Can i freeze fruits

Then quickly submerge the vegetables in ice water to prevent them from cooking. Dry thoroughly on paper towel-lined sheet pans. See more on how to blanch and shock vegetables. Freeze vegetables quickly by spreading them in a single layer on a rimmed sheet pan. Frozen peach slices in freezer bag. The key to packing fruits and vegetables for freezing is to keep moisture inside the package and air outside.

Contact with air can cause changes in flavor and color. Pack fruit and vegetables in air-tight containers or moisture-proof, heavy-duty freezer bags, and force out as much air as possible.

Wrap freezer bags in heavy-duty foil and seal with freezer tape. Stay away from plastic sandwich bags, which are not heavy-duty enough. A few hours before adding food to the freezer, set the freezer to its coldest setting. And don't overload the freezer it will slow the freezing process. Frozen tomatoes in freezer bags. Fruit salad with strawberries, apples, grapes, and blueberries. Credit: France C. No matter the fruit, no matter the season, these tips will set you on the right path to freezing fruit successfully:.

Step 1: If you bought blueberries in a grocery store, place them in a bowl filled with water. Allow the blueberries to sit in the water for a couple of minutes to remove any debris. Remove from bowl and rinse with water. If you picked blueberries yourself and no chemicals were used, give them a quick rinse before proceeding to the next step.

Place blueberries on a paper towel-lined, rimmed baking sheet. Allow to air-dry for an hour or so. Transfer blueberries to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place in freezer for 60 minutes. Remove and transfer to a freezer bag, removing as much air as possible. Label and return to freezer. Step 1: Place strawberries in a large bowl filled with water. Allow the strawberries to sit in the water for 20 minutes, swishing them around with your hand a few times to remove debris.

Drain water and rinse strawberries. Place strawberries on a paper towel-lined rimmed baking sheet and allow to air dry for at least an hour. Some produce requires blanching before freezing.

This inactivates the enzymes that lead to deterioration and destroys micro-organisms on the surface of the fruit. To blanch, boil the produce for a couple of minutes, then immediately submerge in ice water for the same amount of time it was boiled, to stop the cooking.

Two minutes is average — you want to kill the enzymes but not overcook the food. Where applicable, dry well before freezing. Homemade applesauce is sweet, delicious and nutritious -and freezes well to be enjoyed year-round. Most fruit changes consistency when frozen then thawed, so you may not be eating previously frozen fruit in the way you would fresh fruit.

For example, bananas get mushy when thawed, but work perfectly in smoothies, nice cream, banana bread, oatmeal, pancakes, and more. I love to buy the browning bananas from the grocery store and slice them to freeze for all types of recipes. Frozen and thawed fruit is great for making cobblers, compotes, adding to baked goods or pancakes, pies, and more. Another way to use frozen fruit and save time is to create smoothie packs in the freezer. This follows the same process as outlined above to pre-freeze the fruit on trays, but instead of separating and storing frozen fruit by the variety of fruit, you can create Stasher bags that have the perfect mix of smoothie fruit.

Or store a smoothie blend mix in a half-gallon or stand-up Stasher bag shake it up so all the fruits are mixed up , and use a cup or two of the mix in your smoothies!