Why freeze grapes for the winter: 5 options for freezing

In the ripening season of vitamin and juicy grapes, we feast on it to the full, stock up on vitamins. But in winter they are forced to be content with obscure berries from shops, which neither in taste nor in use can be compared to summer ones. Try freezing homemade grapes for the winter: freezing is one of the best ways to preserve summer benefits with minimal loss.

Why freeze?

Those housewives who have already tested the freezing of grapes unanimously vote for this method of storage. In the freezer, berries lie for 6–9 months without damage, but this delicacy is unlikely to be forgotten.

What gives freezing:

1. Most vitamins, trace elements and other nutrients in the pulp of grapes are preserved, in particular vitamin C, which is so necessary during colds.
2. The berries remain whole, do not lose shape (with proper preparation and defrosting). They are almost indistinguishable from fresh ones.
3. From freezing, you can cook stewed fruit, jam or other goodies at any time. If you do not have time to do conservation at the right time, the grapes will wait in the freezer.

Tip
purity.bigbadmole.com/en/ magazine notes that medium-late black and sweet grape varieties with a small number of seeds, for example, everyone's favorite raisins, are best stored. Due to the dense peel, these berries do not lose their elasticity during long-term storage in the cold. Sour white varieties will not be so tasty.

How to freeze: preparation and recipes

Grapes are most often frozen just like that - in whole form, but there are a number of recipes with additives. Consider the most interesting.

To begin with, a couple of tips on selecting berries and preparing them for freezing:

1. For storage, deformed and rotten berries are not suitable, they will have to be removed from the bunch. It is also worth abandoning unripe samples.
2. Rinse the selected berries gently with water, try not to violate the integrity of the peel.
3. When you wash off all the dust, carefully transfer the grapes to a napkin and let the moisture soak in. Wet grapes cannot be frozen - it will stick together.
4. It is convenient to dry whole brushes - just hang them by a twig.

To freeze whole berries, you will need another stage of preparation, but this is not necessary. Lay out clean and dry berries on a tray covered with parchment paper. Put the tray in the refrigerator and hold it there for several hours. The grapes should cool gradually, then by winter it will still be delicious.

Tip
If you have a modern freezer, set lower storage temperatures. Also put the grapes in a separate chamber with vegetables, fruits and berries. From meat, fish and convenience foods, berries can be saturated with an unpleasant odor.

Whole freeze

Large brushes, twigs or individual berries can stick together during storage, if you do not prepare them in a special way:

1. Arrange the fruits so that they do not touch.
2. Hold in the freezer for 6-8 hours.
3. When everything freezes, pack in small bags or containers. Do not tamp, let the berries sit freely.
4. Servings should be convenient, as grapes cannot be re-frozen. We recommend not to put more than 2-3 brushes in one bag.
5. Leave some air in the bag.

Frozen grapes are hard, berries do not stick together, they are easy to separate from twigs.

Grapes in sugar

A delicious addition to cereals, compotes and various desserts - grapes in sugar.Prepare the berries as described above and just sprinkle them with sugar. Store portioned in sealed bags.

Syrup Harvesting

This method is recommended for freezing white grapes, which are stored in the cold a little worse than its black counterpart.

Thanks to sugar, such fruits will remain palatable. Recipe:

1. Prepare sugar syrup, proportions: water - 2 cups, sugar - 1 cup.
2. Fill the container with berries, fill with syrup. Do not pour to the top, the syrup in the freezer will expand a little.
3. Send for storage.
4. Use for cooking compotes.

Drunk grapes

A winter treat for the most daring. Prepare white grapes of any kind and white wine, sugar will still be needed.

How to cook an unusual snack:

1. Rinse and dry the grapes.
2. For 2 glasses of wine - ¼ cup of granulated sugar. Mix well.
3. Pour the grapes with wine.
4. Keep the workpiece in the refrigerator for about 12 hours so that the berries are saturated with a wine aroma.
5. Drain the wine, dry the berries with napkins and roll in fine granulated sugar.
6. Freeze and pack in small containers. Now your winter get-togethers with girlfriends over a glass of wine will be decorated with astringent summer treats.

Grape puree

You need a seedless variety. Rinse, dry and twist the grapes in a meat grinder, or chop with a blender. Add sugar if the variety is unsweetened. Store in small containers. It turns out an excellent additive to cereals, cottage cheese, fruit fillings.

Defrosting: Important Rules

Similar to freezing, the thawing process should occur gradually. First, a bag of grapes is moved to the refrigerator. There he will slowly depart for several hours. Defrosting at room temperature will destroy the structure and negatively affect the taste.

Some housewives cut berries immediately after extraction. Large and hard grapes hold their shape well. Use this cut to decorate cakes and pastries.

If the hostess wants to cook grape compote or a filling for dessert, then prolonged defrosting is not required. However, be prepared that by thawing the grapes will give more water - this will plant dough. Compote with unfrosted berries boils longer, and it needs a little more time to take all the taste from the fruit.

Use a freezer to preserve summer benefits, experiment not only with familiar foods, but also with grapes. Such a treat in the winter will not disappoint anyone.