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How To Freeze Spinach (The EASY Way!)

If you want to learn how to freeze spinach (without blanching), you’ve come to the right place… Yep, you CAN freeze fresh spinach leaves! And it’s SO easy — which is awesome, because freezing spinach is an excellent way to minimize your produce waste.

can you freeze spinach in a salad spinner

Can You Freeze Spinach? Spoiler: Yes!

Spinach is one of those versatile staples that I like to always have on hand. So we typically pick up at least one extra large tub of organic spinach at Costco each week. At around $3.89 for a pound of fresh spinach, it’s an excellent value. That is IF you can use that much spinach in a week.

And between salads and tossing handfuls into other dishes (I call this “sneaky” spinach), we do most weeks… But every so often we either get a batch that’s going bad quickly or we just don’t use it at our normal pace.

After throwing out more than a few tubs of wilted, slimey, past-its-prime spinach over the years, I decided there had to be a better way. So a while back, I decided to type “Can you freeze spinach leaves?” into the Pinterest search bar, and discovered that, YES, you CAN freeze spinach!

Who knew?!? I mean, at the time, I clearly didn’t… And I figured that maybe there are a few of you that might like to know how about freezing spinach, as well. The EASY, hassle-free way, of course — no blanching and no mess.

freezing spinach in a plastic ziploc bag

What To Know Before Freezing Spinach

Before I tell you about freezing fresh spinach, there’s one important thing you should know…

Just making sure I set some expectations (and maybe this goes without saying), but don’t expect to thaw your frozen spinach and eat it in a salad. Freezing spinach breaks down the cellular walls, so it WILL be wilted and watery when thawed.

NO BIG DEAL! Don’t worry, there are plenty of ways to use your frozen spinach. Consistency and texture matter less in cooked or blended recipes, so it’s best to stick with these kinds of dishes.

Just grab the amount you need straight from the freezer when adding it to smoothies. Or if your recipe calls for thawed spinach (like in this cheesy meatball casserole recipe), place it in a colander and rinse under cold water. Frozen spinach also works well in soup or stock, stir-fry, dips, quiche, and pasta dishes.

Spinach is one of my favorite nutrition boosters! I add it liberally to taco meat, meat sauces for pasta, pasta salads, and more. And I’m always up for a big handful in my smoothies.

how to freeze spinach in a plastic ziploc bag without blanching

How To Freeze Fresh Spinach

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, here’s the quick and dirty on how to freeze spinach leaves. Basically, there are two methods that I like to use, with the first being my favorite because it’s totally easy and mess-free!

Freezing Whole Spinach Leaves (My Fave Method)

Freezing whole spinach leaves is a total breeze! Just pick out any icky leaves, place the fresh spinach leaves in a Ziploc freezer bag, squeeze out as much air as possible, and place it in the freezer. It doesn’t get much easier!

Freezing Pureed Spinach (Slightly More Cleanup)

You can also puree and freeze your spinach. I almost always use the whole leaf method, but this is a great option if you’re certain you’ll be using it in smoothies.

Just add all of the spinach to a blender and add just enough water to get the blender going. Freeze the puree in Ziploc freezer bags (again, squeeze the air out), ice cube trays, or baby food containers.

In either case, you DO NOT need to blanch the spinach if you plan to use your freezer spinach within six months. In fact, I’m not even going to go into detail on blanching it, because 1) it’s kind of a pain and 2) any veggies left in my freezer longer 6 months seem to get freezer burn no matter how well I prep them.

Also, if you’re looking to preserve spinach that’s been freshly picked from your garden or the farmer’s market, wash and dry it well before freezing. But if you’re using the triple-washed bags or clamshells from the grocery store, you should be good to go!

how to freeze fresh spinach in a plastic ziploc bag

How To Freeze Spinach (The EASY Way!)

Yield: 3.5 servings
Prep Time: 1 minute
Total Time: 1 minute

If you want to learn how to freeze spinach (without blanching), you've come to the right place... Yep, you CAN freeze fresh spinach leaves!

Instructions

    If you’re looking to preserve spinach that’s been freshly picked from your garden or the farmer’s market, wash and dry it well before freezing. But if you’re using the triple-washed bags or clamshells from the grocery store, you should be good to go.

    Freezing Whole Spinach Leaves (My Fave Method)

    Freezing whole spinach leaves is a total breeze! Just pick out any icky leaves, place the fresh spinach leaves in a Ziploc freezer bag, squeeze out as much air as possible, and place it in the freezer. It doesn't get much easier!

    Freezing Pureed Spinach (Slightly More Cleanup)

    You can also puree and freeze your spinach. I almost always use the whole leaf method, but this is a great option if you're certain you'll be using it in smoothies. Just add all of the spinach to a blender and add just enough water to get the blender going. Freeze the puree in Ziploc freezer bags (again, squeeze the air out), ice cube trays, or baby food containers.

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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 3.5 Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 25Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 8mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 2gSugar: 0gProtein: 2g

Have you tried this recipe?

Leave a comment below and share a photo on Instagram. Tag it @unsophisticook and hashtag it #unsophisticook!

chicken and spinach alfredo in a skillet with a black and white striped towel

Delicious Recipes That Use Spinach

Over the years I’ve discovered that “sneaky” spinach is one of the BEST ways to get my kids to eat more greens. If I’ve already stirred it into a dish, they’re highly unlikely to waste much time and effort trying to pick it out. In fact, they often don’t even notice it at this point.

If you love squeezing more nutrition into recipes by adding spinach, here are a few yummy dishes you have to try!

Have you ever frozen spinach? If so, what are your favorite ways to use it?

I’d love to see how your frozen spinach turns out… Tag me @Unsophisticook on Instagram or use the hashtag #Unsophisticook so I can check it out. Enjoy!

Barbara T

Friday 1st of December 2023

This may be obvious but could l use this frozen spinach to make creamed spinach?. I have never made it but the recipe calls for cut leaf or whole leaf frozen spinach.

Tara Kuczykowski

Friday 1st of December 2023

Yes, you could absolutely use it in a recipe like this!

Bell R

Wednesday 13th of July 2022

How do I defrost the spinach? I found a recipe that blanches fresh spinach and shapes them into pucks to dip in sauce. Not sure how to do that with frozen spinach

Tara Kuczykowski

Thursday 14th of July 2022

The quickest and easiest way to defrost frozen spinach is to place it in a colander and run lukewarm water over it until it's thawed. The squeeze out the excess moisture before using it.

Debbie Allen

Sunday 26th of June 2022

could you vacuum seal them and then freeze?

Tara Kuczykowski

Monday 27th of June 2022

Hi Debbie! Yes, you can certainly vacuum seal them and freeze, as well. The more air you can remove from the freezer bags, the longer they will last.

Barbara

Saturday 19th of March 2022

Yay! Thank you, thank you so much for posting this information. I use spinach everyday (smoothies, casseroles, etc.). I usually purchase the 1 lb container but many times it goes bad before I use it all. I always thought you had to blanch it first (will never do that), so excited to read your post. I now purchase several lbs. of spinach (enough to last around 3-4 months) and store portion amts in freezer bags. It’s so convenient; I no longer have to constantly purchase spinach and worry about it going bad. Also love your recipes! Thank you again. Many Blessings!

Tara Kuczykowski

Monday 21st of March 2022

So happy you found it helpful, Barbara. Thanks so much for letting me know!

Nadia

Monday 29th of November 2021

Hi: Just found this site - love your ideas, receipes etc. Lots of good stuff here. Oh Boy!!

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