How To Freeze Potatoes
When learning how to freeze potatoes correctly, you will need to take into context what they will be used for later. Some styles and cuts of potatoes will require a flash treatment of heat, others will require a full cooking, and yet others may not require any heat for freezer preparation at all. Beginning with the simplest methods and moving up from there, we will figure out how to freeze potatoes that you can use later with little hassle or fuss. Be prepared with a flat baking sheet or two, some wax paper, and some high quality cooking spray in order to get started on this project.
We can begin with how to freeze potatoes for hash browns. You will want to have a large bowl of icy water ready, as this will be used to grate the potatoes into. You must shred your potatoes directly into the ice water to ensure that they do not brown or taint before use. Once you have grated or shredded the amount of potatoes that you desire, you are ready to begin the freezing process. Take the shreds out handful by handful, thoroughly draining and drying them before placing them in piles on a sprayed or wax paper lined baking sheet. Put the potatoes into the freezer until they are frozen solid, and then relocate them to freezer bags before placing them back in for long term storage.
Next, we can touch on how to freeze potatoes for fries. You can make your fries into any thickness you wish, but ¼ is usually the most feasible standard. Much like before, you will want to submerge them in cold water until you are ready to use them. Now, you are set to boil the potatoes until they are half way done. At this point, you will want to drain them completely, sprinkle them with a little salt, and arrange them in a single layer on a coated baking sheet. Freeze these until they are solid, and then package them together in strong freezer bags.
Now, we can talk a bit about how to freeze potatoes in a diced style. These will be perfect for salads and for soups. Again, clean, peel, and dice the potatoes to the desired size and be sure to keep them submerged in ice water until the cooking process begins. Boil these potato cubes in salted water until they are fork tender. Drain them in a colander and spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray or wax paper. Freeze these pieces until they are completely solid, and then reintroduce them to heavy freezer bags before putting them into deep freeze. Most potatoes will last well for up to four months if they are packaged properly.