How To Reheat Vegetables (A Complete Guide)

Have some veggies leftover from your last meal? Well, we all have those days now and then. Vegetables have the tendency to go a bit soft upon reheats. So, you might wonder, how to reheat vegetables the correct way?

You can reheat selected vegetables upon demand in a microwave, oven, or stove. Provided that they are not too slushy to begin with. However, with vegetables, it’s kind of hard to preserve the original taste and smell. But don’t worry, you can do just enough to not let them go to waste.

If you want to reheat your veggies, there are a bunch of cautionary measures you should look out for. Let’s find out all about such measures and also, the correct methods to reheat vegetable dishes for the next meal.

Guide On Reheating Roasted Vegetables

Depending on how the vegetables were processed in the first place, the terms of reheating may slightly alter. And here are the ways you can reheat roasted vegetables. 

But before that, let’s get something clear. There are three specific go-to vessels to use to reheat vegetables. Or, to reheat all types of food for that matter. And they are the stove, oven and of course, the microwave. 

However, not all of them are suitable for all types of vegetables. So, let’s find out how each of them reacts while reheating roasted veggies. 

Microwave

It’s generally not a great idea to microwave roasted vegetables. Because you’ll see that the microwaves don’t always do a good job at keeping the outer layer crispy and toasty.

Due to the abundance of water in vegetables, putting them in microwaves tends to soften them up. You don’t get to experience that roasty exterior anymore and it feels more like baby food. Thus, with roasted vegetables, it’s best to steer away from the microwaves. 

Hot Ovens

Now, hot ovens do a pretty decent job at keeping the roasted vegetables, well, roasted. Needless to say, this doesn’t work with frozen and thawed vegetables. And even if you attempt, you cannot bring back the original taste or texture to the roasted vegetables. 

It only works the finest if you want to reheat the vegetables from a previous meal or so. Spread apart the roasted pieces so that the heat can work on all the veggies equally. You’ll miss out on overall crispiness if you tend to pile them all up together like a Croquembouché. 

Do drizzle them with some olive oil as well to achieve that roasted-ness. And don’t forget to place a baking sheet underneath unless you want the veggies to stick to the pan. 

As for the temperature, roasting them for about four to five minutes at 450° should do the trick. That’s the optimum temperature to achieve perfect crispy layers.

Stove

For those who don’t have an oven, a stove is quite obviously the next best option. And there are not many changes to the procedure as well. Instead of a baking tray, slightly heat up the oil on medium heat. You can also use a little bit of butter to enhance the richness.

Make sure that the oil isn’t too hot or it will burn the roasted vegetables. Medium heat is just perfect to keep them toasty and crispy. Take the veggies out when they start sizzling and turn a little golden on the outside.

Guide On Reheating Steamed Vegetables

The water quantity in steamed vegetables is way higher than the roasted ones. As a result, you can’t treat them the same way as roasted vegetables either. Here’s a brief guide on how to reheat steamed vegetables differently. 

Microwave

Unlike roasted veggies, microwaves are the best way to heat up some steamed veggies! Because with steamed vegetables, you don’t have to worry about all the crispiness and stuff. You just need to warm it up properly and what better way to do that than microwaves?

Also, you get some specific health benefits from using the microwave as well. For instance – if you wrap them up with foil paper or so, it can act as a make-shift steam sealer. That way, none of the nutrients can escape in the form of vapor. The food tastes pretty amazing too.

Yep. Because then the flavor is all concentrated and infused within the vegetables. In fact, due to benefits like these, steamed vegetables are far superior to roasted ones. 

As for the microwave settings, you shouldn’t have to go any higher than 165° Fahrenheit for reheating steamed vegetables. However, depending on the climate in your region, you should adjust the settings accordingly. 

Hot Ovens

Hot ovens are pretty great for steamed vegetables too. But it’s a bit tricky to use as steamed vegetables heat up really fast. Slight mishandling can cause the veggies to turn out either really dry or really soggy. 

Normally, you shouldn’t have to go any higher than 200-250° Fahrenheit for reheating steamed vegetables. However, it’s best to keep them on low heat and check the temperature constantly. 

