bulk veggies!!....

[BunnyRae]

Do you buy in bulk and freeze?

Where can you get good quality veggies for a great price?

Lately I've been buying bags of salads w/o the iceburg from the grocery store.

Can I buy a whole bunch, put portions into bags, and freeze ?

Then put one or 2 bags in fridge to thaw for the next day?



What do you do?

good veggies can get quite expensive.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

I never freeze veggies for the bunnies, they are always fresh from the store or the garden. I wouldn't suggest freezing them either because things like lettuce go soggy and will rot extremely fast when frozen. Notice how you can't buy frozen lettuce, cilantro, and other leafy greens? I've had lettuce that was put in the wrong spot in the fridge and it ended up getting frozen and completely rotten in a day which is how I know. I've also had it happen to other green leafy veggies such as cilantro, parsley, etc. And considering that is what your rabbits diet should primarily be made up of, I'd say freezing them is a no-no.

 

[Spring]

Here, veggies are pretty cheap. You can get a head of romain for like a buck, sometimes less if it's on sale (For me, usually lasts aweeks before I use it up or it goes bad) I grow 90% of the veggies I give to the girls (they love the freshness), but with the weather I'm going to start buying again.

I'm not sure how long the salad lasts, but I'm sure you could split it up and it would probably last atleast a week? Freezing might make the veggies soggy, but I'm not sure.

 

[SOOOSKA]

Hi, do you not have cheaper grocery stores where you live.

I buy at No Frills or food Basics. I find thier veggies are cheaper. Many times the cut off the carrot tops and the guys working there let me have them for nothing.

I have never frozen veggies for our bunnies, the only food i freeze for them is the canned pumpkin.

i can't imagine freezing parsley, dandelion leaves etc. I remember once a couple of years ago in the winter,I did my shopping and left them in the car for too long and they ended up ruining so in the garbage they all went.

Soooska
:apollo:

 

[Maureen Las]

I buy at Woodmans in Wi... its pretty cheap and the quality is good in the summer but sucks in the winter....I go to Walmart in the winter.

 

[Pipp]

Bags of salad are pricey, but heads of romaine, etc., aren't too bad.

My buns do get mixes of a lot of different veggies, based on whatever's on sale.

I'm surrounded by produce stores, most will give me carrot tops,celery leaves, radish leavesand other leftovers destined for the compost heap for free.

Picking pesticide-free dandelions in the summer helps.

As long as the bunnies have leafy greens as well (romaine and bok choy are the staples here), I'll buy a lot of the longer lasting veggies in bulklike broccoli, cauliflower and carrotswhen they're on sale.

And really, anice firm head of Romaine will last four or five days in the fridge, no problem.Nice firm heads of bok choy, radicchio(?)and kale tend to lasteven longer.

Soaking things like limp endive,parsley and cilantro in icy cold water makes them pop back good as new.

I'm also looking at growing trays of wheat and oat grass. The seeds are cheap. (Problem is Pipp eats the seeds). :disgust:

There's a thread around about storing and reviving veggies (have you checked the Resource Center?).

sas

 

[SOOOSKA]

Have you ever thought of growing some herbs? I grow parsley, dill, basil. They absolutely love the fresh herbs. They always eat them up first.

Soooska:apollo:

 

[Maureen Las]

Pipp..I'm afraif to feed broccoli or cauliflower because i thought they were "gassy". Do your buns doOK with them?

 

[Maureen Las]

I don't grow them because i have too many to feed..5 buns and 2 guinea pigs.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

I can keep Romaine fresh for 2 weeks, while herbs tend to only last a week with my best efforts.

When I bring home anything, I wash it and something like Romaine, I pull the leaves off and wash it in ice cold water. I then divide it into seven sections (one for each day)and wrap each one with a piece of paper towel after getting off as much moisture as I can. I them pull out 3 Ziplock bags and place 3 sections in one, and 2 sections in the others. The paper towels keep the excess moisture from rotting the veggies. The reason for 3 bags is because I find constantly opening/closing bags makes the other sections go bad (especially those left to the last 3 days of the week). I normally use the bag with 3 sections in it first.

Some pieces may have rotten parts but it's wise to rip these sections off with your fingers instead of cutting it off with a knife. The edges will go bad faster if cut with a knife. Never leave it on to remove when you use it because it seems that leaving the rotten bits makes the rest rot right away.

 

[Pipp]

Broccoli and Cauliflower (and carrots) are probably the biggest favs around here (although nobunny likes cabbage). Three of the five get a lot of it, but I've beenslow to try it on Dill (and Sherry), he's prone to gas and not used to it.I just started giving him little bits, so far, so good. (I really think it was Cilantro that gave him the gas, so you never can tell).

sas

 

[Maureen Las]

MBB I used to do the same thing with the Ziploc bags etc...I stopped only because the cilantro gets nasty

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

I only buy Cilantro for 3 days. It goes bad very fast but since it's a big favorite of my bunnies, it's lucky to last more than 2 days!

 

[Maureen Las]

My buns love cilantro..it is a staple and they never got gas. But anything that isnewcould have a negative effect....so it may just be what their bodies are accustomed too.

 

[Pipp]

Well, personally, apples give me terrible gas, and tomatoes give me eczema, so you never can tell.

I've leaned that bunnies are as much individuals when it comes to these things as people.

I'm hoping that it was only that Dill wasn't used to the cilantro, but he's certainly backed off of it since his gas attacks. And he really likes leafy things with stems, so now we're left with just carrot tops and Italian parsely, which are high in calcium. (He's hadwhite pee).

sas

 

[Maureen Las]

Hey Pipp..If I ate a raw apple would most likely end in the emergency room too

 

[Hollie]

When you freeze anything, but especially items that are made up of a lot of water (eg lettuce, cucumber and so on), then you permanently damage it. The water molecules will expand (think of what happens when you fill a bottle too much then freeze it), and they will damage the rest of the molecules in the fruit/veggie, which is why they always come out ruined. Vegetables that you buy frozen at the store are flash-frozen - I don't know how that works, but it's different to us freezing it ourselves at home.

A fridge and freezer don't work to keep your food cold - they mainly work in removing all of the excess moisture. This is why you should always seal your vegetables up tightly, otherwise you'll find that they will go bad quickly. Anything that is open or porous (eg eggs, fruit, veg, uncovered food) will lose moisture quickly and will therefore spoil much faster than if it was covered up in the first place. Oh, and try to keep all of your veggies in the crisper/vegetable compartment

That article I wrote on fridges actually came in handy!