nightshade
Garden Ornament
Hi all I was wondering if it's possible to can strawberries? I know you can freeze them but they never seem to taste quite right to me thawed.
canning strawberries is it possible?
- Thread starter nightshade
- Start date
Reinbeau
Deeply Rooted
I doubt they'd taste any better canned! I think this is why they invented jam and jelly 
Hencackle
Garden Ornament
I'm with Reinbeau on that subject. You're right about the texture and taste of thawed plain strawberries. I've made freezer jam and I think the strawberries in that are better--it could be that packing strawberries in a sugar syrup aka "simple syrup" will make a better thawed product.
The flash freezing method that the frozen food industry uses for whole berries works out better than the slow chill of home freezing. I watched a Good Eats episode where Alton Brown put dry ice in a cooler and used that as a homemade flash freezer. I haven't tried it, but it looks like a fun experiment.
Edited to add link: Good Eats Strawberry Sky episode
The flash freezing method that the frozen food industry uses for whole berries works out better than the slow chill of home freezing. I watched a Good Eats episode where Alton Brown put dry ice in a cooler and used that as a homemade flash freezer. I haven't tried it, but it looks like a fun experiment.
Edited to add link: Good Eats Strawberry Sky episode
patandchickens
Deeply Rooted
Unfortunately no, there is no way on earth to replicate the fresh-strawberriness of a fresh strawberry. The purpose is to make us appreciate June all the more 
IMO your best bet for flavor is to use one of the strawberry preserves (or jam) recipes that do NOT cook the strawberries, or cook them only minimally, and instead have them sitting for a long time to let what little pectin they have develop naturally. (As opposed to the 'boil the heck out of 'em and dump a packet o' pectin in' type recipes). Then just make sure not to process them any longer than is needed for food safety.
And dream of next June
(And plant some everbearing [day-neutral] ones, to extend the season, which although the flavor isn't quite as good are still WAY better than frozen or jam).
Pat
IMO your best bet for flavor is to use one of the strawberry preserves (or jam) recipes that do NOT cook the strawberries, or cook them only minimally, and instead have them sitting for a long time to let what little pectin they have develop naturally. (As opposed to the 'boil the heck out of 'em and dump a packet o' pectin in' type recipes). Then just make sure not to process them any longer than is needed for food safety.
And dream of next June
(And plant some everbearing [day-neutral] ones, to extend the season, which although the flavor isn't quite as good are still WAY better than frozen or jam).
Pat
