What I found out when I tried 4 different methods for keeping new strawberries fresh and delicious.
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I absolutely love using plump and juicy strawberries in my home- cooked recipes, especially in my homemade desserts. However, as any other home- baker probably knows, strawberries tend to start going bad way sooner than one might expect. That is just no good! Since the strawberries play such a big role in any recipe they are used in, they need to remain fresh for as long as possible. Luckily, there are a few easy methods that we can use at home to accomplish just that! I was always familiar with one particular method, but as I came across a few other strawberry- saving ideas I decided to experiment for myself to see which methods actually worked the best and kept the strawberries fresh for the longest.
In my experiment I tested out 4 different ways to save and store my fresh strawberries. I tried 3 methods to prolong the life and freshness of my berries and kept 1 set unprepared to see how much of a difference using these methods actually makes. I ran this berry fun experiment for 8 days, leaving each set of strawberries in the exact same condition as they were after being prepared. That just means I left the berries in their separate storage bowls the whole time and only uncovered them to check on the berries so as not to tamper with the results of my kitchen experiment. Overall, this was a very enlightening project for me and I learned a few important key factors that I am excited to share with you so that you too can have the same sweet strawberry success!
Equipment for ALL Strawberry- Saving Methods
For all of the methods I tried in my experiment I used pretty much the exact same tools and materials. Some of the methods do require an extra tool but all of the tools listed are common household items that you probably already have in your kitchen. For any of the following strawberry- saving methods, you will need:
Strawberry- Saving Method #1: Vinegar Bath
This vinegar bath method is probably one of the most well- known and commonly used methods for prolonging the life of strawberries. I myself used this particular method for many years because I always thought it was the most practical and had the best end results. Through my experiment though, I actually found out that it’s not entirely the case. Now, don’t get me wrong. This method is still the preferred way in certain cases such as when you need the strawberry to remain whole, like in Chocolate- Dipped Strawberries for example.
Extra equipment needed for this method:
- Measuring cups
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup white vinegar
- 2 cups water cold
- Fresh strawberries
Add more vinegar and water if needed to make sure all the strawberries get to soak evenly.
How to Keep Strawberries Fresh with a Vinegar Bath:
- First, measure out the white vinegar and cold water. Mix the vinegar and water into a large glass mixing bowl, then drop in the strawberries.
- Let the strawberries soak in their vinegar bath for about 5 minutes. Then, transfer the berries to a spider strainer and rinse under cold water.
- After rinsing, move the strawberries to a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Dry off the strawberries with a few more paper towels, then let the berries sit to finish drying completely.
- Finally, line a glass storage bowl with another paper towel and place the strawberries inside. Cover the top of the bowl with Press N’ Seal food wrap and store in the fridge until you’re ready to use them.
- These vinegar bath- prepared strawberries will stay fresh for 7 days.
Strawberry- Saving Method #2: Ball Fruit Fresh Produce Protector
I was a little surprised with this produce- protector soaking method. This Ball Produce Protector is a powder used specifically to prolong the freshness and life of any produce without changing any natural flavors. Since its sole purpose is to keep produce fresh for longer I assumed that it would do a really good job in my experiment. It certainly did prolong the life and freshness of the strawberries, but not for as long as the other methods I tried. Since the other methods only require common household items, it seems clear that this Ball fruit powder is not really the best method to use, but it does still work.
Extra equipment needed:
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients:
- 4 tsp Ball Fruit Fresh Produce Protector
- 2 cups water cold
- Fresh strawberries
How to Keep Strawberries Fresh with Ball Fruit- Fresh Produce Powder
- First, measure out the Ball fruit powder and cold water. Mix them into a large glass mixing bowl, then drop in the fresh strawberries.
- Let the strawberries soak for about 5 minutes. Then, transfer the berries to a spider strainer and rinse under cold water.
- After rinsing, move the strawberries to a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Dry off the strawberries with a couple more paper towels, then let the berries sit to finish drying completely.
