STRAWBERRIES:

Strawberries are sweet, graceful red natural products with surfaces that are seed studded. The seeds are present on the external surface rather than the internal. The plant from which it originates belongs to the family of Rosaceae, encasing white blossoms, lobed foliage, and sprinters. They start all through the northern temperature zones. They are the most popular and trendiest organic products on the planet. More than 600 combinations of strawberries change in taste, size, and feel, all of which have comparable characteristics; heart outline, red tissue with yellow seeds shooting the surface, delicate, noticeable green tops, and a stalk that adorns their crowns. The following is an image of the strawberry organic product.

Strawberries on the plant

 

Origin of the word: strawberry

In all probability, the word strawberry comes from the Old English “streawberige”, which was later converted into ‘staubery’ in light of the fact that the plant conveys sprinters, which could be compared to bits of straw. However, others argue the act of mulching strawberries with straw or discovering them growing wild among tangled hay or straw gave rise to their name. But then, different intellectuals accepting the name came from selling the berries on a piece of straw outdoor markets.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF THIS FRUIT

Strawberries give a scope of possible advantages, and they can make the body strong to fight against different diseases; there are more than 600 types found in strawberries.

Prevention from cancer:

Cancer is a sickness portrayed by the uncontrolled development of unusual cells. Various studies show us that berries can help us fight against cancer cells through their capacity to battle inflammation.

Blood pressure:

Strawberries have a high potassium level, which can be beneficial for people diagnosed with high blood pressure. It is a natural way to prevent an increase in blood pressure as this is the most common disease nowadays. Anthocyanins are antioxidants that are profoundly present in berries. It reduces high blood pressure by 8 percent in people compared to people who do not eat berries.

Cholesterol:

Heart diseases are a major disease nowadays. According to research, strawberries contain antioxidants and flavonoids that boost our heart and lower our body’s bad cholesterol, which is the major cause of cardiac arrest.

Maintain good vision:

Our eyes need vitamin C to maintain our vision till old age, and Strawberries are full of vitamin C that strengthens our inner eyes and vision.

Boost your immunity

Humans can not produce vitamin C naturally, so we have to take a good amount to maintain our vitamin levels. Vitamin C is an excellent immune booster.

FREEZING STRAWBERRY:

Just whenever you’ve made it home from the spring farmer market with bushels of the best new, sweet handpicked fresh strawberries, it might become obvious to you to think: How am I going to eat all these? Realizing how to freeze them so you can appreciate strawberry season any season or possibly the following a half year is significant expertise for any berry lover.

Strawberries are touchy to both warmth and cold and are fragile, so it is insightful to preserve them as fast as could really be expected. While you devour a bowl of berries and cream, think about your alternatives for freezing the berries. Why, indeed, there are choices! Kindly don’t lump the ruby gems together in the bottom corner of a plastic sack, so they freeze into a mixed lump. Freezing strawberries is the easiest art of preserving you will do throughout the season.

FOUR BASIC METHODS FOR PRESERVING STRAWBERRIES

Before explaining all methods and steps, the first step to frozen berries is to prepare them for preservation.

Preparation:

Pick berries that are dim red, firm, and completely ready. Wash them cautiously; at that point, eliminate the stems and covers, then dry strawberries on towels in a single layer. Soaking berries in water for too long can make them lose their taste and flavour.

strawberries washing in cold water

Here are ideas for a couple of various techniques for preserving strawberries

As the Whole strawberry:

Packs of entire frozen strawberries are convenient to have around for adding to smoothies or preparing. This preservation technique on a plate or sheet guarantees the berries freeze independently instead of in an awkward block.

While strawberries can be frozen without adding sugar, at a greater danger of getting discolouration, so it is ideal to utilize them in a half year on the condition that they are, in fact, without sugar. Or else, a light sprinkling of sugar before freezing will both assist protect their colour and taste.

  1. Wash and dry the strawberries, as mentioned earlier.
  2. Having placed in the work to obtain the best berries, you would prefer not to squander a piece. Rather than just cutting off the top, frame the berries all the more cautiously by positioning a paring blade at a point into the stem end. This method is known as hulling, then cut around the green stem in a little circle, at that point snap the greenery and dispose of it.
  3. Place the strawberries on a plate or sheet in such a way that they do not touch each other. Then put this tray in the freezer until they turn into a solid piece.
  4. Move the strawberries to plastic zipper sacks or air-sealed containers and store them in the freezer for as long as a half year.

freeze whole strawberries single layer on cookie sheet

As strawberry in simple sugar syrup:

This time-tested ‘old school’ technique calls for freezing the berries entirely in a somewhat sweet sugar-water. When we store it in sugar syrup, the berries rapidly come back to their colour and flavour when defrosted. The steps to use the lazy method goes like

  1. We need to place 1 cup of caster sugar and 4 cups of water in a saucepan for making the syrup, and then we heat them slowly while stirring until the sugar dissolves in water. Then we leave it so that it can get cooled.
  2. We prepare the strawberries by washing them in cold water, and then comes the process of hulling and taking the green stalk out.
  3. Now place the sliced or half-cut berries into a container with an air-tight lid and cover it all up with the sugar syrup. Make sure to leave some space in the top of the container after pouring the syrup at the top to expand.
  4. Using this method, we can store our strawberries for about 6 months.

Strawberry Syrup

As strawberry coulis:

Strawberry coulis, or sauce, adds dynamic tone and new flavour to numerous sweets; all the efforts and space in your freezer are worth it. Regardless of how you appreciate it, strawberry coulis offers an enormous prize for insignificant time speculation.

