Freezing is one of the finest techniques to store foods for a prolonged time. Freezing fruits or berries can prevent the growth of unwanted microorganisms while retaining their nutritional value and flavor.
How to Freeze Fruits?
You need to select the perfect container to store your frozen fruits. The selection of containers depends on the fruit. Containers perfect for freezing fruits include plastic freezer containers, freezing jars, and flexible freezer bags.
Frozen Fruit vs Fresh Fruit
Research has shown that some frozen fruits can even retain more nutritional value than fresh fruits. Vitamin C content in a few fruits, like blueberries, was higher when they were frozen.
How to Freeze Fresh Fruits?
You need to wash, dry, and slice the fresh fruit that you want to freeze. Before this process, make sure to do the following:
1. Remove stems, seeds, and other non-essential parts of the fruit.
2. Place the fresh fruit on a baking sheet, and let it freeze for a while.
3. Take out the frozen fruit, place it in freezer bags, and refreeze it.
Here is a complete list of fresh fruits that you can freeze for future use:
Cantaloupe
Can You Freeze Cantaloupe?
Cantaloupe can also be frozen, like watermelon, honeydew, and apples. Cantaloupe can be frozen for 9 to 12 months, depending on the quality of the cantaloupe and the temperature.
How to Freeze Cantaloupe?
Before freezing a cantaloupe, you need to sort, wash, and drain them. Some people extract cantaloupe puree and freeze them in ice trays.
Apples
Can you freeze apples?
Freezing fresh apples can be a great way to preserve them for a longer time. Frozen apples are perfect for baking and making apple smoothies. After freezing, the texture of the apple becomes soft, which is great for pies and shakes.
Can you freeze peeled apples?
It is essential to understand the process of freezing peeled apples. You need to peel and slice apples before freezing them on a cookie sheet or bakery sheet. Afterward, put the frozen apples in a plastic freezer bag to store for a prolonged period.
Pears
Can You Freeze Pears?
Frozen pears can be kept in your freezer for more than a year. Frozen pears are great for making cobblers, pear tarts, and pear pies.
How to Freeze Pears?
You can use the dry pack method to freeze pears.
In the dry pack method, you need to do the following:
1. Treat the sliced pears for the prevention of browning.
2. Place the treated pears on a baking sheet or cookie sheet.
3. Then place the sheet into the freezer until the pears get frozen
4. Slip them into multiple freezer bags
Oranges
Can You Freeze Oranges?
You can freeze unpeeled, sliced, or whole oranges for 6 months to 1 year. Frozen and thawed oranges can be used for creating a multitude of refreshing drinks and dishes.
Can You Freeze Peeled Oranges?
Once the oranges are peeled, you can place them on a pastry sheet and put them into a freezer. After you take out the frozen peeled oranges, put them into freezer-safe plastic bags. Make sure that the air is removed from the bags before you freeze them.
Nectarines
How to Freeze Nectarines?
Freezing nectarines is a straightforward process. You can freeze a whole nectarine without washing or cutting it. Take a safe freezer container, place the ripened nectarine in the container. After that, close the lid, and mark it for future use.
Apricots
Freezing Apricots For Future Use
Before freezing apricots, you need to slice them in half. Remove the pit of the apricots, and then place them in an ascorbic solution to discourage discoloration. Then place the apricots in airtight freezer-safe bags. Freeze them over a maximum period of 3 months. Keep in mind that the skin of some apricots tightens if they are frozen without blanching.
Tropical Fruits:
Papaya
How to Freeze Papaya?
Here are a few steps that you should follow before you freeze papaya:
1. First, pack cut papaya in solid containers or plastic freezer bags.
2. Place it in a 30 percent sugar solution and cover it.
3. The papaya can be stored in your freezer for 10 to 12 months.
The texture of thawed and frozen papaya is soft, which is excellent for smoothies and for making papaya dishes.
Passion Fruit
How to Store Passion Fruit?
You should only freeze ripened passion fruit. If you have unripe passion fruit, then leave it at room temperature to ripen. Then, store the chopped or whole passion fruit in a freezer-safe container or bag. Frozen passion fruit can be kept in the freezer for 7 to 14 days.
Mangoes
Can You Freeze Mangoes: Whole and Half?
Whole mangoes when frozen have a different texture than mangoes that are peeled or halved. Before you freeze halved mangoes, make sure to remove the cheeks and peel them. Then wrap the cheeks in individual plastic wraps and place them on a baking tray.
Pineapple
Can You Freeze Pineapple?
Before you freeze a pineapple, you need to cut it into pieces or chunks. After cutting the pineapple into pieces, place it on a tray and freeze it. After the pineapple pieces have frozen solid, place them in freezer safe-bags and refreeze them.
Grapes
Can You Freeze Grapes?
Tropical fruits like grapes are perfect for health-conscious people. They have a low-fat & low-calorie profile. Frozen grapes are good for your health. You can wash and dry seedless grapes before placing them in the freezer. The grapes should be kept on a baking tray before placing them in the freezer. Take out the frozen grapes and put them into multiple freezer-safe bags. Then refreeze the grapes for future use.
How long does it take to freeze grapes?
It takes around 4 to 5 hours to freeze seedless grapes. The freezing time is also dependent on the quantity of the grapes. If you have a huge quantity of grapes to freeze, then you might have to keep it overnight in the freezer.
Kiwi
Can You Freeze Kiwi?
Exotic fruits like kiwi can be frozen for a prolonged period. You can freeze whole, sliced, or crushed kiwi. Frozen kiwi is best for making shakes, sodas, and smoothies.
How to Freeze Kiwi?
Kiwi is quite acidic in nature. You can dip kiwi in sugar which will keep its flavor intact. You can store kiwi slices by placing them on a bakery sheet and freezing them. Then put the frozen kiwi in freezer-safe bags and place them in the freezer again.
Coconut
Can You Freeze Coconut?
You can either freeze shredded coconut or chunks of fresh coconut. For prolonged storage, you should grate the coconut thoroughly and squeeze the liquid before placing it in the freezer.
How to Preserve Coconut?
First, shred the coconut or cut it into chunks. Then, pack the coconut in the freezer-safe storage container and cover it with coconut liquid. After it is frozen, take it out of the container. Place it in freezer-safe bags and place it back in the freezer.
How to Defrost Frozen Fruit?
Frozen fruits can easily be thawed in a refrigerator, microwave oven, and by using running water. You need to turn the package several times if you’re using a microwave oven for defrosting. Defrosting a frozen fruit in the refrigerator can take up to 4 to 6 hours.
How to Preserve Fresh Fruit?
Use freezer safe-containers and bags to preserve fruits. You can also dry and wash fresh fruits before preserving them. Different kinds of solutions can also be used to preserve fresh fruits.
