Vegetable Soup

Old 01-31-2010, 11:27 AM
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I made some vegetable soup yesterday. My husband was talking to me about freezing or canning some of it. I told him that I didn't know anything about doing that.
My family years ago used to can and freeze fruits and vegs. I haven't known them to do either for soup.
Is it possible to freeze soup?
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Old 01-31-2010, 11:33 AM
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i have and it doesn't always work so well. freezing the broth is okay, but the veggies often defrost watery. i don't do it anymore. oh, chili is okay, but you have to add some liquid back. stew, the potatoes break down. it's different every time, and that's with a stand-up freezer. anyway, that's what i've found.

years ago i used to can (and can and can and can) and i separated the broth from the 'things'. i canned the broth in one jar and the veggies in another and so on. that way, the veggies weren't as waterlogged.

since it's the broth that takes the time, i would just freeze that, and throw in some veggies later.
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Old 01-31-2010, 11:37 AM
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Yes,you definitely can freeze soup. I've done it with vegetable soup and mushroom barley soup. I've never tried freezing anything with noodles in it. I just put in freezer safe containers, I've even put it in freezer bags (just make sure it is securely sealed) and it lies flat in the freezer without taking up too much space.
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Old 01-31-2010, 12:04 PM
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I freeze soup all the time. Potatoes are not good frozen but every other vegetable freezes and defrost well. We put them in little containers and use them for lunches at work.
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Old 01-31-2010, 12:16 PM
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I like making ham and bean soup, putting it in single serving containers and freezing it. I can take a bowl out and put it in my lunch bag for work, or for a quick lunch.
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Old 01-31-2010, 12:34 PM
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I always freeze soup (all kinds) and have very good results. The only thing that doesn't freeze well is potatoes, but they can always be added later. I cool the soup and ladle into zippered freezer bags and freeze flat. Then they can be stored upright and take up so little space and you don't have to have a zillion freezer containers. I always freeze leftover pasta also for lunches for my grandson. No problems. Just need to add a little extra sauce before freezing. In fact, I freeze pretty much everything! I like to cook big batches then freeze some for another meal or two.
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Old 01-31-2010, 12:45 PM
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I freeze stuff all the time, only 2 of us, and as everybody says potatoes don't work well. But potato chips work great especially if they are on sale, just throw the bag straight in the freezer and take it out when you want.
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Old 01-31-2010, 01:34 PM
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I freeze soups such as homemade tomato-vegetable soup, lentil soup, beef-cabbage soup, etc. in those microwaveable plastic one-serving containers, and I haven't noticed any problems, not even with potatoes. I mean, potatoes and other vegetables in soups seem to be able the same texture they are in any canned soup, I guess, and much better than in store-bought frozen soups (such as Tabatchnik, which I think is vile).

Basically, I make the soup, mostly from scratch. Then I let the leftover amount cool to room temperature before putting it in the fridge or freezer. If you plan to freeze it, do so that day or the next. Don't let it sit in the fridge for days and then try to freeze it.

So... I don't know what problems the rest of you notice with freezing potatoes in soup or any other dish. I guess you could use canned Irish potatoes if that would work better.

I have a Middle Eastern dish I make that uses potatoes (and onions, spinach, cilantro, lentils, lemon, etc.) and I freeze that and it's fine, too.

This is all in an ordinary freezer, not a deep freeze.
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Old 01-31-2010, 06:34 PM
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I believe my favorite meal is homemade soup with fresh bakery bread, real butter and quality cheese. So, I make big pots of soup, usually beef-veggie, chicken or turkey veggie, bean or split pea soup and after dining on fresh soup, I fill up tall 3-cup Zip-Loc plastic containers with leftover soup. These containers have easy twist-off tops, stack well, and one containerful holds 2 ample servings for me and old Whatzisname that I'm married to. Because I'm a very picky eater and he is a diabetic, which affects what and when he eats, much of the time we fend for ourselves at meal times. However, we often share a container of soup from the freezer. I heat it up on the burner's lowest heat, just to the boiling point. It's always scrumptious and not just a seasonal thing at our house.

Big chunks of potatoes (as in beef stew) do not freeze well ... they become grainy. However, I put small cubes of potatoes in my veggie soups and they are no problem at all. I love home-made potato soup, but have not made any in years (because of the diabetic) and I think it probably would not freeze well; I really don't know ... never tried it.
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Old 01-31-2010, 07:54 PM
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I freeze a lot of soups. I just don't freeze those with potatoes.
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