How to Freeze Cabbage: Blanching, Cooling and Packing

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Knowing how to freeze cabbage lets you keep a harvest from the garden for months after the heads have gone past their best. Cabbage is one of the vegetables that needs a short heat treatment before it goes into the freezer, because the natural enzymes keep working even at freezer temperatures. This guide walks through the steps that the university and extension sources describe: cutting, blanching, cooling, drying, freezing and packing. It also explains where the sources disagree and what they do not say.

Quick answer

Blanch cabbage in boiling water before freezing. Extension guidance treats blanching as required for most vegetables, including cabbage.
Plunge the blanched cabbage into ice water for the same amount of time you blanched it, then drain and dry it.
Freeze the pieces in a single layer on a lined tray, then bag them with the air removed.
The New Mexico State extension guide lists shredded cabbage at 1 1/2 minutes in boiling water. Other sources give shorter or longer times, so check the cut size you have.

Why cabbage needs blanching first

Freezing slows the chemical changes in food, but it does not stop them. The New Mexico State University guide Freezing Vegetables explains that “Although freezing slows the action of ripening enzymes, it doesn’t completely halt it.” Blanching is the short heat treatment that inactivates those enzymes. The same guide says that “Except for onions and green peppers, vegetables should be either water or steam blanched before being frozen,” which covers cabbage.

The timing matters in both directions. The UC Cooperative Extension freezing publication states that “Overblanching causes loss of flavor, color, vitamins and minerals.” Cabbage that sits too long in the pot can taste flat and lose color, while cabbage that is not heated long enough leaves the enzymes active. For a home cook, the practical goal is a brief, complete heat treatment and then a fast cool-down.

Choosing and preparing the cabbage

Start with firm, fresh heads. The NMSU guide advises that you should “Wash well and rinse twice in fresh water to remove dirt” and “Trim away any damaged spots, tough stems, and leaves.” For cabbage, remove the coarse outer leaves, which the NMSU table describes as the step before blanching: “Wash. Discard coarse outer leaves.” Core the head, then cut it into wedges or shred it. The cut size changes the blanching time, so keep pieces similar in size so they heat evenly.

Not every cabbage-based dish freezes well in the same form. The NMSU guide notes that “Cabbage, cucumbers (unless marinated as a slaw), celery, cress, endive, lettuce, parsley, radishes, and whole potatoes (baked or boiled) do not freeze well.” That line suggests that raw cabbage used for slaw should be frozen only after it has been marinated, and that blanched cabbage is better suited to cooked dishes such as soups, stir-fries and braises. Thawed cabbage is soft, so plan to cook it rather than serve it raw.

Blanching and cooling step by step

The NMSU guide gives the water blanch for cabbage as “Wedges: 3 min Shredded: 1 1/2 min.” It also says to use “1 gallon of water for each pound (about 2 cups) of prepared vegetables,” and to start timing “when the water returns to boiling after adding the vegetables.” Use a large pot so the water keeps boiling after the cabbage goes in. Overcrowding the pot drops the temperature and makes the timing unreliable.

Cooling is as important as the blanch itself. The NMSU instructions say to “plunge them immediately into cold (preferably ice) water for the same amount of time that you blanched the vegetables. This cold bath stops the cooking action.” Prepare a bowl of ice water before you start so you can move the cabbage straight from the pot. Lift the pieces out with a strainer or slotted spoon, let them drain, and then dry them.

The Pick Your Own cabbage freezing guide gives a different figure. Its step heading reads “Blanch the cabbage for 90 seconds,” and its text states that “Blanching times for cabbage is 11/2 minutes.” The page does not separate wedges from shreds in the same way the NMSU table does, so it is not a direct substitute for the NMSU timings. Use the NMSU table as the reference for wedges and shreds, and check the cabbage for doneness rather than relying on the clock alone if the pieces are very thin.

