Frozen vegetables are great, actually

First of all, we all know that produce goes bad at a disappointing rate. If you’re able to make frequent trips to the store (surely a unique luxury in the days of the pandemic) and cook most of your meals at home, you may use your produce up without waste. That’s great! But many people need to shop in bulk, which can be tricky when it comes to buying fresh fruit and vegetables unless you’re feeding a good number of people. Frozen fruit and vegetables stay good for a long time, which is also great if you find your meal prepped meals wilting in the back of your fridge because you don’t actually like the same food on day four. Especially during the pandemic, it can also give peace of mind to know you have a number of options for different palates or preferences available in the freezer, potentially sparing you another trip to the store at the last minute.

Second, frozen vegetables are pretty nutritious. Frozen vegetables are usually flash-frozen at their peak level of ripeness, and studies show they actually have about the same or similar level of nutrition as their fresh counterparts. 

In addition to nutrition and lasting power, frozen vegetables take out a lot of the burden of, well, actually preparing vegetables. If you live with certain disabilities, it may be difficult—if not impossible—for you to actually separate, chop, and clean fresh produce. Frozen options make the process quicker and easier. For anyone, frozen vegetables minimize the time between starting and ending a meal, and generally cuts down on clean-up time, too. If you’re someone who loves to spend time in the kitchen, that’s probably not a selling point for you, and that’s okay. If you’re someone (like me) who really just wants a hot bowl of food in front of you, you’ll likely find the frozen options a relief. 

So, how to prepare them? Steaming or microwaving are the two most obvious options, and they’re perfectly fine. Yes, these are the options that ring closest to the stereotypical soft, initially flavorless preparations that tend to give frozen vegetables a shudder response. Seasonings like salt, pepper, onions, garlic, cayenne, cumin, red pepper flakes, and oregano can do a lot of quick work. Oils and sauces can do a lot of good, too, like peanut, olive, sesame, chili, buffalo, and pesto. I’ve found that when I go for steamed frozen vegetables, they’re best stirred into a comfort dish—pasta, rice, or quinoa are easy bases for stirring in some steamed broccoli, for example. 

If you have a little more time, you can, in fact, roast your frozen vegetables. This method of preparation is what tends to give you a result closest to the fresh stuff. Because frozen vegetables generally have more moisture to them, that may affect your final product. But if you’re okay with that for the ease and convenience, roasting frozen vegetables is a pretty simple way to add more flavor and texture to your meal. Here are two great guides on the specifics of how to approach different frozen vegetables in the oven. 

At the end of the day, food is food. In a diet-obsessed culture, it’s tempting to assign moral value to food, but really, no judgment is inherent in what we choose to eat. As budgets tighten, the coronavirus roars, and people stay home during the holiday season, consider giving yourself a break and embarking into the easy world of frozen produce.