Can You Freeze Borscht?

How to Freeze Borscht

Freezing borscht is as easy as it is to freeze most kinds of soups. There are no extra ingredients or methods to use. Just follow this method for successfully frozen borscht that is handy for those days you need a quick, easy and healthy lunch.

1. Cook and Cool
   Cook your borscht according to your favourite recipe. Allow the borscht to cool completely.
2. Portion into Bags
   Grab some suitable freezer-safe containers or very high quality and strong freezer bags. Ladle portions of borscht into the containers or bags. You need to have enough containers for portions of borscht so that it is easy to pull out the perfect portion sized amount when you need it.
3. Seal
   Seal the containers tightly. If you are freezing using freezer bags, you need to keep them upright until the borscht is completely frozen solid. Up until this point, there is a danger of the borscht spilling into the freezer.
4. Label
   Label the bags with the date and contents. This ensures that you don’t forget what it is and when you need to use it.
5. Freeze
   Pop the bags or containers into the freezer and freeze.

If you are struggling to keep the bags upright, then pop them into a large container side by side. This should keep them upright enough to avoid spilling into the freezer. Once the soup is completely frozen, you can take the container out of the freezer.

3 Tips for Freezing Borscht

Now you know how to freeze it, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing borscht to have the best results:

• Consider Portions – Think about your portions before freezing. The best method is to freeze in single-sized, individual portions, then you can control the number of portions you need. However, if you know you always serve the borscht for two people or even for a family of four, then you can freeze it in larger portions to reflect this.
• Use Bags – If you struggle for space in the freezer, you can buy liquid safe freezer bags. These are freezer bags designed for soups and liquids and are perfect for freezing your borscht and keeping it from making a mess as it freezes.
• Add Calories to Label – If you are watching your waistline, you can also write the calories onto the freezer bag along with the date and contents. This helps you to make good and healthy choices when looking for a quick meal.

How Long Can You Freeze Borscht?

You can freeze your borscht for up to two months. After this, you may find that the taste starts to degrade. If you are unlucky, you may even find that you end up with a freezer burn taste.

You can avoid this by eating the soup within two months and ensuring that you freeze it using the above method that keeps the soup airtight.

You Can Freeze Borscht for up to 2 Months

How Do You Defrost Borscht?

You have a few options when it comes to thawing and heating your borscht. The best and safest method is to pop it into a bowl and placing it into the fridge overnight or for several hours.

This allows it to thaw out slowly whilst never bringing it up to a temperature where harmful bacteria can start to grow.

If you are heating and using your borscht immediately, you can choose to defrost and then reheat in the microwave or pop it into a saucepan and defrost it very slowly on a low heat on the hob.

If you are using these faster methods to thaw the borscht out, you must eat the soup immediately.

Can You Refreeze Borscht?

No, it isn’t recommended that you refreeze the borscht once it has been thawed out. It isn’t worth the risk to get sick or ruin the soup.

Harmful bacteria often grow best when food is sitting at room temperature, and the more times you heat and refreeze the borsch, the more chance it has to grow these bacteria and start to spoil.

Does Borscht Freeze Well?

As long as you follow the above method, you should find that your borscht freezes very well. The changes, if any, will be minimal, and by the time it has thawed out and reheated, you shouldn’t notice any difference at all.

Related FAQs

If you’ve still got questions about freezing borscht or borscht in general, then these may help:

Can You Freeze Beetroot?

The main component of borscht is beetroot but can you freeze beets on their own? You certainly can. You can freeze them raw, cooked, roasted, boiled and steamed.

We would advise storing frozen beetroot in freezer bags as you will stain plastic containers. 

Can You Freeze Sour Cream?

One of the main toppings of borscht is sour cream. But can you freeze it? Like more cream products, sour cream isn’t the best thing to freeze especially when eating it atop soups or puddings. Instead, we would try to use fresh sour cream.