So you’ve knocked together an easy batch of sweetcorn succotash and realised you’ll only need half of the bowl. You certainly won’t want to throw the rest in the bin, but it can go bad pretty quickly. So…
Can You Freeze Succotash?
Yes, you can freeze succotash for up to 4 months. Once cool, portion into freezer bags, seal the bags and then place those bags into the freezer.
Do Does Succotash freeze well? Yes
Can you refreeze Succotash? No
How To Freeze Succotash
Before we get to freezing succotash, first of all, if you can help it then try not to dress your succotash if you know you’re going to freeze it. Dressings of any kind tend not to freeze particularly well.
Instead, you’ll be better off dressing it to serve. It’ll taste fresher and more vibrant and most people won’t even know you’ve frozen it:
- Cool: Some people like to serve their succotash warm and others like it cool. When it comes to freezing it, you need to give it time to cool to room temperature.
- Portion Into Bags: Grab some freezer bags and spoon the succotash into the bags. Try to bag them in portions to make it far easier to defrost the correct amount.
- Seal: Seal the bags up, removing as much of the excess air as possible.
- Freeze: Label the bags up with the contents and the date you’ve frozen it and then place into the freezer.
3 Tips for Freezing Succotash
Now you know how to freeze it, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing succotash to have the best results:
Avoid Dressings
Dressings on any salads or salsas do not freeze well. Avoid adding the dressing beforehand and, instead, dress it fresh after defrosting.
Freeze In Portions
Don’t freeze the succotash in one large bag. Instead, consider how much you eat in a sitting and freeze it in portions of this size.
Use a Straw
You want to essentially store succotash in vacuum-packed bags but most people don’t have a machine to do this. Instead, insert a straw into a freezer bag and suck the air out manually before quickly sealing it up.
How Long Can You Freeze Succotash?
When it comes to keeping your succotash in the freezer, you’ll want to try to consume it within 4 months.
Beyond this point, you’ll often find that the ingredients in your succotash such as the corn and the broad beans will begin to breakdown and the texture will change quite quickly.
As mentioned above, that’s why it’s highly recommended that you label your bags with the date you’ve frozen your succotash so you can easily work out when to consume it by.
You can keep succotash in the fridge for around 7 days. However, after just a few days, some of the vegetables will begin to soften thanks to the acidic dressing.
How Do You Defrost Succotash?
The easiest way to defrost your succotash is slowly, in the fridge, overnight.
Doing it this way will prevent you from breaking down the ingredients too much by quickly thawing them. Once your succotash has defrosted overnight, you can place it into a pan to quickly heat through if you want to serve it warm.
If you managed to freeze your succotash without dressing then this is the perfect time to dress it.
Can You Refreeze Succotash?
The ingredients in succotash, especially broad beans or edamame tend not to cope with being refrozen which is why we would recommend not refreezing your succotash.
Generally speaking, it will be perfectly safe to refreeze but you will notice a big change in the texture which is why it may not be the best idea.
It’s also why we would highly recommend freezing it in portions. Doing it this way will ensure you only defrost the exact amount you’ll need each time.
Does Succotash Freeze Well?
The good news is that succotash does freeze pretty well. You’ll notice that it will freeze far better without a dressing and will taste better when warmed through and then dressed to serve.
There is a chance that the texture of the corn and the beans will break down over time so try to consume it within 4 months to avoid this.
Related FAQs
If you’ve still got questions about freezing succotash or succotash in general, then these may help:
If you haven’t made it yourself then you can still freeze it but some store-bought dressings can be excessively acidic which will ruin the texture of the salad, unfortunately.
Even if made with heavy cream? Thought milk based dishes could not freeze.
Succotash is a stewed side dish typically made with beans, tomatoes, and corn (and sometimes okra in the southern US). Most recipes don’t call for heavy cream in this dish. As for your milk-based dishes question, they can vary in their ability to freeze well. We’ve got loads of dishes in our directory that do include milk. Try using the search bar to see if we’ve got one you’re interested in learning more about how to freeze.