How to freeze apples in the fridge freezer for the winter

In the autumn season, you need to have time to prepare a maximum of healthy vegetables and fruits that will save you from vitamin deficiency in winter, saturating the body with minerals, vitamins, and strengthen the immune system. One of the obligatory preparations for the winter is apples.

From the fruits, you can boil juice, prepare compote, dry or preserve whole. But, is it possible to freeze apples for the winter, so that there is always a base for charlotte or apples for compote at hand?

We suggest considering 5 recipes for freezing apples at home for the winter.

The benefits of frozen apples

Freezing fruit has a number of advantages over other storage and preservation methods:

• Benefit. Unlike cooked and canned fruits, frozen fruits retain all their useful qualities, since biologically active substances are not destroyed at low temperatures.
• Safety. You can be confident in the quality of your home product. Whereas beautiful off-season supermarket apples are most likely processed with chemical preservatives for long-term storage, and their usefulness is highly questionable.
• Convenience. Your workpiece will not sour, unlike the “fruit vitamins” in sugar, which are not subject to long-term storage and often deteriorate. In addition, at the right time, you will always have a semi-finished product at hand - washed, chopped and peeled fruits.

How to freeze apples in the freezer

For freezing, you should choose ripe fresh fruits without flaws and spoilage. Before freezing, apples must be thoroughly washed and dried, otherwise they will stick together in the freezer and it will be difficult to separate them after thawing.

• Cut the apples into slices: slices, circles, cubes - as you like. We remove the core with seeds, the skin does not need to be peeled.
• Place the sliced ​​fruits in containers or zip bags, seal and seal them tightly. The density in the package should be optimal for minimum moisture loss and contact with air (oxidation).
• The portions in the bags must meet your needs in order to use them in one go - the product cannot be re-frozen, otherwise it will lose its shape and its valuable qualities.
• If you want to preserve the color of apples and protect them from oxidation, immerse the chopped fruits in slightly acidified (1 tsp (5 g) citric acid per 1 liter of water) or salted (1 tsp (8 g) salt per 1 liter of water) water at room temperature for 10-15 minutes, then the slices should be dried on paper or towel.

What you need to freeze apples

• Sharp knife and cutting board;
• Waffle or paper towel (for drying);
• Food containers or bags for packaging;
• Good freezer.

What fruits and berries can I freeze?

Summary of the article:

Even with the modern level of technology and logistics, it is not at any time of the year that you can enjoy your favorite fruit. Does this mean that you need to limit yourself in pleasure? No, there is always a way out of the situation. You just need to know which fruits can be frozen.

Different views on the issue of freezing

You can believe the majority opinion regarding freezing fruits. And you can figure out how everything really is:

You should not throw all the products just brought from the store into the freezer. It is worth figuring out which ones are better to freeze for the future, and which ones should be eaten right away.

What fruits are frozen? List

Practically all berries

easily and simply "canned" in this way:

1. Cherry
   ... A good choice if you love cherry tarts and suffer from a lack of them out of season.
2. Raspberries
   ... May be a good alternative to raspberry jam.
3. Strawberry. With whipped cream and a playful mood in your arsenal, all that's missing is her.
4. Blackberry
   ... Retains all vitamins and is ideal for your favorite recipes.

But sometimes you want something more exotic:

• Freezes perfectly banana
  , it only tastes better when chilled.
• Apples and pears
  before going to the "cryogenic chamber" it is better to cut it into slices so that you don't have to mess around later. You can also sprinkle them with lemon juice.
• Apricots
  it is better to freeze pitted. The logic is simple, so it will fit more in one container and again, you will not have to mess around with thawed fruit for a long time, which has already lost its shape and consistency.
• Plum
  freezes no worse. From the preliminary preparation, only the removal of the bone and everything, you can in the freezer.
• Peaches
  can also be enjoyed all year round by freezing.
• I do not like the absence on the shelves in the store grapes
  ? Put it in the freezer and enjoy it any time of the year.