You can also try out the foil-wrapping method mentioned just a while ago. But you’ll have to stay extra careful if you decide to go down that road. If steamed too much, the vegetables can turn out extremely soggy. 

And then you’ll have to have bland potato mash instead of steamed potatoes for dinner. Doesn’t sound too exciting, does it?

So, keep the veggies apart while reheating them. You should have a fully warmed-up meal in no longer than ten minutes. Although, bigger chunks may take a little more time. You’ll have to go off of your intuitions to decide that.

Stove

There’s virtually no difference in heating up roasted and steamed vegetables on the stove. In fact, using a stove is perfect as you get to control all the elements. 

Just toss in some olive oil and then the vegetables in there once it’s up to medium heat. Keep on tossing them so that they don’t stick to the bottom. You can also add some salt or pepper to adjust the taste accordingly. 

Thaw Frozen Vegetables Before Heating  

If you left your veggies in the deep freezer for preservation, you might need to think about thawing them before reheating. Thawing before reheating frozen food is of utmost importance as it directly affects the texture and smell of the meal. So, here’s a thorough guide on the ways you can thaw the vegetables before reheating them. 

Procedure 1: Freezing Them Normally

If your veggies were in the deep freezer for quite some time, try keeping them in the normal freezer. It’s a pretty slow process, that’s for sure. You may even need to keep them overnight for the deep-frozen layer to get somewhat thawed and drained. 

And you’ll have to thaw them separately again after you take them out of the normal freezer. Because, even though they are not as frosty as before, they are still stored in frozen condition. The whole point of keeping them in the normal freezer is to slow down the overall procedure.

Because sometimes, if you abruptly thaw a fully frozen meal, it’s not thawed all the way through. And that later stirs up quite the trouble later on. 

Remember how you tried to microwave all those deep-frozen pizzas as a kid? And they ended up all crispy on the outside but when you took a bite, it wasn’t cooked at all? Well, pretty much the same happens with directly reheating deep freeze vegetables as well. 

It’s hard to thaw all the frozen layers at once. That’s why it’s best to keep them in the normal freezer overnight to get rid of the extremely frosty layers. Once that’s over with, you will get to take them out and thaw them normally. 

However, you can’t do this for all meals. In some cases, it’s not safe as well. For instance – if you keep out something gravy-like for too long at normal temperature, it can develop mold in it. So, keep an eye out for the physical condition as well while thawing them.

Procedure 2: Soft-Blanching

This one’s a take on the normal blanching method for vegetables. People usually blanch the vegetables to store them for a long time and to peel the skin off easily. But did you know that you can kind of reverse blanch them to thaw them back to normal as well?

Yep. Technically, the concepts are pretty similar to each other even though there are substantial differences in the procedure itself. In blanching, you cut the veggies into small portions (if they are big) and dump them into hot boiling water. And then immediately take them out and put them in an ice-cold bath. 

Well, with this reverse blanching, you take the bag full of frozen vegetables and put them directly in cold water. The hot water will end up cooking or steaming the outer portions of the vegetables. So, do not directly thaw them in hot boiling water like normal blanching.

Besides, even if you’re putting them in cold water, remember that the package temperature is still lower than that. As they are frozen, that is. So, the cold water will actually work as a subsidiary medium for thawing them out slowly and appropriately. 

The temperature of the frozen package will gradually go back up due to the differences in temperature in the bowl. And that’s why you will need to change the water of the bowl as well to keep the procedure ongoing.

Because once the temperature reaches a certain equilibrium, no further exchanging of heat will happen. So, you need to keep putting in new cold water until all of the veggies become thawed. Generally, changing the water every 30 minutes works just fine. 

Procedure 3: Use the Microwave

Needless to say, microwave ovens are pretty much everyone’s go-to option for thawing something. However, vegetables are tricky. So, you need to exercise proper caution while trying to thaw them via microwave ovens.

