Useful tips on how to store tomatoes in the freezer for the winter and for how long

Tomato is a perishable vegetable with a very limited shelf life.

Preparing for future use allows you to use the product in winter for preparing a wide variety of dishes.

In order for tomatoes to retain their beneficial properties as much as possible, freezing must be carried out in accordance with technology.

I will tell you in the article whether it is possible to store tomatoes in the freezer.

Can it be kept in the freezer?

Freezing vegetables is a fairly popular way to preserve crops for a long time.. You can freeze vegetables at home if the household appliance maintains a temperature of -18°C or lower.

It is recommended to choose for freezing fruits of varieties with dense pulp and skin, and that retain their shape well, for example, cherry tomatoes, cream, etc.

Shelf life of frozen tomatoes

In order for the frozen food to last for a year, the temperature in the freezer must be stable, about -18-20°C. If the temperature is not maintained at the required level, the tomatoes will not be able to stay in the freezer for a long time. The shelf life of tomatoes depends on several factors.

You need to pay attention to the following points:

• freezer conditions;
• type of workpiece;
• packaging reliability;
• initial quality of the fruit.

Once frozen tomatoes are defrosted, they should not be returned to the freezer. They should be used immediately, before they begin to lose their qualities. The container for freezing must be airtight.

How to freeze correctly?

The process of freezing tomatoes includes several stages. First, vegetables are sorted according to ripeness and size.. Then they are washed and dried.

Further actions will depend on the form in which the tomatoes will be frozen. Options: slicing, blanching and beating with a mixer.

Circles

To be able to effectively arrange tomatoes on pizza in winter, they need to be cut into slices before freezing. Small, dense, non-watery fruits are suitable for this preparation.

Procedure:

1. After washing and drying, the tomatoes are cut into circles 5-10 mm thick.
2. The resulting pieces are laid out in one layer on a cutting board and placed in the freezer in this form.
3. After a few hours, when the mugs have become hard, they can be transferred to a tight ziplock bag or food-grade plastic container and placed back in the freezer.

The knife for cutting tomatoes must be very sharp.

This video will show you how to freeze tomatoes into slices:

Pieces with skin

For harvesting, you need to select tomatoes that are not watery and have a dense consistency. The less juice they contain, the better.

Procedure:

1. After initial processing, the cores should be removed.
2. Cut vegetables into large pieces.
3. If juice is released, it is better to drain it.
4. Place the workpiece into separate containers. If bags are used, the air must be released from them.
5. Place the packages in the freezer.

Without skin

If the recipe calls for tomatoes without skin after thawing, blanching will be necessary.

This can be done correctly as follows:

1. It is necessary to make cross-shaped cuts on each fruit.
2. Place the tomatoes in a saucepan.
3. Pour boiling water over it.
4. Leave for half a minute.
5. Remove tomatoes from boiling water.
6. Peel off the skin, starting from the cut point.
7. To drain excess liquid, place the peeled tomatoes in a colander.

After this, the tomatoes are cut into pieces and placed in the freezer. If it is very important that they do not stick together, they are first frozen in one layer, and only then transferred to a container or bag.

Puree

If the tomatoes are to be used for making sauces, they can be frozen as a puree. For compact storage of the workpiece and ease of freezing in the future, You should prepare small molds for freezing.

This will allow the cut to divide the workpiece into portions so that you do not have to defrost more product than is necessary for one use.

Procedure:

1. After initial processing and removal of the stalk, the tomatoes are blended with a blender.
2. The resulting mass should be poured into molds.
3. Place the molds in the freezer for about 5 hours.
4. After the puree has hardened, you can remove it from the molds and pour it into a bag or container, and put it in the freezer in this form.

Tomato puree in bags for the winter, video recipe:

Entirely

Small cherries can be frozen whole. After the tomatoes are washed, they need to be dried very thoroughly on a paper towel. Then they are put into a bag and sent to the freezer.

To prevent the cherry tomatoes from sticking together into one lump when frozen, after a few hours in the freezer they need to be taken out and shaken up.

This video will show you how to freeze cherry tomatoes:

How to use the workpiece?

Frozen tomatoes have a very wide range of uses. They are especially often used in the preparation of:

• lecho;
• vegetable snacks;
• pizza;
• stew, etc.

Video on the topic of the article

Several ways to freeze tomatoes are presented in the video:

Conclusion

Using frozen tomatoes results in significant savings in winter. In addition, vegetables are always at hand and can be used quickly and effortlessly.

Freezing is convenient to use, and in the case when freezing and storage took place according to the rules, useful substances are also preserved in tomatoes.