How to freeze fruit?

In terms of freezing, you should adhere to several simple rules

:

• It is best to use plastic bowls, you can buy them at any supermarket.
• Fruits should be laid as tightly as possible so that air does not accumulate in the container.
• Rinse and dry food before freezing.
• It will not work to wash them after defrosting, and the accumulated water will turn into ice and contribute to the gluing of the fruit into a homogeneous substance.
• The berries can be frozen in their "original" form, but it is better to get rid of the seeds in advance. Increase the volume, and get rid of the hassle in the future.
• Some fruits can be sprinkled with lemon juice to help them retain more flavor, smell, and nutrients.
• Should I get rid of the skin? It's up to you.
• Keep in mind that you will not be able to re-freeze the fruit. Therefore, it is better to put in each container exactly as much as is needed for one time.

Using specialty paper, vacuum bags or containers are interesting options, but why complicate the process? Having completed all the above points, you can provide yourself with a stock of your favorite fruits for the whole year, while they will not lose much in quality.

Should you freeze fruit?

Or maybe you don't need to spend time freezing fruits at all? The question is not the easiest one, because the taste and sensations from use in any case change. If a fresh ripe fruit has been kept for several months at a temperature -20C̊

of course it won't be the same again. No, it will not turn into rubber and even the smell will remain. But it is difficult to compare with the initial taste sensations.

Only a banana becomes much better from freezing; in summer it can be cut and put in the freezer in the morning.And in the evening you can enjoy banana and ice cream, especially if you add to all this grated chocolate

.

Although cherry is losing ground a little, it still remains at a high level. Make fresh berry pie

and then from frozen. 9 out of 10 won't be able to tell the difference between them. Most of the fruit can be preserved for later use in making jam.

Not always during the season there is time to do seaming, sometimes it is better to postpone this process for a couple of months. You can eat thawed fruit just like that, try it in advance to see the difference.

What is better to freeze in summer?

Before placing food in the freezer, make sure it is on this list:

1. Bananas
   ... Those who advise against freezing have never actually tried them.
2. Apples
   ... True, they can be found in the nearest supermarket, regardless of the season.
3. Pears
   ... There is more sense here and the link to seasonality.
4. Raspberries
   ... Nice alternative.
5. Cherry
   ... Do not deny yourself the pleasure, a pie made from this berry can cheer you up at any time of the year.
6. Strawberry
   ... It is good at any time of the year, but it is not always available.
7. Peaches
   ... What could be better than a juicy peach?
8. Apricots
   ... It is best to get rid of the pits before chilling.
9. Plum
   ... The advice is the same.
10. Blackberry
    ... The supply of vitamins will always be beneficial for the body.

At your own peril and risk, you can conduct a couple of experiments with other fruits, maybe you will like the end result.

In order not to experience disappointment after a couple of months, you should know in advance which fruits can be frozen. Nobody will like "rubber" products. But it should be remembered that a repulsive appearance does not mean that the fruit has lost its taste or supply of vitamins.

How to Freeze Apples in the Freezer, 6 Ways to Freeze

Fast (shock) freezing

Put the prepared dry apples in one layer on foil or on a tray and send them to the freezer at the maximum setting (-23 °).

After two hours, we take the fruit out of the refrigerator and tightly pack it in bags, which we put back in the freezer for long-term storage (the optimum temperature is -18 °). In this way, you can harvest both whole fruits and cut into slices.

The shelf life is 12 months.

Frozen apples in citric acid

• We wash and cut the apples into slices.
• Immerse for 15 minutes in a citric acid solution (2 tsp for 2 liters of water).
• We take out the fruits with a slotted spoon and dry them on a paper towel.
• We put apples in containers or zip bags, remove excess air and send them to the freezer.

Shelf life is 6-9 months.

Apples in syrup

In this case, sugar is used as a preservative for apples.

