No matter how much you like blueberries, it’s not likely a family of four is going to go through a gallon of them before they start to spoil. So if you’ve got a gallon of blueberries, you’re going to want to freeze some of them.
If you know for sure how much you’re going to want, and that you’re just going to be pureeing them when you use them anyway, you can just dump them into the right size containers and pop them in the freezer. But I’m betting you don’t know how you’ll be using them. So you’ll want them separate when they freeze.
If you toss a bunch of freshly-washed berries together and freeze them, you’ll turn them into one big chunk. So instead, spread them out on a baking sheet covered with wax paper or parchment paper. (See photo above.)
Don’t think you can cut corners and not use the paper. You’re wrong. The berries will freeze hard to the metal and you’ll have to scrape them off. You’ll break them up and ruin them. Don’t do that.
Pop the tray in the freezer for at least an hour.
You want the berries to be hard to the touch, like marbles. Peel up the corner of the wax paper and the berries should all separate.
If any stick together, pop them apart with your fingers. Don’t handle them too much, or your hands will warm them up and they’ll get mushy on the outside.
Lift up the edges of the paper and pour the berries into a zip-top freezer bag until you need some.
And that’s it.
Want more like this? For more recipes like this, that you can hold right in your hands, and write on, take notes, tear pages out if you want (Gosh, you're tough on books, aren't you?) you might be interested in How To Cook Like Your Grandmother, 2nd edition, Illustrated. Or to learn your way around the kitchen, check out Starting From Scratch: The Owner's Manual for Your Kitchen.
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9 Comments
I can’t believe I haven’t thought of using wax paper!
The same technique works well for freezing cooked beans, as well. I’ll soak and cook 1-2 lbs at a time, and then freeze them, similar to how you describe here. I usually undercook them slightly and then freeze them in portions that are approximately equivalent to two cans so they’re ready to throw into a casserole, soup, etc.
Extra tip: once you’ve sealed the bag, hold it on its side and shake it around until the blueberries, beans, etc. have shifted into a relatively flat rectangle. These stack nicely in the freezer and make it easier to see what you have a first glance.
I’m attacking a pile of green beans today, preparing them for the freezer. Thanks for the advice!
This is my favorite method of freezing berries, but I prefer a container to a ziploc bag. It’s just personal preference; both methods work. When the berries are in their containers and in the freezer awaiting my winter cravings, I compost the wax paper.
A silpat works in place of the wax paper too. We freeze peaches every year and had the same problem until we started leaving the silpat on our cookie sheets.
Brilliant! Thanks so much!
By the way, the banana ice cream was fabulous.
Compost wax paper??? Interesting…
We just picked 10 lbs of organic blueberries this weekend, and we have been freezing them on cookie sheets for years. But the wax paper worked really well – and I will try the silpat next time, too. Thanks!! I also tried to dry the berries as much as possible to reduce the ice factor. Helped a great deal. We also do this cookie sheet in freezer with sliced strawberries. Cutting and freezing them to a consistent size works great for smoothies well into the winter months.
You can freeze strawberries in the same way. If you cut the larger ones into bite sized pieces before freezing, you can then suck on them like lollies once they are frozen. A healthier treat than something sugary. You need flavoursome strawberries for best results.
Or of course use them for cooking if you want
If you don’t wash them, you don’t have to tray-freeze–just stick ‘em in a bag and in the freezer. Wash when you use them. Easier! Only for blueberries, though.
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