Drying, freezing and packing

Excess water left on the cabbage forms ice crystals in the package, which can damage texture. The NMSU guide advises that “Blot dry drained vegetable pieces with a clean paper towel to remove surface moisture.” After blotting, “Spread out vegetable pieces onto a baking sheet lined with wax or parchment paper and place the baking sheet in the freezer.” Once the pieces are frozen solid, move them to labeled bags or containers. Freezing on a tray first keeps the pieces from clumping into one block.

The NMSU guide says the blanched vegetable “will help to preserves their color, texture, and flavor for up to 12 months in the freezer.” That is the guide’s general figure for blanched vegetables, not a figure for cabbage specifically. Press the air out of zippered bags, label each package with the date, and place new packages in the coldest part of the freezer until they are solid. Use the frozen cabbage in cooked dishes, and do not refreeze cabbage after it has thawed.

Blanching and freezing are food preservation steps. Keep the freezer at or below 0 degrees Fahrenheit, as the NMSU guide recommends for frozen food. If a power outage lasts long, keep the freezer closed and check food for signs of thawing before you decide what to keep. For broader storage advice on your harvest, see our guide on how to store freshly harvested vegetables, and for other freezing methods, see how to freeze vegetables from the garden.

How we chose

We looked for a university or extension publication first, then added a third non-retail source. The New Mexico State guide was the main reference because it gives a full table of blanching times for many vegetables. The UC Cooperative Extension publication was chosen because it gives the same warning about overblanching in its own words. The Pick Your Own page was included as a farm-focused guide, and it is the source that disagrees with the NMSU timing. Retail product pages and recipe blogs were left out.

What we could not verify

The sources agree on the basic method, but they do not agree on every timing. The Pick Your Own page gives 90 seconds for leaves and shreds in one step and 11/2 minutes in another, while the NMSU table gives 1 1/2 minutes for shredded cabbage and 3 minutes for wedges. The steam-blanch times in the NMSU table are longer, at 2 minutes for shredded and 4 minutes for wedges. We could not confirm which timing gives the best texture for every cut and every cabbage variety.

What the sources do not say

None of the three sources gives a tested storage time specific to cabbage. The NMSU figure of up to 12 months is written for blanched vegetables in general. The sources also do not address how much cabbage fits in a given freezer or how long the pieces keep their crunch after thawing. Those points are left to the reader.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to blanch cabbage before freezing it?

The NMSU guide says that vegetables other than onions and green peppers should be blanched before freezing, and cabbage is included in its blanching table. Skipping the blanch is not recommended because the enzymes keep working in the freezer and can change flavor and color over time.

How long should I blanch shredded cabbage?

The New Mexico State guide gives 1 1/2 minutes in boiling water for shredded cabbage and 3 minutes for wedges. The Pick Your Own guide gives 11/2 minutes for cabbage in its text. Start timing when the water returns to a boil after the cabbage goes in.

Can I freeze raw cabbage for slaw?

The NMSU guide says cabbage does not freeze well unless it is marinated as a slaw. Raw, unmarinated cabbage is likely to turn limp and watery after thawing, so plan to use frozen cabbage in cooked recipes.

How long does frozen cabbage keep?

The NMSU guide says blanched vegetables keep their color, texture and flavor for up to 12 months in the freezer. The sources do not give a separate figure for cabbage, so label the bags with the date and use them within that window.

Why should I cool cabbage in ice water after blanching?

The NMSU guide says the cold bath “stops the cooking action,” and it recommends keeping the pieces in cold water for the same time as the blanch. Without the cooling step, residual heat keeps cooking the cabbage and softens it more than planned.

Sources

New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension, Freezing Vegetables, Guide E-320: https://pubs.nmsu.edu/_e/E320 (opened 2026-10-27)
UC Cooperative Extension freezing vegetables publication, hosted by UC Cooperative Extension Orange County: https://oc4h.ucanr.edu/sites/default/files/2020-12/340816.pdf (opened 2026-10-27)
Pick Your Own, cabbage freezing guide: https://pickyourown.org/cabbagefreezing.php (opened 2026-10-27)