Freeze berries this summer to keep them fresh and usable long past their short ripeness window. Each berry has a freezing method that works best, it’s not one-size-fits-all. When done correctly, freezing is a great way to store fresh summer berries!
Summer Berries At Their Best
I basically live for summer berries. Their ripe sweet and tart flavors, seasoned with summer sun, juicy and plump. Full of antioxidants, fiber, and so many vitamins and minerals, I just love them!
I’ve been an avid berry picker my whole life, and absolutely adore being able to make things with the fresh handfuls, apron-fulls, bowlfuls, and boxes of freshly picked berries I bring home.
In fact, blackberries were probably my very first venture into foraging! I spent summers barefoot and tan, making forts in the woods and gathering all the blackberries my mom’s colander could hold.
In an effort to make my nostalgic summer berry treats my own and a bit healthier, I’ve come up with recipes for low-sugar raspberry jam, strawberry cobbler, peach and blackberry cobbler, and a blueberry cornmeal skillet cake.
Even after making these berry recipes, there are often still tons of berries left that are ripe and ready!
Calling Berries Out on Their Behavior
I’m calling out berries for how finicky they are though. That’s right, I said it.
I mean, we spend all this time picking them, and they have about a 4-hour window of perfect ripeness, and then they sink over to the other side, mushy, puckered, moldy, and soft.
Once they’re off the vine, berries need to be used up quickly, otherwise, who knows what kind of fuzzy rotting concoction you’ll wake up to. This is exactly why you need to freeze berries before they go bad.
Don’t play their games, just acknowledge that they’re as finicky as they are delicious and move on with your life. Because: boundaries! I won’t be played by berries, so in the freezer they go for later enjoyment.
Of course, you can’t just freeze berries all the same way. That would be too easy for these delicate beauties! So it’s best to have a medley of methods on hand for when you have an abundant berry haul.
There’s a best freezing method for different berry types, and once you’re in the know you will have mastered the true bliss that summer berries can provide. Eat frozen summer berries year round!
How to Freeze Berries
For today, we’ll focus on freezing strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. These berries all freeze well when using the best method.
There are two main methods to freeze berries: directly using a freezer bag, or flash freezing.
Flash freezing is where the berries are first spread onto a parchment lined sheet pan and frozen, then the frozen berries can be put into a freezer bag so they don’t freeze into a mushy berry ice block.
Note: Chickens do like berry ice blocks on hot days! They’re less fun and usable for us beak-less humans though.
The benefit to flash freezing is that the berries won’t stick together once they are in the bag. This way you can easily use only the amount of berries you need at one time, and leave the rest in the freezer.
Some berries, like blueberries, don’t need flash freezing because they won’t stick together even if they are put directly into a bag and frozen that way.
However, other berries like strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries do better with flash freezing since they’re more outwardly juicy.
To Wash or Not To Wash Berries
Washing berries before freezing is fine, but they need to be completely dry before freezing.
Some berries like raspberries and black raspberries are very delicate and you may want to consider not washing them before freezing.
I generally only freeze berries that I have grown myself or have picked at a local farm in bulk, so I’m usually not too concerned about washing them first.
Just make sure to sort through the berries and discard any that are blemished or have rotten spots and you should be good to go!
Freezing Strawberries
The best way to freeze strawberries is to use the flash-freezing method.
First, slice off the stem and put the strawberries on a parchment-lined sheet pan with space between each berry. Then put the whole sheet pan into the freezer overnight.
In the morning, remove the sheet pan from the freezer and store the frozen strawberries in freezer bags or containers.
Freezing Blueberries
Blueberries tend not to stick together when frozen directly in a freezer bag or container, so they do not need to be flash-frozen.
It’s preferable to not wash blueberries before freezing, so their natural coating stays intact. It protects the blueberries from growing bacteria and getting freezer burn. So skip washing them if you can!
The best way to freeze fresh blueberries is to simply put them in a freezer bag or container and put them in the freezer! This also applies to wild blueberries, huckleberries, and bilberries. Easy peasy.
Freezing Blackberries and Raspberries
Raspberries and blackberries are best frozen using the flash freezing method, as they tend to stick together if frozen directly in a bag.
First, spread the berries onto a parchment-lined sheet pan, then put the whole sheet pan into the freezer overnight.
The next morning, remove the sheet pan from the freezer and store the frozen raspberries or blackberries in freezer bags or containers. This way you can use just the amount you need each time.
Raspberries and blackberries are aggregate berries, meaning they are made up of clusters of smaller fruit and are more delicate than strawberries or blueberries.
The flash-freezing method works best for all aggregate berries such as:
- black raspberries
- thimbleberries
- dewberries
- boysenberries
- marionberries
- loganberries
- tayberries
- mulberries
- salmonberries
- cloudberries
How to Use Frozen Berries
Once you’ve got frozen berries in the freezer, the options are endless! They’re great on yogurt, in oatmeal, or on top of ice cream. They can be added to baking recipes, or made into jam too.
Most frozen berries will last in the freezer for up to a year, sometimes longer. That means summer berries all year round! Make sourdough blueberry pancakes, blackberry kombucha, or strawberry rhubarb crisp.
If you need happy hour like I always do, try out this frozen blueberry margarita or a boozy frozen raspberry lemonade. Or, make blackberry mead!
You are doing humanity a great service. Thanks for generously sharing your expertise and encouragement.
I’ve always heard freezing raspberries makes them more tart when used afterwards–do you find that to be true and if so, how do you offset that? (i.e. eating them straight from the ziplock bag) Thanks!
Terry
You could try tossing them in a little sugar before freezing to help maintain their sweetness as they thaw. I don’t thaw frozen raspberries completely before I eat or use them in a recipe, so they don’t lose much of their sweet juice and if they do, it ends up in my tart or mouth!
Many thanks – we have transferred from a certified organic produce farm into a certified organic berry farm. This is first yr growing blackberries in a hi tunnel – oddles and oddles 💖. We are you pick, but can offer your information to Our farm friends.
Sue
Something I learned last year from 2 elders who had an exquisite organic berry farm for many years, 2023 was their last year! So far, I’ve found this works perfectly for strawberries and blueberrieg and I’ve frozen cranberries similarly too! And it involves NO PLASTIC whatsoever!
Immediately upon buying my just~picked strawberries, I get busy stemming them to prepare them for freezing. I line cookie sheets with parchment and lay out the berries one layer thick and freeze.
In my freezer (I believe a freezer that ISN’T frost free works better than the more modern ones which seem to dehydrate foodstuffs!), I place a clean cardboard box, preferably with no dyes, into which I set a clean brown paper grocery bag, as large as I can find.
As the berries reach their frozen state, I transfer them into the bag. Once full, I seal the bag by simply rolling the top down a couple of turns, then tuck in the 4 flaps on the cardboard box over and under each other. If required, a sheet of brown paper can be placed on top of the brown bag before closing the box flaps.
And that’s it! My berries don’t get any frost buildup and keep their ‘just picked’ quality surprisingly well until the next season’s berries are almost ready!
No more plastic storage for me for berries … the quality and retention difference is truly remarkable!
Great tips, Eileen. Thanks for sharing!!