I wanted to share how I harvest and preserve spinach. I winter sow a lot of it, and end up harvesting several kilos in April and May. Besides eating it fresh, I have two main ways of preserving it.
First, a word on harvesting: I either pick single leaves or cut the stem, and I always make sure to leave one of the bottom leaves — that lets the spinach come back and regrow more leaves for at least a second harvest.
The nice way — saving single leaves. Picking single leaves is great if you want whole, blanched leaves for salads or other food. It takes more time, but it’s worth it.
The fast way — chop it and blanch it. When I have as much spinach as I usually do, there’s no time to pick everything leaf by leaf, so for the rest of the harvest I just cut the spinach with both stems and leaves, rinse it in a container of water, trim off any flowers or buds, and chop it all up.
Blanching. Blanching spinach is quick and easy, and I always do it before freezing it in portion-sized bags. Boil water, add salt, then add the spinach once it’s boiling and let it go for 1–2 minutes. Take it out and let it cool before bagging and freezing.
And the reward for the gardener — always remember to quickly blanch a little extra for yourself. Eat it freshly blanched, with salt, pepper and lemon.
