Precooked, compact, and way more flavorful than store-bought frozen spinach, these portioned greens are ready to be thrown into soups and stews straight from the freezer or thawed in the fridge and tossed into omelets and pastas. Even simple side dishes of garlicky greens become infinitely faster when virtually all the prep work is done ahead of time.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes about 12 balls
Ingredients
3
Preparation
Step 1
Working in batches, cook greens in a large pot of boiling heavily salted water just until wilted and bright green, about 20 seconds. Using tongs or a sieve, transfer greens to a colander set in a large bowl of ice water and let cool.
Step 2
Lift colander from ice water and drain greens well. Using your hands, squeeze out as much excess water as you can. Transfer to a cutting board and coarsely chop. Mold greens into small compact balls (about 1 oz. each), then squeeze out as much water as possible again (this will prevent ice crystals from forming on frozen greens).
Step 3
Place balls on a small parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a resealable plastic bag and close, squeezing out as much air as possible. Return to freezer.
Step 4
Do Ahead: Greens can be blanched 2 months ahead. Keep frozen.