Frozen veggies popular among comsumers

Veggies from the freezer are fast, easy and convenient. Industry statistics show that frozen vegetable sales peak from November and April, with the highest sales coming during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.

You’re running around your kitchen trying to throw dinner together on a busy weeknight, coordinating what’s simmering on the stove with washing the fruit and remembering when to pick up the kids from soccer practice. Suddenly, you realize you’ve forgotten the vegetables!

No worries. Just pop open your freezer and see which vegetable goes best with your entree. Six minutes later, your micro-steamed veggies are ready to take their proud place on the dinner table.

This scenario happens more often than I want to admit at my house. Frozen veggies come in handy year-round, but I especially rely on them during the winter months, when it’s slim pickings in the produce section.

In winter, it may not be the quality of the fresh produce that scares us off as much as the price. Frozen vegetable prices, though, are fairly stable throughout the year. And it’s tough to beat the convenience of keeping several bags of frozen vegetables sitting in the freezer, with not a worry in the world about having to use them before they turn brown.

Nutritionally speaking, frozen veggies are similar to — and sometimes better than — fresh ones. This makes sense, considering that these veggies are usually flash-frozen (which suspends their “aging” and nutrient losses) immediately after being harvested. Frozen veggies were often picked in the peak of their season, too.

I ran a nutritional comparison on both fresh and frozen broccoli florets (uncooked), and the frozen broccoli contained a bit more vitamin A, vitamin B2, vitamin C, and folic acid. A recent government study found no change in amounts of folic acid found in veggies after 12 months of freezing. So don’t let nutrition stop you from buying frozen!

Elaine’s Personal Picks
Let’s face it, certain vegetables manage the stress of being frozen rather than heated better than others. Take peas, for instance. I’m not a “pea person”; my mom forced me to eat peas when I was really young and I think I will be forever influenced by this dinner trauma. But still, I have them around for adding to soups, fried rice, and casseroles. And what would I do without frozen chopped spinach for some of my all-time favorite dishes, like spinach garlic dip and spinach lasagna?

My personal picks for finest frozen veggies are:

Corn (I like the petite white corn)
Broccoli florets
Shelled green soybeans (edamame)
Frozen spinach
Petite peas
If you like to walk on the wild side, stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s carry more unusual choices, like frozen diced butternut squash, shiitake mushrooms, artichoke hearts, a blend of red and green bell pepper strips, and Normandy Blend vegetables (carrots with green and yellow beans).

But the options don’t stop there. In fact, of our 20 most frequently consumed raw vegetables, half are available frozen! Here’s a list of those 20 popular veggies from the U.S. government’s Federal Register; those available frozen in supermarkets are followed by an “F”:

1. Asparagus (F)
2. Bell pepper (F)
3. Broccoli (F)
4. Carrots (F)
5. Cauliflower (F)
6. Celery
7. Cucumbers
8. Green snap beans (F)
9. Green cabbage
10. Green onions
11. Iceberg lettuce
12. Leaf lettuce
13. Mushrooms (F)
14. Onion (F)
15. Potatoes (F)
16. Radishes
17. Summer squash
18. Sweet corn (F)
19. Sweet potatoes
20. Tomatoes