Can you Freeze Fruits?: Be it a bumper yield from the brush in your backyard or the one from a too-good-to-avoid deal at the mart, discovering yourself with plenty of fresh fruits on the countertop might sense like a bittersweet blessing.
Well, stress not, waste not! A freezer is an excellent pawn for maintaining your fruit fresh and letting it go to waste. I will share a few secret methods to freeze fruits so you can relish them and not let the season’s finest fruit go to waste.
- Can You Freeze Fruit?
- Steps to Freeze your Fruits
- Fruits That You Can Freeze
- Tips to Follow When Freezing Fruits
- How Long Can Fruits Be Frozen?
- How To Defrost your Fruits?
- Can Fruits be Refrozen?
- Does freezing fruit ruin it?
- Why shouldn’t you freeze fruit?
- What fruits should not be frozen?
- How Long Do Fruits Take to Freeze?
Can You Freeze Fruit?
Yes, fruits can be frozen for almost 6 months. Mostly all kinds of fruits can freeze really nicely. Also, they maintain their flavors and nutrients when stored in the freezer. When trying to freeze your fruits, peel them and cut them if required. Then keep them in a sealed freezer bag or containers.
Steps to Freeze your Fruits
The procedure to freeze fruits is pretty easy. When trying to freeze any type of berries for smoothies, then just put them in a freezer bag and put them directly into the freezer – it is very simple!
If freezing other fruits such as bananas, melons, pineapples, etc must be skinned and organized prior to freezing them. So this can make it easier for you to use when they are being defrosted.
Down, I have explained the needed steps you must follow to freeze your fruits.
Make sure to rinse your fruits by running them under cold water so that they are cleaned well. Also, there is no use in freezing dirty fruits as they will only end up taking up room inside the freezer.
Once you have washed the fruits thoroughly drain off all the leftover water and then dry the fruits by patting them using a paper towel.
When dried, place your fruits in a properly sized freezer bag and remove all the air from the bag as much as possible before your seal it up.
Before freezing them make sure to note the date on the bag so that it can be used by the expiry date. Then place them in the freezer letting them freeze for the needed time.
This is a fundamental approach when freezing fruits. It also works excellently for bigger fruit pieces. But if you like to freeze cherries, berries, or cubes of fruits then doing this so on a tray prior to bagging them might be a fine idea. So, you do not want them to end up sticking together!
Fruits That You Can Freeze
Though fruits can be frozen there are a few fruits that should not be frozen. This is because they may go a bit mushy or might even end up losing their flavor.
I have covered a vast variety of fruits that can be frozen. Beneath are a few of the most famous fruits that can be frozen:
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Blueberries
- Cherries
- Pineapple
- Mango
- Papaya
- Gooseberries
- Melon
Tips to Follow When Freezing Fruits
Since you have learned the steps to freeze your fruits, I have got a few tips that I firmly suggest observing when freezing your fruits to maintain the best flavors:
Though most fruits tend to freeze nicely, there are a few that must not be frozen. Pears and apples usually turn mushy when frozen. While grapes and watermelon do not react nicely during the defrosting procedure.
When freezing your fruits, simply be aware that the ones with an increased water level are less likely to freeze well when compared to the others with lower water levels.
Freezing all the fruits using the same freezer bag can be done, especially if planning to use them as ingredients for your smoothie. However, in most cases, I would recommend freezing your fruits individually as all react a bit differently during the freezing procedure. So, always consider using a freezer bag for your strawberries bananas, blackberries, blueberries, etc.
The most suitable period to freeze fruits is when they are fresh and prepared to consume. If the fruit is way too ripe or has been left out and placed at room temperature for quite some time. Then, it is doubtful to taste amazing when frozen and defrosted.
As a general thumb rule, try to freeze the fruits immediately after your purchase or when you pick them. This will ensure that it will be tasty when you defrost it.
When freezing your fruits always, ensure to use good-quality bags to freeze them and also seals them tightly. Also, select a properly sized bag when freezing your fruits.
Release all the air from the bag as possible before putting the bags inside the freezer. Since sir is the worst enemy for your fruits they can lead to the building of ice crystals which might leave you with poor defrosted fruits.
How Long Can Fruits Be Frozen?
Fruits can be frozen for almost six months. A few fruits might last for extended periods than other fruits when kept at room temperature. This is the same when you try to freeze your fruits.
Though you can freeze your fruits for more than a period of six months, I would recommend you use them within the mentioned period. So, that you can make sure to get the taste that you want when it is defrosted.
How To Defrost your Fruits?
When you want to use your fruits, remove them from the freezer and just put them in the fridge using a bowl overnight. During this time your fruits would have adequate time to defrost thoroughly, and they will also be tasty to consume.
But this being stated, not all kinds of fruit requires to be defrosted before eating it. Many berries can also be relished even when frozen. They can be directly dropped into the blender when preparing your smoothie.
Defrosting fruits using the microwave or at room temperature must be avoided as there are high chances for bacteria to develop when kept out and also when microwaved they might lose all their water content.
Also, Check
Can Fruits be Refrozen?
In a few cases, you can likely get out by refreezing them. While the greatest issue when refreezing them is that they are possibly going to go mushy. This is due to the high water levels of the fruits and the point that ice crystals can be formed when freezing them.
So, to avoid them, I would not suggest refreezing your fruits if you are preparing to consume them. If you intend to use the refrozen fruits in smoothies though the texture does not count much, then you might skip refreezing it.
FAQs on Can You Freeze Fruit
1. Does freezing fruit ruin it?
No, freezing fruit does not ruin it. But some nutrients begin to break when the frozen process is stored for more than a year.
2. Why shouldn’t you freeze fruit?
The water within the fruits freezes and the ice crystals punch through cell walls and turn the fruit soft.
3. What fruits should not be frozen?
Any kind of citrus fruits such as grapefruit, lemon, and oranges must not be frozen as they might lose their texture completely when. Watermelon also tends to lose its texture considerably when frozen.
4. How Long Do Fruits Take to Freeze?
This relies on the type of fruit and size in which it has been chopped. Normally, fruits will usually freeze in 4-5 hours. Whereas blackcurrants and blueberries take 2 hours to freeze. Big mango wedges can consume more than 4-5 hours to freeze.
Conclusion
As seen above a huge majority of fruits can be frozen and they do freeze truly well. Freezing your fruits is such a great idea when buying them in bulk or if you believe that you might not use up them immediately before their use-by date.
In all these situations, you must bag up your fruits and seal them tightly before storing them in the freezer for almost six months.