Here’s what you need to remember if you try to microwave some frosty veggies:

• If the oven temperature is too high, it can actively cook and simultaneously burn the outermost layer of your veggies.
• High temperature can make the vegetables taste really bad and leave a bitter aftertaste
• If the oven temperature is too low, all the water seeps out while thawing. And that leads to mushy and soggy vegetables.
• If the vegetables are already cooked, high temperature can burn the spices used within the prepared meals
• If you try to directly thaw fully frozen veggies, the chances of heating all the way through are really low. 

Again, not all vegetables are the same either! So, what type of temperature you need to use for them changes constantly. And unless you’re an experienced chef who knows just what to do, it’s extremely hard to figure this out. 

As a result, it’s kind of best to stick to the normal thawing procedures if you’re pretty new to this. That way, you’ll at least get to save the meals one way or the other. Burnt and soggy vegetables, on the other hand, aren’t as salvageable as you’d expect.

However, if you still want to go down the microwave oven road, here are a few tips. First of all – use the lowest power so that you can manually observe the thawing steps. And, subsequently, bring appropriate changes to it. 

But yes, the con of using ovens on low power is that it can lead to soggy vegetables. That’s why you need to constantly check on the veggies and adjust the heat accordingly. Make sure to set the oven on a defrost timer. Most ovens come with this life-saving feature nowadays. 

Remember that you’ll still need to reheat them in the oven after thawing them. So, adjust the temperature accordingly lest you should end up cooking them directly.

Is It Safe to Eat Reheated Vegetables?

In short, it’s not inherently unsafe to eat reheated vegetables. As long as you’re maintaining proper health precautions, that is. 

But yes, it’s understandable why some people would have so many concerns about it. Perishable items like vegetables don’t do well if kept at the normal temperature long enough. 

Again, you can store them in the freezer properly. But the longer you keep them, the faster they start to lose their vitality. And not thawing them out correctly plays a big role in making them unsafe for feeding as well.

So, I guess, it’s okay to eat reheated vegetables as long as you abide by such specific criteria. If you preserve, thaw, and reheat them appropriately, you can enjoy them for a long time. And you won’t have to worry about health concerns either.

For How Long Can You Store Reheated Vegetables? 

If you’re looking to keep them in the cooler, don’t store them for longer than two-three days. Because after that period, mold might start to develop. Again, if they aren’t covered properly, it can happen much sooner. And if you’d like to store them for a prolonged period, it’s best to use a deep freezer. If stored properly, vegetables can stay edible for months in a freezer. 

Other than just freezing them, you can take up methods like drying, blanching, etc. as well. In particular, you can store dried vegetables for months on end, even years. However, that’s not something I’d recommend going for. Vegetables are meant to stay fresh and green.

Precautions To Maintain While Preserving Reheated Vegetables

Lastly, here are a few precautions you should look into while preserving reheated vegetables.

• While preserving, categorize the veggies based on their longevity. For instance – spinach, kale, etc. tend to wilt much faster. Potatoes, on the other hand, are like battleships compared to the soft leafy green and wilted vegetables.

• Generally, all vegetables take no longer than ten minutes or so to get fully steamed. But you’ll still need to rely on your intuitions to adjust the timing accordingly

• To maintain the texture of your vegetables, don’t let them get soggy. That means, don’t put in extra water while steaming them. They already carry a pretty high amount of water.

• Don’t keep raw and cooked vegetables together. If you need to store them both, make separate packages. 

• While putting them into the freezer, make sure to wrap them in freezer-friendly wrappers. Or, containers. That’s a better choice, actually. By doing this, you can minimize the amount of frost development on your veggies. 

• To get rid of the frost, please don’t wash them in direct water. Specifically, when they are cooked or sliced up. Defrost the whole container or package by putting it in slightly cold water.

• Don’t defrost the package in hot water. You might end up cooking them otherwise.

• Unless you want to get food poisoning due to bacteria development, keep all the eggs, dairy, poultry products, etc. away from your veggies.

Conclusion

Now, you know how to reheat vegetables properly. While there are tons of ways to reheat cold or frozen vegetables, you will almost never have the same taste as before. This is just the way things are. So, keep your expectations realistic.