Many people wonder whether it is possible to freeze melon. After all, melon is not the best berry to freeze for the winter. However, this does not stop lovers of frozen fruits, and they still freeze. Freezing it yourself is quite difficult, and therefore it is recommended that you familiarize yourself in advance with how to freeze melon for the winter and what recipes you can use for this.
Some features of freezing
To understand how to properly freeze melon for the winter at home, you need to familiarize yourself with the main features of this process.
At low temperatures, vegetables and fruits can retain their taste and beneficial properties. However, sub-zero temperatures change the tissue structure of fruits that are frozen. The destructive effect directly depends on how much moisture is in the pulp. If there is too much of it, the fruit tissue will break down much faster. Also, shelf life largely depends on the degree of freezing.
Melon frozen at a temperature of about -5 degrees will retain its freshness for 2-3 weeks. If this indicator is reduced to -15 degrees, the shelf life will increase to two months.
It is recommended to freeze fruits and vegetables at a temperature of about -20 degrees, since in such conditions the melon will be stored for a year.
Quite often, fruits in the freezer begin to lose moisture and absorb foreign odors. To get rid of these problems, it is recommended to close the bags or containers with fruits tightly.
To freeze melon for the winter in the freezer, it is recommended to use small containers. This is much more convenient, since you will not need to constantly defrost a large amount of fruit. The following containers should be used to store fruit:
- Ziploc bags that handle low temperatures without problems;
- containers with a tight lid.
Freezing fruit ice
There are different recipes and methods for freezing fruits for winter storage. However, many people use this particular freezing method. To do this you will need quite a few ingredients:
- melon;
- sugar.
Before you start freezing the berries, you should prepare them for this. First, you need to completely peel it.The fruit is then cut in half so that it can be cleaned of all the seeds that are inside. Many people prefer to freeze melon in pieces, so it should be cut into small cubes.
Once you've finished cutting the fruit, you can start creating melon ice. To do this, place the chopped cubes in a small bowl and grind them using a blender. The result should be a liquid puree, which after cooking must be sprinkled with sugar and mixed thoroughly. Then the resulting mixture is poured into special molds for freezing ice. After this, the mixture can be distributed into containers and placed in the freezer for further storage.
Melon sorbet
There are other recipes for making melon dessert. To create an ice cream dish, you will have to prepare the following ingredients in advance:
- 200 g sugar;
- Melon;
- 400 ml water;
- watermelon;
- 100 ml lemon or orange juice.
Freezing a dessert begins with preparing the main ingredients that will be used to create it. First you need to peel the melon and cut it into several pieces. Then all the pulp and seeds are removed from the fruit. After this, the chopped pieces can be passed through a meat grinder or placed in a bowl to be chopped with a blender. Then the watermelon is peeled, cut into small cubes and also chopped. The resulting puree is added to the melon mixture and mixed thoroughly.
Having finished preparing the main products, you should start preparing the syrup. To make it, pour some water with sugar into a small saucepan. The liquid is brought to a boil and mixed thoroughly. The syrup is then removed from the oven and cooled to room temperature.
The resulting syrup is added to the fruit puree, after which the mixture is distributed into small containers. Leave a few centimeters to the edge of the container and freeze the resulting dessert.
Before use, it is recommended to keep the finished sorbet at room temperature for several minutes to allow the winter dish to defrost.
Easy way
This freezing method is suitable for people who are not interested in complex recipes for preparing dessert for the winter. When freezing melon using this method, no ingredients are used other than the fruit itself.
First, the fruit is peeled and cut into several large pieces. Then each part is cleared of seeds and cut into small pieces about four centimeters in size. After this, all the pieces can be immediately transferred to containers or plastic bags. It is not recommended to freeze chopped melon in one large bag, as over time all the pieces will stick together and will be quite difficult to defrost.
Conclusion
Freezing vegetables and fruits is a rather difficult task, for which you should prepare in advance. It is recommended to study all the recipes for preparing melon dessert for the winter.