Ingredients for coulis:

  1. About 1 pound strawberries.
  2. 1 tablespoon of sugar or per taste.
  3. Half teaspoon of lime extract.

Recipe:

Step 1:

Prepare strawberries by washing and hulling them as mentioned before and then combine them with lemon juice and sugar into a processor.

Step 2:

Run the processor, unit the strawberries are into pieces, and then blend them until a smooth and glossy texture is obtained; add sugar to taste.

Step 3:

Pass the prepared sauce through a strainer to get rid of all the seeds present.

Step 4:

Transfer the mixture into a jar, leaving some headspace at the top, and then put it into your freezer.

We can freeze coulis for four days.

strawberry suryp two

 

As Frozen strawberry limeade:

Ingredients:

  1. 12 tablespoon or six fluid ounces of strawberry coulis.
  2. 12 tablespoon of raw cane sugar
  3. 1 cup or 16 tablespoon lime extract.

Recipe:

Combine all the ingredients and place them in ice cube trays to freeze or use popsicle trays

Strawberry popsicles

 

THAWING FROZEN STRAWBERRIES:

There are different ways and methods to thaw frozen strawberries. Most commonly, three methods are used that are:

In Microwave

The microwave is a fast method to thaw out strawberries, and it is incredible to utilize when you are in a hurry. It would be best if you took note that if you leave the strawberries too long in the microwave, there is a likelihood that it could begin to cook them. This is the reason you ought to screen the natural product as it defrosts consistently.

Method:

  1. Set paper towels on a microwave-safe plate or holder.
  2. Separate a modest bunch of frozen strawberries from the freezer and set them on the plate.
  3. Adjust the microwave setting to defrost for thirty seconds. Time depends on the number of strawberries.
  4. Verify whether the strawberries have defrosted as you would prefer, assuming not, then microwave them again every five to ten-second interval until they are thawed

Strawberries thawing in microwave

 

In a chilled water bath:

One more way to thaw or defrost strawberries is to keep them in the chilled water bath.

This method is further divided into two ways.

Immersing in the cold water:

  1. Fill a bowl or kitchen sink with cool water.
  2. Take the fixed pack or eliminate the berries you need, set them in a sealable plastic pack, and immerse them in the chill water.
  3. Let the immersed sack of it sit in the chill water for thirty minutes or more. It relies upon the number of strawberries you are defrosting.
  4. The water ought to be changed at regular intervals until the organic product is thawed out.

Positioning under running water:

  1. Fill a holder with cold water.
  2. Immerse the pack of strawberries in the sink.
  3. Please turn on the cold water tap and permit it to run over the bundle.
  4. The pack ought to be moved around consistently to guarantee that all aspects of the pack are presented to the tap’s water.

Leaving strawberries overnight in the fridge

If you are not in a hurry, you can generally defrost your frozen strawberries over the night in the fridge. While it isn’t the fastest strategy, you can be certain that they will be completely thawed out and fit to be utilized the following morning.

Method:

  1. Eliminate the pack of frozen strawberries from the freezer eight to twelve hours before you plan on utilizing them.
  2. Set the organic product in a bowl.
  3. Take the bowl of strawberries and put them in the fridge.
  4. Permit the organic product to defrost for the time being .it should require 6-12 hours.
  5. The following morning, verify whether they have defrosted, assuming this is the case, eliminate and use.

strawberries-fridge

USES OF FROZEN STRAWBERRIES

Before diving into how to use frozen strawberries, let’s clear up a few most asked questions:

Is there any loss of nutrients in frozen strawberries?

Science shows no critical contrast among new and frozen strawberries with regards to nutrients and supplements. In this way, don’t mull over stacking up on frozen strawberries when new ones are less plentiful – you’re actually giving your family all that incredible taste with similar imperative supplements strawberries are known for: high nutrient C, fibre, folate, and cancer prevention agents.

How many calories are present in frozen strawberries?

One cup of frozen strawberries approaches roughly 77 calories. In case you’re tallying your calories or watching what you eat, frozen strawberries make for a flavorful bite! Another great thought is to treat a frozen strawberry very much like you would an all-characteristic frozen Popsicle.

MOST LOVED INGREDIENT

Whether it is fresh or frozen strawberries, it is still the most loved ingredient in recipes. Here are a few flavorful recipes you can follow using frozen strawberries.

IN SMOOTHIES, MILKSHAKE, AND MARGARITAS:

Strawberry can be the main ingredient or can make an amazing combo with other fruits like peach or banana in smoothies, and it can be a good and healthy choice of breakfast or snack. All you require is some yogurt, milk and frozen strawberries and place them in the blender until smooth and enjoy your smoothie with whipped cream in just 5 minutes. There will be no water or ice to bring the consistency down, and it will remain thick and creamy.

IN BAKED MUFFINS:

Frozen strawberries work perfectly in recipes like muffins and fruit bread. You can follow your own recipe for muffins. Add strawberries and chocolate to burst the taste, and everyone will, for sure, love it.

IN STRAWBERRY JAMS:

Buying that can of jam in the supermarket full of sugar and calories won’t be a good choice; instead, you can make your very own healthy jam with frozen strawberries. You will not need many ingredients; all you need is strawberry, lime juice, and sugar; you can also add any of your favourites that can go well in this jam.

IN INSTANT ICECREAMS:

Everyone loves ice cream, and you will love to make one by mixing frozen strawberries, a bit of sugar, and heavy cream in a food processor. You can freeze it also for up to one week.

IN STRAWBERRY PIE:

When you are making pies, frozen strawberries can be a great alternative to fresh ones. You can follow your own recipes for pie, and adding strawberry as a filling will be a refreshing change.

strawberry-recipes

Strawberries are a natural gift to us, and they can be a wonderful last-minute treat. The convenient ways of freezing strawberries make it much easier for us to prepare delicious recipes all year round.