freezing cabbage

[Tiam]

Anyone have experience with this? Does Cabbage freeze well? Does it need blanching? I have the hugest head of cabbage in the garden and more coming up behind it.

[puglogic]

Tiam, I have never gotten cabbage to freeze well. I just don't like the texture when I thaw it. Maybe someone here has a secret:
http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/country-homemaking/preserving-harvest/404332-storing-cabbage.html

Cabbage will keep for a long time in a cool place, though, if you have a basement, or in the fridge. I am still working on a head I've had in there for about a month. Made sauerkraut too, which was fantastic.

[happystuff]

I've given up trying to freeze cabbage. Now I dehydrate it. So far has worked well reconstituted and used in my favorite recipes.

[SteveinMN]

I've never actually done it, but whenever I hear/read people discussing it, they always use the thawed cabbage for items like soups and stuffed cabbage, in which the texture is not that important (as opposed to something like sauerkraut, in which the texture and tang are all there is).

[iris lily]

I wouldn't freeze it because it's so cheap, it's always one of the cheapest veg in the store especially in winter. For newly picked cabbage from our garden, which we DO get, I like to use it right away when fresh because it is so fresh tasting.

I don't understand why anyone would preserve this one veg, sorry, and that include dehydrating. I love cabbage and use it a lot but do not preserve it.

[Tiam]

Hmmm, that's too bad, because I have it coming out my ears. I don't care about it tasting or having a like fresh texture, because I cook ninety five percent of my cabbage that I use.

[Blackdog Lin]

I have an "old-timey" recipe for canning cole slaw, if you're a canning type. It is canned in a vinegar dressing, and says "can be used as is or rinsed and used in other recipes".

I haven't tried it, though I've wanted to for several years. We tried growing cabbage in our garden for the first time this year, but failed miserably.

I can post it if anyone is interested.....

[Tussiemussies]

Hi Tiam, I recall when I first was learning about simple living that there was a frozen coleslaw recipe I saw. Here is one, it is more like a pickled cabbage recipe that the Amish make. When I did a search on google a lot of recipes came up. Here is the recipe:

http://southernfood.about.com/od/coleslawcabbagesalads/r/bl30621w.htm

PS This recipe is for freezer coleslaw and that is what my search was for.

[Mrs. Hermit]

Shred, Blanch, Cool, Freeze was my routine. Then I would use the cabbage in recipes that required cooking, like soup/stews or simmered cabbage. Bok Choy-type oriental cabbage I would freeze the same way, then use in stir fry. Just be sure that you add it so that it only cooks long enough to thaw.

[Tiam]

Shred, Blanch, Cool, Freeze was my routine. Then I would use the cabbage in recipes that required cooking, like soup/stews or simmered cabbage. Bok Choy-type oriental cabbage I would freeze the same way, then use in stir fry. Just be sure that you add it so that it only cooks long enough to thaw.

That was my original plan, but wasn't sure if it would be successful.

[Mrs. Hermit]

I found the frozen cabbage worked for cooked dishes where you expected the cabbage to be soft. If I wanted "al dente" (like for cabbage rolls), I'd use cabbage that I had kept in the root cellar.