How to Freeze Fresh Pumpkin

If you have too many pumpkins to eat and want to save for later, why not freeze them? Squash (summer squash) and squash (winter squash) can both be blanched and frozen. The blanching method helps to preserve the flavor, color, and even the nutritious vitamins of the squash. You can also freeze raw pumpkins and save them for baked goods or soups. So you have tons of seasonal squash to eat all year round!

Table of Contents

Frozen raw pumpkin

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Peel the squash with a knife or grater. Place the squash on a cutting board and cut off the ends of the squash. Next, hold a pumpkin in one hand, and your dominant hand holds a knife to peel the squash in a direction away from your body. If you’re using a regular knife, you’ll stand the squash on a cutting board and peel it down to cut off the skin. ^{[1] X Research Source}

When you’ve finished peeling part of the squash with a grater, rotate the squash with your non-dominant hand to grate the rest of the skin.
If using a knife, you should try to peel close to the skin on one side of the squash. Peel the squash all the way until the rind comes off. Just like that, peel the other pieces of skin around the squash until the end.

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Cut the pumpkin into small squares about 2.5 cm. Use a serrated knife to cut the squash into small even pieces. You can cut it any size you want, but the 2.5cm size is perfect for a freezer bag if you don’t plan on cutting it to any particular size. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Use a cutting board every time you cut vegetables.

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Freeze squash on a baking tray for 2 hours. Line the bottom of the baking tray with parchment paper. Spread the squash on a baking tray in a single layer, do not overlap. Place the tray of squash in the freezer and wait about 2 hours for the squash to harden. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Pumpkin frozen in this way will not stick together when stored for a long time in the freezer.

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Transfer squash to freezer bags. Place each frozen pumpkin chunk in a plastic container or freezer-grade plastic bag. Remember to leave a gap of 1.3 cm at the top before sealing. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Tupperware food containers and plastic bags are good options.
If using a plastic bag, get as much air out of the bag as you can before sealing it.

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Frozen squash live up to 12 months. Put cans or bags of squash in the freezer and store there until you need them for cooking. Label the package to indicate the start date of storage in the freezer. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

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Thaw or add frozen squash directly to some soups. When you need your pumpkin, you can add it right into a hot casserole or defrost it to use in other recipes. To defrost pumpkin, transfer the bag from the freezer to the refrigerator and leave overnight or on the kitchen counter for 3-4 hours. ^{[6] X Research Source}

You can also bake zucchini right out of the freezer without defrosting.

Cook and freeze pumpkins

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Preheat the oven to 204 degrees Celsius. You will use the oven to bake the pumpkins before freezing. Set the grill to 204 degrees Celsius. If you want, you can also use the microwave, so you don’t have to worry about preheating the oven.

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Use a sharp serrated knife to cut the pumpkin in half. Place the squash on a cutting board and hold it with one hand. Use a knife to cut the squash in half lengthwise. Place the squash halves on a cutting board, cut side up. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

With large squashes like zucchini, you need to act slowly and carefully when handling the knife. The squash is very easy to roll, so you have to be careful not to slip the knife. Smaller squash like strawberry squash are easier to hold.

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Scoop out the guts and seeds of the pumpkin. Use a spoon or hand to scoop out all the intestines and seeds inside. A pickle spoon is a great tool to make this easy. ^{[8] X Research Source} A serrated spoon is also suitable for eating fruit. ^{[9] X Research Source}

You can throw away the pumpkin intestines or use it as compost.
The spoon will be difficult to roll through the squash like a watermelon spoon because the edge of the spoon is not sharp.

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Place the squash on a baking tray, with the squash face up. If you want to spice it up, sprinkle salt and pepper on the squash. At this point you can also add 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of butter or honey and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar to the squash. ^{[10] X Research Source}

If you plan to bake the pumpkin as soon as you take it out of the freezer, you can add the butter and brown sugar right now. On the other hand, unseasoned squash will preserve better; you can just leave it on and bake.

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Bake squash for 25 minutes or until squash is tender. Place the squash tray in the oven preheated to 204 degrees Celsius and bake for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, remove the tray and test with a fork to see if the squash is tender (the squash is done when you can insert the fork into the squash). ^{[11] X Research Source}

To cook squash in the microwave, place the squash pieces on a microwaveable plate lined with cling film. Cook for about 15 minutes on high power and check every 5 minutes. Continue cooking until the squash is tender enough to be scooped out of the skin with a fork. ^{[12] X Research Source}

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Use a spoon to scoop out the squash. Once the squash has cooled down enough, use a metal spoon to scoop out the tender squash inside from the skin. Place the squash in a separate bowl and discard the empty skin when scooped out. ^{[13] X Research Source}

You can also use a serrated spoon to make it easier to scoop.

Blanch and freeze squash

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Cut the squash into circles 0.5 cm thick. Use a sharp, heavy kitchen knife to cut the ends of the squash, then slice into thin slices. Cut the pumpkin slices about 0.5cm thick all the way. ^{[18] X Research Sources}

If you want to freeze zucchini for later making zucchini cakes, you should grate the squash. Use a vegetable grater to grate the squash into the bowl.
This method does not require peeling, as you will then blanch the squash.

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Boil 4 liters of water to blanch every 0.5 kg of squash. Heat a large pot of water over high heat. Place the metal basket or steamer in the pot of water so that when the squash is placed in the basket or basket, the squash is completely submerged in the water. ^{[19] X Trusted Source National Center for Home Food Preservation Go to source}

You are not steaming squash in this method. You only use a metal basket to easily remove the squash after blanching.

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Place squash in a basket and blanch for 3-4 minutes. You should not blanch more than 0.5 kg of squash per batch. Boil for about 3 minutes. Remove the basket of squash from the pot after blanching. ^{[20] X Trusted Source National Center for Home Food Preservation Go to Source}

You can prick the squash after blanching for 3 minutes with a fork to see if it’s soft; If the squash is soft, it’s okay. ^{[21] X Research Source}
With shredded zucchini, you should blanch in small batches for 1-2 minutes until the squash is tender. ^{[22] X Research Source}

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Soak squash in cold water or a bowl of ice water for 3 minutes. If you are soaking squash in ice water, you need to use 0.5 kg of ice for every 0.5 kg of squash. If using cold water, turn on the cold water to run continuously over the squash and rotate the basket several times to cool the squash. Water with a temperature of 16 degrees Celsius or less is best. ^{[23] X Trusted Source National Center for Home Food Preservation Go to Source}

Soaking squash in ice water after blanching prevents the squash from ripening further, thereby preventing further enzymes from breaking down. As a result, the squash will retain its color, flavor and texture almost intact.

Things you need

Frozen raw pumpkin

Knife or vegetable peeler
Serrated kitchen knife
Baking tray
Frozen plastic box or plastic bag

Cook and freeze pumpkins

Serrated kitchen knife
Food blender or blender
Frozen plastic box or plastic bag

Cook and freeze squash

Serrated kitchen knife
Cauldron
Metal basket
Big bowl of ice water
Baking tray
Frozen plastic box or plastic bag

Steps

Frozen raw pumpkin

Cook and freeze pumpkins

Blanch and freeze squash

Things you need

Frozen raw pumpkin

Cook and freeze pumpkins

Cook and freeze squash

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