How to Freeze Onions – A Simple Way to Save on Meal Prep Time!

Whether you grow your own onions or buy them in bulk, freezing onions is a great way to preserve them and shorten meal prep time. 

Frozen onions are perfect for soups, casseroles, stir-fry and any other recipes that will consist of cooking the onions. Aside from preserving them and preventing waste, my main reason for freezing onions is simply to save on prep time. If I’m going to cut up an onion, I usually go ahead and cut a few, freeze the ones I don’t need at the moment, and then, I don’t have to worry about burning eyes and stinky hands for a while. This saves on prep time later, plus I don’t have to worry about putting part of an onion in the fridge and never using it. (Which, I’m really bad about doing!)

Every time I bring up the topic on freezing onions, I always get “how do you freeze onions?” Well, believe it or not, it’s very simple. And, once you do it, you will keep doing it.

What You Will Need to Freeze Onions:

• Cutting Board
• Sharp Knife
• Mandolin Slicer (optional but it makes it so easy especially for big batches!)
• Onions
• Quart or gallon freezer bags (optional)
• Vacuum Sealer and Vacuum Bags (if you aren’t using freezer bags)
• You can cut and freeze one onion at the time or cut a whole bag full {this is where the onion slicer comes in handy}.

How to Freeze Onions

First peel your onions as you normally would, and remove the skin and ends.

Next, wash the onions with cool water and pat them dry.

Using a slicer, or a sharp knife and a cutting board, slice or dice your onions to your own preference. I usually slice them into rings and then, quarter the slices.  I also dice a few up. If you are doing sliced and chopped, be sure to keep them separate because you will want to to bag or seal them separately.

If you are looking for a good onion slicer these are a few of the highly rated slicers that are on the rather inexpensive side of the scale. The reviews are great!

Freezing Onions in Freezer Bags vs. Vacuum Sealed Bags

After cutting the onions to your preference, it’s time to store them. You can either a) put them in freezer bags, or b) vacuum seal them.

I opt for the freezer bags most times because I prefer to make it quick, and because with the freezer bags, I can simply get what I need and seal it back up. If you cook a LOT of onions at one time, then vacuum sealing may be a good option for you. If you have several pounds of onions to freeze, then by all means, batch them up, vacuum seal them, and then as you open each vacuum sealed bag, simply put in left overs in a resealable bag and pop them back in the freezer. The vacuum sealed bags will last way longer, so if you have a large quantity, that is the way to go!

Once you have chosen whether to use storage bags or vacuum sealed bags, add the onions to the bags and get as much air out as possible. This is where keeping the onions in whole slices helps if you want them in rings. If you chopped them up, then it should be easy to get all of the air out as well. Loose, individual rings will make it a little more difficult to get all of the air out if they are just tossed in the bag. (This is okay, but it just makes getting the air out a little more difficult.)

Now that your onions are all packaged up, and all the air has been removed, toss them in the freezer! Put them on a shelf and closer to the back if possible. Don’t put them in the door of the freezer because like most everything else – they will get ice crystals.

How Long Do Onions Last in the Freezer?

Onions will last up to 8 months in the freezer when properly stored. They will last longer than that if vacuum sealed.

How to Cook with Frozen Onions

Storing onions in the freezer and them cooking with them is super easy! In fact, it’s more convenient to use frozen onions in most dishes that consist of cooking the onions because it’s less prep and no tears! When you are ready to cook frozen onions, simply reach in, take out what you need and toss them in your recipe. Tah-da! I rarely thaw mine before cooking because it’s pretty pointless since they that super quick in the recipe. The only time I do thaw them is if I am putting them in something such as meatloaf or hamburgers. I thaw them for those types of recipes because I don’t want raw spots within my meat as adding frozen ingredients to solid dishes will cause uneven cooking.

Best Dishes for Using Frozen Onions

When I freeze onions, I use them in just about any dish I plan on cooking. (As in, cooking down the onions – not using fresh/raw onions as the final product. Here are some of dishes that I use my frozen onions in:

• Soups
• Chili
• Casseroles thaw first)
• “Grilled” onions (sauté them on the stove to go with steak, philly cheesesteaks, etc.)
• Stirfry
• Hamburgers (thaw first)
• Meat loaf (thaw first)
• Gravy
• Pretty much any recipe that takes onions and will be cooked

When NOT to Use Your Frozen Onions

While freezing onions is great for all cooked dishes, keep in mind that you don’t want to use them in place of raw onions. Dishes like vegetable salads or potato salads wouldn’t do well with frozen onions. They will not be crisp. They will actually soft, and wet. Always use fresh cut onions for dishes that are finished with raw onions.

Add More Veggies to Your Frozen Onions!

In addition to freezing onions, I also freeze bell peppers and mixed them with onions. (Because anytime I plan on using bell peppers, you can bet there will be onions in it.) I freeze bags of onions by themselves, and also make bags that have onions and bell peppers, and depending on what I have on hand that I need to put up, I sometimes mix other veggies in with it. Broccoli, squash, and several other veggies that pair well with onions can be tossed right in the mix for quick and easy stir fry recipes and so much more.

Freezing onions and bell peppers together is a go-to for me because usually I have a part of the pepper and part of the onion left over, so I go ahead and chop them both up, use what I need, and freeze the rest!

Do You Freeze Onions?

Have you ever tried to freeze onions? Thinking about giving it a try? Be sure to drop a comment below and let me know your thoughts. I’d love to hear any other great kitchen hacks you may have to make cooking prep and clean up easier!

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How to Freeze Onions was shared on Farm House Fridays!