When freezing your strawberries there are many options to choose from depending on their end use. They can be frozen whole, sliced, mashed, pureed, unsweetened or in sugar. Strawberries frozen without sugar will keep, but may lose some of their flavor, texture, and color. However, unsweetened packs are desirable for sugar-free diets and for making jams later. Here're some suggestions that have worked for us.
Whole Strawberries
Wash, hull and drain the strawberries; place them in a single layer on a cookie sheet, then put trays into the freezer. Once the strawberries are frozen, put them in freezer quality bags, forcing out as much air as possible, and store in the freezer. For sweetened strawberries follow the method above, but for every 5 cups of strawberries gently mix with 3/4 cup sugar.
Sliced Sweetened Strawberries
Wash, hull and slice the strawberries; using 1 cup sugar to 6 cups of strawberries, gently mix the sliced strawberries with sugar and let stand for 10 minutes or until the sugar dissolves. Then, package in plastic freezer containers, leaving half an inch of headspace. Another option, also using 6 cups of strawberries, is to dissolve 1 cup sugar and 1 cup corn syrup in 2 cups of water and chill. Slice strawberries into plastic freezer containers and cover with cold syrup, leaving half an inch of headspace. Both yield about 3 pints for each 6 cups of strawberries.
Mashed or Pureed
Wash, hull and mash or puree strawberries. Add sugar to taste, if you wish. Pack into small plastic freezer containers or pour about a 1/2 cup into each pint freezer bag or you can also pour into ice cube trays. For the first two options, seal bags and freeze. For the last option, remove cups once they are frozen and store them in plastic freezer bags. Freezing in smaller amounts makes the freeze and thaw time more manageable.
