Perhaps you couldn’t resist the reduced aisle at the supermarket and now have punnets full of berries. So what can you do? Can you freeze raspberries to use later? The great news is that raspberries freeze well so you can use them at your pace.
Having your own supply of berries straight from your own raspberry bush is one of life’s simple pleasures.
However, you might find yourself with more than you bargained for due to exceptional growing conditions. If you have a raspberry glut it can be difficult to know how to deal with it.
Jam is the obvious choice for using up raspberries but you can also freeze them ready to use in smoothies, sauces, muffins, cereals, desserts, and sorbets.
Let’s face it, raspberries are one of the pricier fruits to buy so having your own abundant supply in the freezer is genius.
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Preparing Fresh Raspberries For The Freezer
Before you begin the process of freezing those raspberries you should first remove any that are not in good condition.
Take out any that have blemishes, are starting to develop mould or any berries that are already too soft.
Washing
Once you’ve chosen the raspberries you’d like to freeze you should wash them gently and leave them in a colander until well-drained.
Do make sure that you run the tap at a low pressure. Raspberries are incredibly delicate fruit. They will bruise easily, and it’s possible to turn them to mush if you don’t exercise enough care.
Drying
Once your berries are rinsed, leave them to air dry on a paper towel.
It may be tempting to speed the process up by blotting your berries. However, the delicate skins will bruise easily. If you can, give them time to dry naturally to ensure you get the best possible result when you take them back out of the freezer to use later.
How Should Raspberries Be Frozen?
Freezing raspberries is a simple and painless task that doesn’t take much effort at all.
The only thing you should be mindful of is making sure your raspberries don’t stick together. This can be helpful if you wish to be able to take out small amounts from your container and use as you go..
How to Freeze Raspberries Whole
Raspberries are easiest to freeze whole. If you’ve followed the preparation steps above, you should have a pile of dry and clean raspberries ready to go.
- Prepare a tray and line with baking paper.
- Place your washed raspberries on the tray, evenly spread out.
- Flash freeze overnight.
- Once frozen, pop the raspberries into bags, label and freeze until ready to use.
- If you don’t mind the raspberries being clumped together, you can miss out on the steps for flash freezing.
Freezing Blended or Puréed Raspberries
If you have some excess raspberries that you’ve already made into a coulis or sauce, you’ll be pleased to know this can also be frozen.
This can also be a good way to minimise waste if a lot of your raspberries were bruised or already starting to soften.
- Prepare your coulis or sauce as normal.
- Allow to fully cool on the kitchen worktop.
- Once it’s cooled, pour into containers, bags, or ice cube trays with a label.
How Long Can Raspberries Be Frozen?
Raspberries will last in the freezer for up to 18 months meaning you can dip into your supply all year round. After 18 months they will start to lose their taste and lack in quality.
Make sure you have clearly labelled your raspberries before you put them in the freezer. You should also ensure the container you use is well sealed, and always resealed after opening.
This will ensure the quality of your frozen berries will be maintained as long as possible.
How To Defrost Raspberries Before Use
As we’ve already mentioned, in many cases you won’t need to defrost your raspberries before use.
In fact, in some scenarios such as making raspberry muffins, the texture will be better if you use them from frozen.
You can simply leave your raspberries in the fridge for 12 hours to defrost or leave them out on the side for a few hours. You could even use the microwave if your raspberries don’t need to retain their shape. Do bear in mind that due to the delicate nature of raspberries, there will always be some texture loss after defrosting.
This is one good reason why preparing your fruit as carefully as possible before freezing will help quality after defrosting.
Freezing Raspberries – Top Tip
If you are going to be using frozen raspberries in baking, don’t defrost them before you put them into your cake batter. You’ll get a better result in term of texture if you use them straight out of the freezer.
Freezing FAQ’s – Getting the Best from Your Berries
Here’s some commonly asked questions about freezing raspberries to help you further increase your freezer storage knowledge!
Raspberry purée can be used in a plethora of recipes, so it’s good to know you can freeze it for your convenience. You can simply pour the liquid into ice cube trays and once frozen, transfer the frozen cubes to sealable freezer bags. You can then get out the amount you need when you’d like to thaw some out.
Sometimes, freezing fruit can result in the texture completely changing once it’s thawed. You can freeze raspberries without them getting mushy by flash freezing them first. This means laying them out in a single layer on a tray and freezing. Once they are fully frozen, you can transfer them to a tub or bag and defrost at your convenience. It can also help to not wash them before freezing as the excess water will cause them to be soggy.
Raspberry mousse can be frozen and makes a wonderful after-dinner treat. For best results, prepare the mousse as normal and then transfer it into individual ramekins. Cover with cling film and pop into the freezer. Once you defrost your mousse you should consume it within 24 hours.
You can freeze raspberries without washing them first and there are advantages to doing so. It can prevent them from turning mushy once you thaw them out and of course, it’s also less time-consuming. Should you decide to wash them first, be sure you drain them very well before popping them into the freezer.
