How To Microwave Frozen Vegetables So They Taste Better

Eating vegetables is important but sometimes it just takes so much work to prepare the vegetables.

They can also get pretty pricy to purchase and then you have to worry about storage and keeping your vegetables from going bad before you use them!

One great way around this is to use frozen vegetables.

They are typically affordable to purchase and they will last in the freezer as long as you need them to. The only thing about using frozen vegetables is that they just don’t taste quite as good when you cook them. 

How can you microwave frozen vegetables so they taste better? Seasoning your vegetables before microwaving often helps boost their flavor. Alongside that, a fresh squeeze of lemon after microwaving can help frozen vegetables taste bright and fresh.

In this guide, we will share with you some tips and helpful instructions to microwave frozen vegetables and get awesome flavor when you do.

Keep reading to learn how to microwave frozen vegetables so they taste better and more!

Tips For Microwaving Frozen Vegetables

Let’s start with some basic tips for microwaving frozen vegetables. These tips will pretty much work across the board with any kind of frozen veggies.

However, once we get through a few tips, we will also talk specifically about some vegetables that tend to need a little help. 

Seasoning

Seasoning your frozen vegetables is one of the simplest ways to improve them.

Our biggest complaint about frozen vegetables is just that they are bland or don’t have enough flavor. So if you season them lightly, this will quickly take care of that problem. 

A little bit of salt and pepper will work here but you can also play with other seasonings too. Some people like garlic or even fresh herbs to add some flavor.

You can use whatever seasoning you like, including seasoning blends that are made for veggies. 

You can also use different seasonings for different veggies so go ahead and play around and figure out what flavor combinations you like the best! 

Butter Or Cheese

 Butter and cheese are another great way to improve your frozen veggies. You can use butter or cheese on probably any vegetable from the frozen section and it will improve your flavors a ton. 

We recommend butter for any vegetable. It works with corn, green beans, mixed vegetables, cauliflower, broccoli, potatoes, and more. Cheese might not be as good with some vegetables but that is your decision to make really. 

Lemon Or Lime

Our last tip for microwaving frozen vegetables is to add a splash or a squeeze of citrus. Lemon or lime will work wonders on any frozen vegetable selection. Just squeeze some of the juice on before you start cooking. 

What happens is that bit of citrus gives you just a little extra hint of freshness that will improve the frozen vegetables so they aren’t so obviously frozen veggies. 

Microwaving Frozen Broccoli

Frozen broccoli can be iffy. Our favorite way to microwave frozen broccoli to make it better is to add some basic seasoning or make it into a cheesy broccoli dish. 

The steaming packets are best for broccoli so that it doesn’t end up mushy and bland. If you use the steaming packet, follow these instructions: 

1. Steam the broccoli as the packet recommends. 
2. Transfer to a dish. 
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper (or any seasoning of your choice)
4. Add cheese for melting (optional)
5. If you added cheese, microwave it just long enough to melt the cheese. Stir up really well and then serve. 

Microwaving Frozen Corn

Frozen corn is really pretty easy to cook. And it’s easy to make delicious without any issues. This is probably one of the easiest frozen vegetables to make and has great results. 

Here are some steps for you: 

1. Dump the frozen corn into a microwave-safe dish. 
2. Add a spoonful of butter.
3. Sprinkle in salt and pepper.
4. Microwave until done (follow package instructions).

Microwaving Frozen Green Beans

Green beans are also easy to cook in the microwave. The challenge here is getting your green beans to have flavor because frozen green beans tend to be bland. However, there are several different things you can do here. 

The first option is to add some bacon or even bacon grease. You can also just use some butter or seasoning. It’s totally up to you. You can also change it up and use different options each time. 

Here are some steps that you can follow:

1. Place the green beans into a microwave-safe dish. 
2. Add freshly-cooked bacon or even a little bit of bacon grease. 
3. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. 
4. Cook until done (you can follow the package instructions for cooking times). 
5. Stir well and enjoy. 

Microwaving Frozen Mixed Vegetables

Mixed vegetables are probably the hardest thing to microwave and find ways to improve them. This is because the mixtures of vegetables can have any type of variety.

You might find a solution with something like carrots, peas, and more. On the other hand, you might get a mixture that includes green beans, cauliflower, and potatoes. 

There are a ton of mixed vegetable options out there to choose from so how you improve them might depend heavily on what you have. 

Here is what we recommend:

• Squeeze fresh lemon or lime over the vegetables in a microwave-safe dish. 
• Season the mixed vegetables to your liking and your flavor preferences for that mix. 
• Add a little bit of butter. 
• Use fresh herbs to add fresh flavor. 
• Microwave according to package instructions. 

Microwaving Frozen Peas

Peas are another really great frozen vegetable and they are very easy to customize to your taste. You can create a lot of different dishes using frozen pies.

You can cook them into a dish or you can just keep it simple and enhance the flavors as much as possible. 

Here’s how to make those frozen peas taste a little better:

1. Pour frozen peas into a microwave-safe dish. 
2. Season the peas to your liking. 
3. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon. 
4. Microwave as recommended by the packaging. 

With peas, you can also add a little bit of bacon or add some dried raisins or something similar to them after you have cooked them.

That sweetness will really complement the flavor of the peas and add just a little something extra that makes it so much better. 

Related Questions

We hope that you found this guide to cooking frozen vegetables a valuable resource. There are so many little things that you can do to improve frozen vegetables and they really are a great choice if you know the basic tips. 

Take a look at the below question and answer section for some additional information that could be useful as well!

Is it a good idea to microwave frozen vegetables? 

Yes! Frozen vegetables are often made so they can be microwaved and most of them will even have instructions on the packaging for cooking in the microwave.

You can spruce them up with simple things like fresh herbs, seasoning, or butter. You can even use them in a dish. 

How long do you microwave frozen vegetables? 

Your packaging will most likely have instructions that are specific to the vegetables you are cooking. We recommend checking your packaging first.

However, most of the time, cooking will take around 4-5 minutes for the majority of frozen vegetables. 

What are the best frozen vegetables? 

You can get just about any vegetable in a frozen state. While we didn’t talk about them much here, you can get spinach, squash, sweet potatoes, and Brussel sprouts.

You can also get traditional veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, corn, carrots, green beans, and more. You can find probably any vegetable that you want in the frozen section, and all of them are great! 

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