then popping in a freezer bag, less prep later. When they are still slightly frozen, in the bag, I squish them around for a nice crushed tomato.

 

[GB]

I don't know if there is anything "scientific" behind this, but when I've tried this I found that salsas with a finer texture - more pureed/less chunky - have less of a texture change after freezing than chunkier salsas. Good luck!

The scientific reason has to do with why things change texture when frozen. The reason is that freezing damages the cell walls which least to things getting that mushy texture. When you have a salsa with a finer texture you have already damaged the cell walls so freezing does not do much more damage.

 

[shannon in KS]

And if you want one more idea for using them up, you can oven dry them.

I LOVE dried tomatoes, esp with some italian seasoning. It will be interesting this year also, we have several different colors of tomatoes, yellow, purple, orange, and green!

 

[shannon in KS]

I don't know if there is anything "scientific" behind this, but when I've tried this I found that salsas with a finer texture - more pureed/less chunky - have less of a texture change after freezing than chunkier salsas. Good luck!

thank you! I was thinking too that I would maybe make it less chunky. Or maybe I will experiment around with several different batches to see which turns out best.

I also like the idea of freezing them to use them later. I would love to be able to preserve all of the tomatoes we are blessed with, rather than give them away or let them go to waste due to lack of time!

 

[Mark Webster]

The real issue with freezing anything like a tomato product is the ice crystals that are formed inside of the container and the affect they have on the product as it thaws. If texture is not a concern. I say freeze away!

 

[shannon in KS]

The real issue with freezing anything like a tomato product is the ice crystals that are formed inside of the container and the affect they have on the product as it thaws. If texture is not a concern. I say freeze away!

I am unsure if texture is an issue for me, but I have a salsa-eating 11 yo that I doubt will even notice haha!

 

[nanat]

We always have so many tomaotes and I always can some salsa, but when I get over ran with them. I drop them in a pot of boiling water for about 15 - 20 seconds, drain them and thow them in an ice bath. When cool enough I just pop all the skins off and drop them in freezer bags. Take them out to cook with or u could even thaw and make salsa out of them. After they freeze solid and I have tons of them, I'll vaccum pak them. They stay good for a long time.

 

[shannon in KS]

We always have so many tomaotes and I always can some salsa, but when I get over ran with them. I drop them in a pot of boiling water for about 15 - 20 seconds, drain them and thow them in an ice bath. When cool enough I just pop all the skins off and drop them in freezer bags. Take them out to cook with or u could even thaw and make salsa out of them. After they freeze solid and I have tons of them, I'll vaccum pak them. They stay good for a long time.

I am definitely going to have to do this! Dont want to waste a bit! Thanks for your help!

 

[Constance]

What I always did was peel and seed the tomatoes, cut into chunks and freeze in ziplocks with chopped onion, assorted chopped peppers, and any suitable fresh herbs I might have on hand. That way, they could be the base for any number of dishes...salsa, tomato sauce, chili, gumbo, stew...or even used in what my ex-MIL used to call "Poor-do."

Basically, it's stewed tomatoes with chunks of bread in it.