Trimming, cutting, and freezing broccoli
Here’s how to freeze fresh broccoli, including how to trim fresh broccoli plants in the garden, whether you need to blanch it, and how to cut up broccoli to freeze for yummy recipes from quiches to soups and more!
Broccoli (Brassica oleracea) has many followers and also abundant detractors. For those who have only tasted the supermarket variety, I can surely understand the lack of enthusiasm expressed when this topic is raised.
However, for those of us who garden, broccoli is terrifically tasty as well as a trouper in the veggie patch. Learn how to plant, grow, and harvest broccoli.
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If you have more broccoli than you can eat, freezing is a simple, easy, and convenient way to preserve vegetables. Freezing also preserves nutrients and saves money.
This sturdy plant begins by giving us a large head that needs to be trimmed and eaten before it becomes a flower. Choose young, tender vegetables to freeze.
Trim Broccoli in Garden at an Angle
When you’re ready to harvest your broccoli, it’s important to slice the stem at an angle. This allows any subsequent rain or watering to slide harmlessly down the side. If it is trimmed flat, water can pool on top and begin to rot in the center, thereby ruining the future crops that broccoli is waiting to deliver. Use a sharp knife or garden shears to cut off the stem at a slight angle, leaving about 2 to 3 inches of stalk beneath the broccoli crown.
Several days later, you can return to the plant to see two slightly smaller heads peeking up at you. Slice these off (again on an angle), and in another few days, there will be four even smaller heads to harvest. This process continues—with the heads getting tinier and tinier—until well after the first few frosts.
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Wash and Cut Broccoli into Large Pieces
Before freezing my broccoli, I start by washing the stalks and shoots thoroughly in cold water so they’re both fresh and clean. Then I cut into large pieces.
Blanch Broccoli
I steam blanch my broccoli. Blanching is important for frozen vegetables to preserve the favor, nutrients, and texture. I place the broccoli in the top of a steamer and steam them for 5 minutes. Often, I will use tongs partway through and move the large stems around so that all of them get some heat.
If you have a steamer basket, you can suspend in steamer above several inches of rapidly boiling water and cover.
Cool and Drain Broccoli
I use my salad spinner next. I fill the base with cold water and add a bunch of ice. Putting the basket on top of the ice, I slip the steamed broccoli into the basket to cool it down. It’s important to cool any vegetables rapidly in ice water to keep them from cooking.
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Next, I spin the broccoli to get off the extra water and place it carefully in bags. You may need to do this several times.
Pack and Freeze Broccoli
Pack vegetables tightly in freezer bags to save space. Squeeze air from bags before sealing. Here’s a photo of two bags of large broccoli for us, one for company and one for a stir-fry. When you’re ready to use the broccoli, it can be cooked without thawing, but cook in only 1/2 cup or less of water per pint package to maintain nutrients.
I always plant marigolds right in the beds with all of the brassicas (broccoli’s family). This greatly helps to keep the cabbage moth away. I didn’t find a single small, green worm when I harvested this broccoli. Otherwise, these worms can make a mess of the crop and render it unappetizing.
My cut broccoli will be taken out of the freezer and made into broccoli over toast with a cheesy sauce or added to baked chicken or pot roast. Some of it will be cut slightly smaller so that it can be added to chicken or steak stir-fries. The very small heads that come later will be used in quiches.
Recipes With Frozen Broccoli
Here are a few delicious recipes that work well with frozen broccoli:
Celeste Longacre
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Cut them in floretes but what do I do with all the stems?
Yes, you can see Celeste includes the stems. And if you happen to eat all the florets, you could also ONLY freeze the stems. Boil in water in a pot. (Just enough water to cover stems.) Strain and rinse with cold water. Dry on a towel. Once dry, pack in ziplock bags to freeze.
My broccoli is taking up more room than I thought and the leaves are getting so big that they are starting to go over into the other vegetables I have planted. Will it hurt the broccoli if I cut some of the bigger leaves off on the bottom?
My plants are going to seed before they get a good head. Others are developing a bunch of small but not solid heads on the same stalk. What am I doing wrong? Live in Pacific Northwest in the coastal foothills. Weather has not been hot and I have been watering.
I'm having the same problem with my broccoli and this is the 2nd year in a row it has happened! After the first year, I thought perhaps it was too hot (last summer here in the PNW) so this year I planted in an area that is slow to sun but still gets 6-8 hrs or fairly sunny exposure.
Can someone please tell us whats going wrong? I adore broccoli and really don't care for the store bought veggies anymore...thanks!
Broccoli normally bolts due to sudden changes in temperature, but nutrient deficiencies can also cause the plant to bolt. Contact your local Cooperative Extension office, which should be able to do a soil test for you to see if your soil is missing any key nutrients.
Additionally, adding mulch around the plants will help to keep weeds at bay and keep the plants cooler. Check out our Broccoli Growing Guide for more advice!
Hello, I grew brocolli for the first time this year. I am in Southern California. Out of 5 plants, one died quickly and 4 have done well. I have been harvesting Spears for 3 weeks. Right now I have large green leafy plants with empty stalks.
If I am reading this correctly it's time for a nitrogen boost, say blood meal. What can I expect next and when do I remove the plants for either composting or disposal? One has gone to seed so I will harvest them for next year. I can get a second crop in this spring g hopefully. The taste was amazing.
Hi Beth,
We’re glad to hear about your success with growing broccoli! You are correct, and you can remove the plants anytime now (except the one that has gone to seed). There’s no reason to keep them in the ground if you want to remove them. They would be great additions to the compost pile. Thanks for writing!
How does one trim broccoli to encourage it to flourish in the first place? I had a few go to seed because I didn't catch them in time (made lovely "broccoli bonsai", and an abundance of seeds to try next year...). Now I have another few that are just showing the smallest floret at the very top, surrounded by broad green leaves. How much further do I let it go before trimming, to encourage more growth? For what it's worth, I'm up in the Pacific Northwest just outside of Seattle and we've had a record dry spell here.
