How to freeze fruit Archives - Sweet Frugal Life

Wondering how to freeze strawberries???

I found the BEST deal on strawberries last week. I could not contain my excitement! They were only $1.25/pound! So….naturally….I bought 16 pounds. My kids eyes were wide open as I walked through the door with my two large flats of strawberries. They for sure thought they would get to eat every last one of those beauties! Sadly, I had to tell them that I would be freezing most of them (but, of course we also ate a bunch!). It was fun to spend the afternoon in the kitchen with my kids while I showed them how to freeze fresh strawberries.

It’s so easy to freeze strawberries and a great way to save money on produce. If you can find a good deal, buy them in bulk and freeze them to use all year long! I’ll be showing you exactly how to do that in this easy tutorial.

Not sure what is a good deal? Grab my free grocery stock up price guide here.

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Gather Your Supplies

The first step to freezing fresh strawberries is to gather all of the supplies. You probably already have everything you need at home (yay! love when that happens!).

What You’ll Need

Fresh Strawberries (yum!)
Small, sharp knife
Ziplock Freezer Bags
Cookie Sheet

Prepping the Strawberries

Now that you have gathered your supplies it’s time to wash your strawberries. This is a really important step to wash off any dirt and grime.

I like to place the strawberries in a strainer in the sink. I think lightly rinse them with water and gently scrub them with my fingers to help loosen up any dirt.

Once your strawberries are clean, set them on a paper towel and let them dry for 30 minutes or so. While they are drying, look through the berries and throw out any that are mushy or dark colored. This is a sign the strawberries are going bad and won’t freeze well.

Next, use your knife to cut off the strawberry tops and slice the berry in half.

You can keep your strawberries whole if you prefer, but I think they defrost a little easier when sliced in half.

Lay your sliced strawberries side by side on a cookie sheet. Fill the cookie sheet as full as you can, but don’t let the berries touch each other.

How To Freeze Strawberries

Once your cookie sheet is full, stick it in the freezer for 3-4 hours, or until your strawberries are frozen. This is called a flash freeze.

Related: 8 Foods You Should Freeze in an Ice Cube Tray

Once the berries are frozen it’s time to put them in your freezer bags. This part is so quick and easy!

Take your cookie sheet out of the freezer, use a spatula to scrape your strawberries off of the cookie sheet and put them into a Ziploc freezer bag. I like to use the gallon sized bags, so I can fit more inside.

Once your freezer bag is full, squeeze out all the air, seal it tightly, and write the date on the outside.

Throw your bag of strawberries into your freezer and enjoy! These berries will stay good for 6-12 months. I like to use them in fruit smoothies, pies and other desserts. My kids love to eat them frozen straight out of the bag!