This easy guide on How to Freeze Bell Peppers will help you save money, reduce waste, and give you a head start on all sorts of recipes. Frozen peppers are perfect for using in soups, stews, casseroles, and more.
Once you learn how to freeze bell peppers, you may as well dedicate an entire section of your freezer to it because it’s a great way to save both time and money.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Saves Money! Stock up when peppers are on sale or in season and your garden is overflowing. Use the prepared peppers year-round!
- Reduces Food Waste. Freeze extra peppers before they spoil in your fridge.
- Meal Prep Friendly: Pre-chopped and frozen, they’re ready to toss into recipes, saving time on busy days.
How to Freeze Peppers
Maybe you have noticed that bell peppers are either super cheap or super expensive at the grocery store. Or, maybe you have a garden that is bursting with fresh peppers and you don’t know what to do with them all. Either way, we’ll show you how to take advantage of good sales and save yourself time by prepping them ahead of time.
Frozen bell peppers are perfect for using in any recipe where they will be cooked, such as soups, stews, casseroles, and more. Check out our recipe ideas below, or use them in any of your favorite dishes. You will thank yourself later!
What to Do With Frozen Bell Peppers
While freezing peppers doesn’t affect their flavor, it does affect their texture. Once thawed, they will never be quite as crisp as fresh bell peppers. Because of this, it’s best to use them in cooked recipes like soups, stews, casseroles, slow cooker dishes, and more.
Steps for Freezing Bell Peppers
- Clean the peppers. Wash the bell peppers and pat dry. Cut the flesh away from the stem and remove the stems, seeds, and membrane, then dice or slice the peppers as desired. Pat dry again using a paper towel.
- Transfer to freezer bags. Transfer the pepper pieces to freezer bags, spreading them out evenly and removing as much air as possible before sealing. Each freezer bag should be full of no more than 1″ of peppers. Alternatively, you could lay the sliced or diced peppers flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and toss in the freezer for 1 hour, then transfer to freezer bags.
- Freeze. Lay the bags flat in the freezer for at least 1 hour, then you can stack the bags on top of each other.
Tips for Freezing and Using Bell Peppers
- Pick Ripe Peppers: Use firm, unblemished peppers in any color for best results. (if there is a bruise or a brown spot, simply cut it off and use the healthy pepper flesh.
- Chop How You Use: Dice, slice, or cut nto strips based on your favorite recipes before freezeing.
- Pat Dry: Remove as much moisture as possible before freezing to prevent ice crystals.
- Use Direct from the Freezer: Add straight to hot recipes- no thawing needed for stir-fries, soups, casseroles, or omelets.
- Label the Bags: Note the date and type- Use within 10-12 months for best quality.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can freeze any kind of peppers that you’d like, including hot peppers. This is especially useful if you plan to grow peppers in your garden, or if you notice that the peppers you bought earlier in the week are starting to look less than ideal.
While you could freeze bell peppers whole, they will take up an awful lot of space in your freezer. Plus, part of the beauty of freezing them is that it makes meal prep super simple. This is why we recommend cleaning and dicing or slicing them first.
While some veggies should be blanched before freezing, you do not need to blanch peppers ahead of time. Just prep and freeze.
The amount of time that bell peppers will last in the freezer depends partially on how well your freezer freezes. For most people, bell peppers can be frozen for up to three months. If you notice that the freezer bags have collected quite a bit of frost or soft spots before 3 months, it’s probably time to toss them.
Recipe Ideas
- Breakfast: Mix into egg bites, breakfast burritos, or a Baked Denver Omelet.
- Stir Frys: Add with the vegetables to just about any sitr fry recipe.
- Soups and Stews: Toss bell peppers into chili, black bean soup, or pepper soup.
- Mexican Recipes: Use for Fajitas, enchiladas or tacos.
- Pizza Topping: Layer onto store-bought or Homemade Combination Pizza before baking
- Casseroles: Stir into baked pasta, rice dishes or meatloaf for extra moisture and flavor.
- Sheet Pan meals: Mix frozen peppers with other veggies and sausage or chicken for an easy dinner.
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How to Freeze Bell Peppers
Ingredients
- 4 large bell peppers
Instructions
- Wash the bell peppers and pat dry. Cut the flesh away from the stem and remove the stems, seeds, and membrane, then dice or slice the peppers as desired. Pat dry again using a paper towel.
- Transfer the peppers to freezer bags, spreading them out evenly and removing as much air as possible before sealing. Each freezer bag should be full of no more than 1" of peppers.
- Lay the bags flat in the freezer for at least 1 hour, then you can stack the bags on top of each other.
- Store frozen for up to 3 months until you are ready to use in your favorite egg, casserole, slow cooker, or any other recipe. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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This guide will show you how freezing bell peppers can save time and money. You can use frozen peppers in all of your favorite soups, stews, casseroles, and more.
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