Got lots of bananas that are ripening quickly? Are you worried about not being able to use them and going waste. You don't need to worry as I have great news for you! You can freeze the bananas and use them when you need. So let's dive into the process.
Preparation
Choose: it is best to choose ripe bananas to freeze as they are sweet. The ones having yellow skin and brown spots are good ones to freeze.
Peeling: whether you plan to freeze whole or slices of banana, it is best to peel them. That way you don't have to worry about peeling hard banana.
Chop: bananas can be frozen whole, cut into big chunks, or slices. It depends how you plan to use them up and how much of prep time you have to cut or slice a large number of ripe bananas.
Freezing bananas
- Portion: Once you chop the bananas, freeze them into portions of 1 banana or half banana as per your needs and place it in a ziplock bag or freezer safe containers.
- Label: Label the contents of the ziplock bag or the container with "chopped banana" or "banana chunks", along with quantity, and date. Labeling the containers is very helpful as you don't have to open the containers to find what is inside it.
- Package: Remove as much air as possible from the ziplock bags or vacuum sealed bags.
Storage Choices
- Ziplock bags: These are one of the most common and cost-effective option. Remove as much air as possible from the ziplock bags. Smaller size bags are perfect for individual portions.
- Vacuum sealing: It prevents food against freezer burn and extends storage life.
- Reusable containers: Rubbermaid, Lenox, Snapware, Tupperware are good choices for reusable containers. They are environment friendly choices than one-time use options.
How to thaw frozen banana?
- Room temperature: Take out as much of frozen bananas you need and place it at the room temperature for 15-20 minutes.
- Quick thaw: to defrost the frozen bananas faster, thaw them in a microwave safe bowl on the defrost setting in the microwave in intervals of 10-15 seconds.
How to use frozen bananas
Smoothies and shakes: Frozen bananas can be used as is without thawing in your smoothies and milkshakes.
Banana bread and muffins: Thawed bananas can be mashed up and used in making banana bread and muffins.
Ice cream: depending on the recipe, frozen or defrosted bananas can be used to make nice cream or banana ice cream.
Duration
Frozen bananas can be stored for up to 3 months. After freezing they will oxidize a little, but they are still great to use. It is best to use older batches of frozen bananas first.
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