Can You Freeze Water Chestnuts?

Last updated on July 24th, 2022 at 08:45 pm

You may be interested in eating water chestnuts and buying them from your local supermarket or grocery store. There are often sales on grocery items, depending on the season or the week you go shopping. 

You can also purchase them at your local Asian food market.

If you find a good deal on water chestnuts, you may want to stock up. When you get your water chestnuts home you may wonder if they would last longer if you froze some of them.

 So, can you freeze water chestnuts? 

Unfortunately, canned water chestnuts do not freeze well. But, the good news is that fresh water chestnuts do freeze well.

To maximize the shelf life of canned water chestnuts after opening, refrigerate in a covered glass or plastic container. 

Since fresh water chestnuts are a hearty vegetable that can withstand freezing and thawing quite well, they will last between 4 months and up to 12 months in your freezer, depending on how well you store them. Be aware the water chestnuts will not be as crunchy after they are thawed, but will still retain their flavor.

If you plan to freeze the fresh water chestnuts it is best to freeze them immediately after purchasing them. The longer they sit out the less crunchy they are.

What Is The Process For Freezing Water Chestnuts?

The best way to preserve the crunch of water chestnuts is to blanch them first. Blanching them will help retain their color, reduce bitterness and reduce some of the starch in the water chestnuts. 

This makes them more edible. Blanching also preserves the color of the water chestnuts.

Blanching can be done by boiling or steaming. Put the water chestnut in a wire basket, submerge them completely in the boiling water, cover with a lid, and blanch for 3-4 minutes. 

To blanch by steaming, put the water chestnuts in a steamer basket and suspend it above an inch or two of boiling water.

After blanching the water chestnuts, quickly plunge them into ice cold water to stop them cooking further before storing them in freezer bags or containers.

You can also use the ice bath method. Bring a pot of water to boil, then put your water chestnuts in there for 5 minutes (or until tender).

Drain the water chestnuts, then plunge the water chestnuts in a bowl of ice water to stop them cooking.Transfer the water chestnuts to a flat storage container or freezer bag and freeze them immediately.

You can also freeze the water chestnuts in a single layer on a tray or sheet so that they are easy to transfer to the freezer bag later.

Spread them out evenly and only layer them once since you don’t want frozen chestnuts getting stuck together when trying to separate them. When transferring water chestnuts from the tray or sheet to a freezer bag, try to do it quickly and efficiently. 

The chestnuts may still be hot from blanching, so handle with care.

If you don’t have a freezer bag, then use a plastic wrap or freezer container instead.The chestnuts must be individually wrapped or in a single layer to avoid getting stuck together.

Make sure to mark the storage container with the date and item description. Don’t forget to label whether your chestnuts are blanched or not.

Since water chestnuts are hearty vegetables that can withstand freezing and thawing quite well. They won’t change much, even after 3 or 4 months of being frozen, as long as you have properly blanched them or cooked them before freezing them.

How Do You Thaw Frozen Water Chestnuts?

When it’s time to use your frozen chestnuts, thawing them is incredibly simple. All you need to do is leave the chestnuts on the counter, and they will thaw within a few hours.

If you need to speed up the process, you can soak them in warm water for an hour or until they are completely thawed out.

You can also leave your water chestnuts in the fridge overnight. This will ensure that the chestnuts won’t lose any of their nutrients.

You can also re-freeze the chestnuts, as long as they are still tasty and good to eat after being thawed out. Water chestnuts are a great source of fiber and provide 12% of the daily fiber recommendation for women and 8% for men.

Research shows that eating plenty of fiber may help reduce blood cholesterol levels, regulate blood sugar levels and keep your gut healthy . 

Most of the calories in water chestnuts come from carbs. However, they are generally low in calories, because raw water chestnuts are 74% water.

A Brief History Of Water Chestnuts

Despite being called chestnuts, water chestnuts are not nuts at all. They are aquatic tuber vegetables that grow in marshes, ponds, paddy fields and shallow lakes. 

Water chestnuts are native to Southeast Asia, Southern China, Taiwan, Australia, Africa and many islands in the Indian and Pacific oceans. They are harvested when the corm, or bulb, turns a dark brown color.

Water chestnuts have a crisp, white flesh that can be enjoyed raw or cooked and are a common addition to Asian dishes such as stir-fries, chop suey, curries and salads.

However, water chestnuts should not be confused with water caltrops, which are also often called water chestnuts. Water caltrops are shaped like buffalo heads and taste similar to yams or potatoes. 

Water chestnuts have many health benefits. Using water chestnuts as a vegetable in a meal is a great way to increase the healthy factor without the added taste of a vegetable. 

They have a relatively light flavor and are good for you.

Water chestnuts are a popular vegetable to add to a stir fry. They add a lot of crunch, contrasting with the softness of the steamed vegetables in a stir fry. 

Sometimes they are boiled and can be added to rice or noodles and will resemble potatoes at this point. They also make a great garnish for seafood dishes. 

If you want to eat water chestnuts in their raw form, choose a water chestnut that is smaller and tender that is pale with just a few dark spots. The older ones tend to be tough and are better when they are cooked.