• Wash and cut apples (1.5 kg).
• Prepare a concentrated syrup - take 2 cups of sugar for 3 liters of water.
• Soak the apples in the syrup for five minutes.
• Place fruits in a sieve and drain off excess syrup.
• Pack the apples into bags / containers and place in the freezer.

The shelf life is 12 months.

Frozen apples in sugar with lemon

This semi-finished product can serve as a separate treat or be added as an ingredient to any sweet desserts.

You will need:

• Apples - 1-1.5 kg;
• Lemon - 2 pcs.;
• Sugar - 250 g.

Remove the zest from the lemons, squeeze the juice, combine it with the zest. Immerse prepared apple pieces in the resulting juice, mix gently. Add sugar and stir again. Arrange the wedges in containers and send to the freezer.

The shelf life is 12 months.

Applesauce, frozen

To freeze the applesauce, cut the washed and peeled fruit into chunks, place them in an enamel or aluminum pan and simmer over low heat until thickened.

Sugar can be omitted or a minimum amount of 100 grams per kilogram of apples can be used.

Transfer the finished puree to small containers and place in the freezer.

Whole apples in the freezer

Small whole apples can also be frozen.

Way I

Wash the ripe whole apples and wipe them dry. Then we wrap each apple in plastic wrap and send it to freeze.

Shelf life is 9 months.

Way II

In this case, ascorbic acid is used as a preservative.

• We prepare an acidic solution: 50 g of ascorbic acid in powder is taken for 1.5 liters of cold water.
• Immerse the prepared fruits in the solution for five minutes.
• We put apples in tight bags for freezing, release excess air from them.
• We send it to the freezer.

The shelf life is 12 months.

With syrup

The sugar syrup nourishes the fruit and leaves it sweet as a result. How to cook:

1. Mix sugar and water in a 1: 2 ratio. Heat the syrup to dissolve the sugar grains.
2. Prepare the apples as usual, cover with warm syrup. Cover the plate with a lid and let sit for a few minutes.
3. The apples will start up their juice, feed on sugar, become very tender and sweet.
4. To prevent the slices in the syrup from sticking together, drain the excess liquid with a colander.
5. Freeze the pieces separately, then distribute in portions and freeze.

Shelf life of frozen apples at home

Apples can be stored in the freezer from 6 to 12 months, depending on the method of freezing, the type of apples and the capacity of the freezer. At low temperatures (-16 ° to -18 °) apples are stored for a year, at lower temperatures - from 3 to 6 months.

It is best to freeze fruit in small portions. On bags / containers, you can write the date of freezing and the variety of apples with a marker.

How to properly defrost frozen apple fruits

To maximize the preservation of all the beneficial qualities and structure of the fruit, use the slow defrosting method.

First, move the apples from the freezer to the refrigerator shelf for 6-12 hours until completely thawed, after which the fruit can be taken out and used as intended.

Suitable varieties

Not all apple varieties are suitable for such processing and further storage. It is necessary to use the harvest of autumn and winter varieties with sweet and sour pulp.

You can freeze the following varieties: Antonovka, Sinap, Glory to the winners, Richard, Kutuzovets, Golden. The harvest of such apple trees is excellently preserved at subzero temperatures.

You can determine how suitable the apple variety is for freezing: you need to peel the fruit and place it on the top shelf of the refrigerator. If after a while it does not darken, you can safely freeze it.

What to cook from defrosted apples

Thawed fruits will perfectly complement your winter-spring diet. They can be added to compotes and desserts, used to make charlotte, apple strudel, casseroles, pancakes and a variety of pastries.

Sour varieties will be a great addition to festive meat dishes, an ingredient for sauces and gravies. And applesauce is a favorite ingredient in baby food.

So if you have a rich harvest of apples in your garden, and you are not able to process them (and it is a pity to throw away a valuable product), just send the ripe fruits to the freezer. By freezing fresh apples, you always have small portions of fruit in hand to use as needed.