Summer in the fridge. Is it possible to freeze a pumpkin for the winter?

Pumpkin for its nutritional and vitamin components can give odds to most expensive fruits and vegetables. At the same time, it can be stored in raw uncleaned form for a long time (up to six months) and completely retain all its useful properties. And these are vitamins A and B, C, D and E. Pumpkin is also rich in trace elements such as potassium, magnesium and iron. In addition, it is a lowallergenic product, which makes it indispensable for the introduction of the first complementary feeding for infants.

In general, not a product, but a fairy tale! Only why do you need to know how to freeze a pumpkin for the winter, if it turns out that it is still beautifully preserved? Firstly, it should be noted that in the frozen form it takes up much less space in the freezer (because it is cleaned and crushed) than anywhere on the balcony. Secondly, no matter how long the pumpkin remained fresh, until April or May, for example, it will still "not live to see," and a new crop will not come until August-September. Third, to clean and cut a pumpkin is a troublesome business, which creates certain obstacles to cooking dishes from it. It is much easier to get the blanks from the freezer, to unfreeze it in the microwave and immediately start creating various delicacies.

Is it possible to freeze a pumpkin for the winter untreated? Definitely, no. All vegetables and fruits should be thoroughly rinsed and peeled before peeling, and peel, core, and seeds, leaving only the precious flesh. Thinking about how to properly freeze a pumpkin, you need to decide what you will cook from it. If it is delicious pancakes, then it is better to immediately grate it on the grater and freeze in such a form in a plastic bag. And in each of them you need to put pumpkins as much as you need for one-time cooking. The product can not be subjected to secondary freezing.

Many young mothers are interested in whether it is possible to freeze a pumpkin for the winter in the form of mashed potatoes. As already mentioned above, this vegetable is ideal for use as a first feeding for infants. Pumpkin puree give babies just like that, add it to rice, semolina and corn porridge. Before freezing the vegetable in this form, it should be boiled in pairs or in water, and then grind, for example, in a blender. In a freezer, pumpkin puree can be dispensed in disposable plastic cups or in the same portioned plastic bags.

Most often, answering a question about whether it is possible to freeze a pumpkin for the winter, experienced housewives advise sending this vegetable to the freezer, cutting into small pieces. Keeping the product in this form, you leave yourself a huge field for creativity in the direction of the dishes, which can be prepared from it. If you want a mash-you will make it after defrosting, you need to bake a pumpkin with other vegetables-cut it into small pieces, etc. In general, from frozen in this form, you can create as many different dishes as you can from fresh ones.

Now, when the reader knows whether it is possible to freeze a pumpkin for the winter, it is worth mentioning how to properly defrost it. This should be done either in the microwave oven in a special mode, or in the refrigerator. In the latter case, this process will last for ten to twelve hours.