Strawberries are a tasty and healthy berry that fructifies in the summer. Store-bought berries have a subtle taste and are overpriced, and they use harmful chemicals in their cultivation. The best solution is to freeze fresh strawberries whole or as jam at home.
In order to freeze strawberries and preserve their amazing taste and aroma, you need to correctly pick the berries and prepare them for the freezing process.
Preparing strawberries for freezing
The best time to pick strawberries from your beds is in the morning before the dew, when the berries are as fragrant and dry as possible. It is not recommended to pick strawberries during extreme heat or after rain, then the berries will be tasteless and friable.
It is better not to wash the collected strawberries, you can blow it off with a hair dryer. The berries must be frozen within 3 hours after picking, since it is at this time that the strawberries have a protective film that prevents the formation of viruses and bacteria.
If you overexposed strawberries for more than 3 hours or purchased them on the market, be sure to wash the berries. Make sure that the water is well glass and the berries dry out.
Then sort: remove the tails, separate the rotten and soft strawberries, as well as the berries with spots. Now you can start freezing.
Dry freezing strawberries
You will need:
- fresh strawberries;
- cling film, tray;
- special containers, plastic bags;
- freezer, refrigerator.
Arrange clean and dry medium-sized strawberries in one layer on a tray or cling film and place in the freezer for 1, 5-2 hours. During this time, the berries will freeze and become hard.
Take the strawberries out of the refrigerator, transfer them to special containers or plastic bags and send them to the freezer designed for storing berries and vegetables. If you are using cellophane freezer bags, remove all air from the bag and tie it before placing it in the refrigerator.
In winter, you can eat thawed berries just like that, put them in ice cream, filling for baking, make strawberry juice, juice and add to cocktails or tea. Keep in mind that you only need to defrost the amount of berries that you intend to use. Re-frozen strawberries will lose their appearance and taste.
Freezing whole strawberries with sugar
You will need:
- 1 kg of fresh strawberries;
- 200 g of sugar;
- special containers for freezing (containers);
- freezer, refrigerator.
For freezing whole, use fresh strawberries that are not soft or overripe. After preparing the strawberries, put it in a special container and sprinkle it with sugar on top according to the following calculation: for 1 kg of berries, you need to take 200 g of sugar. Cover the container with a lid and send the berries to the freezer of the refrigerator.
Freezing strawberries as jam
Jam is made from fresh strawberries and does not need to be boiled. You will need:
- fresh strawberries;
- sugar;
- blender;
- special containers, glass jars, plastic bags;
- freezer, refrigerator.
Take the right amount of strawberries, peel, wash and dry naturally. You can determine the correct ratio of strawberries and sugar according to the following scheme: for 400 g of berries, 100 g of sugar is needed.
Place the strawberries in a blender, add sugar and beat until smooth, then transfer the strawberries to special containers, glass jars or plastic bags (optional), and then send them to the freezer of the refrigerator.
Strawberry jam keeps well throughout the year, it can be added to the filling for pies, pancakes, eaten with tea, etc.