- Finally, line a glass storage bowl with another paper towel and place the strawberries inside. Cover the top of the bowl with Press N’ Seal food wrap and store in the fridge until you’re ready to use them.
- These Ball fruit powder- prepared strawberries will stay fresh for 5 days.
Strawberry Recipes
Strawberry- Saving Method #3: Hulled – The Winner of My Experiment
This pre- hulled method actually turned out to keep the strawberries fresh for the longest in my little kitchen experiment. Since this process demands that the strawberries be cut into, it is not always the best option if you’re trying to achieve an aesthetically- pleasing look though.
Now, I have seen where some other people who have tried this particular method have not been quite as successful with it as I was. From what I could conclude from their experiences, this was most likely due to the way in which they stored the strawberries after preparing them. For this method to work properly, you need to make absolutely certain that you store the pre- hulled strawberries properly.
Extra equipment needed for hulling:
- Small knife or paring knife
Ingredients:
- 2 cups water cold
- Fresh strawberries
How to Keep Strawberries Fresh by Hulling
- First, transfer the strawberries to a large glass mixing bowl and cover with the cold water.
- Let the strawberries soak for about 5 minutes. Then, transfer the berries to a spider strainer and rinse under cold water.
- After rinsing, move the strawberries to a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Dry off the strawberries with more paper towels, then let the berries sit to finish drying completely.
- Next, use a small knife to carefully cut around and remove the hull from the top of each of the berries.
- Finally, line a glass storage bowl with another paper towel and place the strawberries inside. Cover the top of the bowl with Press N’ Seal food wrap and store in the fridge until you’re ready to use them.
- These pre- hulled strawberries will stay fresh for 11 days.
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Strawberry- Saving Method #4: Original, No Prep Method
To be able to properly test out the results of these strawberry- saving methods I needed to have some unprepared strawberries to be able to compare results with. For these original, unprepared berries all I did was:
- Transfer them to a storage bowl lined with paper towels, just like the sets of prepared strawberries.
- Covered the top of the bowl with the Press N’ Seal food wrap and stored them in the fridge.
- These unprepared strawberries stayed fresh for only 2 days.
Kitchen Tips:
- If you have a salad spinner in your home kitchen then you can use it to speed up the drying process without damaging any of the strawberries. This is my personal preferred drying method.
- If you run into some strawberries that have a little bit of rot on them, you don’t have to toss them out! Just cut off the bad spot and freeze the good part for later use.
- The paper towels work to absorb any moisture the berries may release which greatly helps keep them from going bad too soon while in storage.
- Using cellophane food wrap instead of an airtight lid is vital to making sure the strawberries stay fresh for several days. Believe it or not, they need a little breathing room to stay fresh.
Final Thoughts and Blissful Berry Recipes
Overall, I am very happy that I decided to experiment and test out these methods for myself. I learned a lot about what exactly the key factors are for prolonging berry freshness. My conclusion from this experiment is that the best method for keeping the berries fresh the longest is the pre- hulled method, with the vinegar bath coming in as the runner up. Again, different baking situations will call for different methods but overall you are going to have much better luck keeping those strawberries fresh if you do use one of these methods versus not doing any extra prep to the strawberries at all. Final thought: It is well worth the few extra minutes it takes to prepare these strawberries to keep them fresh and at their very best.
Prepared strawberries can be used in all kinds of strawberry recipes. Here are some of my favorites:
- Fruit salad
- Cut in half and try in some homemade fruit- Infused Water
- Chocolate- Dipped Strawberries
- I highly recommend using the vinegar bath method for this particular recipe as it allows you to keep the whole strawberry intact.
- Gorgeous and easy topping for cakes like my Red Velvet Bundt Cake
- Use in some homemade Fruit Compote
- Also try as a beautiful, fresh topping on top of:
- Cupcakes
- Pies
- French Toast
- Pancakes
- Waffles
- Ice cream sundae
- Cheesecake
- Yogurt
- Perfect for fun snack boards such as:
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