How to Freeze Bell Peppers

An overabundance of produce is a shame to waste. If you found a great deal on bell peppers or your plants were very successful, consider freezing the excess for use all year round.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Preparing Bell Peppers

1
Choose bell peppers that are ripe and crisp. Use overripe peppers immediately in your cooking.^{[1]
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2
Rinse the surface of the bell peppers in cool running water.^{[2]
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3
Cut them in half with a sharp knife. Remove the seeds and the membrane inside the pepper.^{[3]
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4
Cut them in vertical strips or dice them, depending upon how you like to use bell peppers in recipes.^{[4]
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Trustworthy Source
National Center for Home Food Preservation
Publicly-funded center dedicated to educating consumers about research-backed safety practices for preserving food
Go to source} You can also do a portion of each and freeze them separately.^{[5]
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Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Freezing Bell Peppers

1
Find a cookie sheet that will fit in your freezer. Rearrange the contents of your freezer to ensure the cookie sheet has a flat space on which to rest for an hour.
2
Cover the cookie sheet with parchment paper or wax paper to prevent the vegetables from sticking to the tray.
3
Spread out your strips or your diced bell peppers. Ensure that they aren’t in clumps. Each piece of pepper will need air to circulate around the entire piece.^{[6]
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4
Flash freeze the peppers by placing them inside the freezer. Your freezer should be 0 degrees or below.
5
Leave them in the freezer for 30 minutes to one hour. Check that they are individually frozen when you remove them.^{[7]
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Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Storing Frozen Bell Peppers

1
Lift the bell peppers from the parchment paper with a spoon or flat spatula.
2
Pour the peppers into small freezer bags, approximately one-half to one cup (90 to 175 g) at a time.
3
Squeeze all the air out of the freezer bag. Seal it tightly. If you have a vacuum-sealing machine, it will keep your bell peppers even fresher.^{[8]
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4
Label the bag with the contents and date.
5
Store the vegetables in your freezer for up to eight months. While freezing the peppers may cause a slight loss in texture, you can usually cook bell peppers after freezing them without issue.

Image titled Freeze Bell Peppers Step 14

Community Q&A

Question

Can peppers be cut in half, cleaned, and frozen for stuffed peppers?

Community Answer

Yes, that would be fine.
Question

Can bell peppers be frozen whole?

Qamar

Top Answerer

Yes, they can. Cover the bell pepper with foil and store it in the freezer until ready to use.
Question

Will the peppers make my freezer smell like peppers?

Community Answer

It depends on the type of pepper, but if you keep it in an airtight container or Ziploc, the chances are minimized.