How Long Does It Take To Blanch Foods?
One of the most underrated cooking techniques is blanching. A 2-step process where you plunge ingredients into boiling water and then immediately stop the cooking by giving them a cold bath. Chefs and home cooks use blanching for a variety of reasons including peeling fruits and vegetables, brighten food colors, prepare for freezing and prep for mis en place.
The numbers below represent times for water blanching. There are other methods of blanching using steamers and microwave ovens but I prefer to use boiling water for my blanching. It’s also important to note that it is important to blanch in a rolling boil so if you are blanching in batches, make sure you bring the water back to a rolling boil before adding new ingredients.
Lastly, these blanching times come from a variety of sources like the National Center for Home Food Preservation and the University of Minnesota but none of these sites offer amounts to go with the times. It makes sense though, the more stalks of asparagus you add to the pot, the time should take longer than if you just blanched one item. So use these times as guidelines and make note of your own experiences for future blanching.
Vegetable & Fruit Blanching Times
| Vegetable | Blanching time in minutes |
|---|---|
| Artichoke Hearts | 7 |
| Artichoke – Jerusalem | 3 to 5 |
| Asparagus – small stalk | 2 |
| Asparagus – medium stalk | 3 |
| Asparagus – large stalk | 4 |
| Beans – snap, green, or wax | 3 |
| Beans – lima, butter, or pinto – small | 2 |
| Beans – lima, butter, or pinto – medium | 3 |
| Beans – lima, butter, or pinto – large | 4 |
| Broccoli (flowerets 1 1/2 inches across) | 3 |
| Brussels sprouts – small heads | 3 |
| Brussels sprouts – medium heads | 4 |
| Brussels sprouts – large heads | 5 |
| Cabbage or Chinese cabbage – shredded | 1 1/2 |
| Cabbage or Chinese cabbage – wedges | 3 |
| Carrots – small, whole | 5 |
| Carrots – diced, sliced, or lengthwise strips | 2 |
| Cauliflower (flowerets, 1 inch across) | 3 |
| Celery | 3 |
| Corn-on-the-cob – small ears | 7 |
| Corn-on-the-cob – medium ears | 9 |
| Corn-on-the-cob – large ears | 11 |
| Eggplant | 4 |
| Greens – collards | 3 |
| Greens – all other | 2 |
| Kohlrabi – whole | 3 |
| Kohlrabi – cubes | 1 |
| Okra – small pods | 3 |
| Okra – large pods | 4 |
| Onions (blanch until center is heated) | 3 to 7 |
| Onion rings | 10 to 15 seconds |
| Parsnips | 3 |
| Peas – edible pod | 2 to 3 |
| Peas – green | 1 1/2 – 2 1/2 |
| Peppers, sweet – halves | 5 |
| Peppers, sweet – strips or rings | 3 |
| Potatoes | 3 to 5 |
| Rutabagas | 3 |
| Soybeans – green | 5 |
| Squash – summer | 3 |
| Turnips | 3 |
Fruit Blanching Times |
|
| Tomato (for peeling) | 30 seconds |
| Apples (for peeling) | 30 seconds |
| Peaches (for peeling) | 30 seconds |
| Pears (for peeling) | 30-60 seconds |
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