When you go the grocery store, you see that you can get just about anything frozen. Cooking with frozen fruits and vegetables comes with a lot of benefits, but there are some things to keep in mind.
Benefits of frozen foods:
- Convenience: Most foods found in frozen packages have already been cleaned and cut so you don’t have to do it. This can come in handy when you don’t have a lot of time to spend cooking. Having frozen foods allows you to use just what you need and store the rest for another time.
- Nutritious: Fruits and vegetables are packaged at their peak ripeness. This is when they have the most nutrients so they stay nutritious for long periods of time. If fresh fruits are out of season, frozen fruits make a great option. Choose fruits without added sugar.
- No salt: Plain frozen fruits and vegetables have no added salt.
- Cost-effective: When you buy foods frozen, you can store them for longer periods of time (Check out our post on Understanding Food Labels to learn just how long). You don’t have to worry about fresh fruit and vegetables spoiling quickly. This means less food is wasted and you get to stretch your dollar.
Keep in mind a few things:
- Buy plain frozen vegetables. Added sauces or breading adds salt and calories. Plain vegetables allow you to prepare them in different ways.
- Some frozen foods need to be deep-fried before you can eat them, but fried foods often have more calories and fat. Look for options that can be baked or microwaved instead.
Frozen fruits are great for smoothies like in this Fruit Smoothie recipe. Check out this Spinach and Meat Cake recipe that uses frozen spinach!
What are your favorite frozen fruits and veggies to cook with?
