There’s nothing quite like tucking into a fresh bowl of sweet, juicy, and vibrant bright red strawberries in the summer. Strawberries are super refreshing, versatile, and of course, delicious.
Would you be happy if we told you that you can enjoy your strawberries at the height of winter too?
If the answer to that question is yes, you’ve come to the right place. In today’s post, we’re going to show you how to freeze fresh strawberries. By freezing your fresh strawberries, you can enjoy the sweet and juicy flavors for months to come.
Aside from showing you how to freeze your strawberries, we’ll also answer all the other questions that you might have. We’ll tell you things like how long strawberries can be frozen, how to use frozen strawberries, and so on.
Let’s get started straight away!
Can You Freeze Fresh Strawberries?
Before we show you how to freeze fresh strawberries, we would like to make sure you know that it’s possible. Despite being a common thing to do, not everyone knows that we can freeze fresh strawberries.
Freezing fresh strawberries is a great way to preserve your strawberries for the coming months.
Why Would You Want To Freeze Fresh Strawberries?
The main reason you would want to freeze your fresh strawberries is so that you can eat them when they’re not in season.
In the winter, you won’t be able to pick fresh strawberries, therefore, keeping them in your freezer ensures you can enjoy the sweet and juicy flavors all year long.
However, preserving strawberries isn’t the only reason you might want to freeze them. You might also freeze them because they work better in a particular recipe that way.
For example, if you want to make a frozen strawberry smoothie, you’ll want to use frozen strawberries. Alternatively, you could use a frozen strawberry in your summer cocktail instead of ice.
Is It Best To Freeze Fresh Strawberries Sliced Or Whole?
One of the biggest decisions you’ll have to make when freezing strawberries is whether you freeze them whole or sliced. Technically, you can do either with success, but we recommend slicing them first.
Slicing your strawberries or at least halving them makes them easier to work with when you eventually take them out of your freezer.
Either way, one thing you have to do every time is remove the green stems.
The Best Way To Freeze Fresh Strawberries
You can easily freeze fresh strawberries in three simple steps. Those steps are:
Prepping the strawberries
Slicing the strawberries
Freezing the strawberries
This is the quickest and easiest way to freeze fresh strawberries.
To help you freeze your strawberries, we’re now going to show you each step in more detail. Make sure you follow each of these steps carefully if you want to successfully freeze your strawberries.
Step 1 – Prepping The Strawberries
The first thing you need to do is prep the strawberries for freezing. To do this, thoroughly wash your strawberries in cold running water and dry them with a clean cloth.
After washing and drying your strawberries, you need to remove the green stem. Do this by using a paring knife. Insert the knife into the stem end of the strawberry and cut in a small circle until you’ve removed the leafy stem.
Step 2 – Slicing The Strawberries
If you want to freeze your strawberries whole you can skip this step and move straight to freezing. However, slicing the strawberries first makes it a lot easier to use them.
We recommend slicing your strawberries in half, but you could also quarter them or thickly slice them if you wanted to. Ultimately, how you decide to slice your strawberries depends on how you hope to use them.
To slice your strawberries, use a sharp knife and a chopping board and carefully slice one strawberry at a time.
Step 3 – Freezing The Strawberries
Now you can finally freeze your strawberries!
To freeze your fresh strawberries, place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer and place the baking sheet in the freezer. This will flash-freeze the strawberries so that they don’t clump together.
Once the strawberries have hardened, which should take about three hours, remove the strawberries from the freezer and place them in a resealable bag.
You can then return them straight back to the freezer and keep them there until you need them.
How Long Can You Keep Frozen Strawberries?
If they remain frozen, you can keep frozen strawberries for up to one year. After that, you should consider throwing them out.
However, for the best flavor, we recommend using your frozen strawberries within six months. After six months, your frozen strawberries will start to lose flavor.
Does Freezing Fresh Strawberries Change Their Texture?
As is the case with most fruits, freezing strawberries will change their texture. Frozen strawberries tend to be less firm after freezing. This is one of the main reasons why most people use frozen strawberries in cooking or to make smoothies and slushies.
After thawing, you’ll find that your strawberries have a much softer, almost mushy texture.
Final Thoughts
There you have it, everything you need to know about freezing fresh strawberries. In this post, we’ve shown you how to freeze your fresh strawberries, how long to keep them in your freezer, and how to use them.
Now you know how to freeze fresh strawberries, all that’s left to do is freeze your own strawberries. If you follow the steps in this guide, you’ll be able to freeze your strawberries in no time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should You Wash Frozen Strawberries?
You don’t need to wash frozen strawberries before using them. They have already been washed before being frozen so you can simply use them straight away.
How Do You Thaw Frozen Strawberries?
You can thaw frozen strawberries by taking them out of the freezer and putting them in a refrigerator. Alternatively, you could place the frozen strawberries in a leak-proof bowl that sits in a larger bowl full of cold water.
Hello, my name is Valentina and I am the founder or ‘grower’ as I like to call myself of BonitaFruitTrees.com.
Cultivating my own fruit trees is definitely my passion, and has been for such a long time.
That’s what made me want to make this website. I wanted to create a place where I could share my experiences with others, teach more people how to grow fruit trees, and just help them have a little fun with it.
