Ways to harvest blueberries for the winter
In order to preserve the beneficial properties of blueberries as much as possible, the berries are recommended not to be heat treated, not chopped or even washed.
Before harvesting, blueberries are carefully sorted out, getting rid of rotten and spoiled berries, leaves and other plant debris
Freezing
The fastest and easiest way of harvesting is freezing. If you picked blueberries yourself in an environmentally friendly place, then you can do without washing. It is better to rinse berries bought on the market with running water, removing all the debris, and then dry thoroughly, spreading them in one layer on a towel.
For freezing, take small containers or plastic bags, in which it is convenient to decompose the berries in portions so that they are then defrosted in the required amount. After thawing, blueberries remain tasty and practically do not "float", that is, they retain their shape, texture, color and aroma.
Frozen berries are used to prepare a variety of desserts, pastries, compotes and other dishes.
Drying
Another traditional way of harvesting, which allows you to preserve the usefulness of berries, is drying. Before drying, the harvested ripe fruits are reviewed, cleaned from litter, without washing or soaking.
At home, the easiest way to dry blueberries is in a special dryer or oven, especially if there is convection. The berries are laid out in one layer on a baking sheet and first dried for 2-3 days in air in a well-ventilated room or 2-3 hours in the oven at a temperature of 35-40 ℃, and then dried at 50-60 ℃. It takes quite a lot of drying time - 6-12 hours, depending on the size and juiciness of the berries. At the same time, keep the oven door slightly ajar or open it constantly and wipe off the accumulated condensation. Dried berries, if squeezed in the palm of your hand, should not clump together and stain the skin of your hands.
Well-dried blueberries are stored in a moisture-proof container under normal home conditions (in a dark, cool place) for up to 2 years
As one of the drying options, you can prepare blueberries with sugar for the winter without cooking in the form of a marshmallow.
Blueberry pastila
Many housewives prefer not to dry the whole berries, but to prepare a natural delicacy from them - marshmallow. Blueberries are often mixed with various fruits (apples, pears, apricots) or with vegetables that have a neutral taste, such as zucchini. In this case, the composition of the marshmallow, the proportions of the ingredients, the need for adding sugar are determined individually.
Ingredients:
- fresh blueberries - 1 kg;
- sugar - 1-2 tbsp. l. (taste).
Cooking technology:
- Kill whole clean dry berries (and other fruit and vegetable ingredients) into a homogeneous mass - puree in a blender, scroll through a meat grinder or steam and squeeze through a sieve. Sugar to taste.
- Spread the resulting puree on a baking sheet covered with parchment in a thin layer (3-4 mm) for even drying.
- Dry in the oven at a low temperature (+ 45… 50 ℃) for 4-6 hours or in a well-ventilated warm room for 4-5 days.
- Cut the finished pastille into strips and roll up. Place in a dry container, close the lid tightly and store in a cool, dark place.
Correctly dried pastila ceases to stick to the hands and is well removed from the parchment, remaining sufficiently elastic, unbreakable when folded.
An experienced hostess tells about the various ways of harvesting blueberries, including making pastilles, in the following video:
How to preserve blueberries
Fresh berries need to be eaten, eaten and re-eaten.And if you can't eat anymore and you want to make stocks, then you already need to stock up. There are many ways to prepare and preserve berries.
Drying blueberries and consuming them in powder form is not entirely correct, it is believed that traditional drying leads to the loss of up to 80% of anthocyanins. To reduce losses, drying is carried out at low temperatures and with complete exclusion of sunlight. It is best to store blueberries frozen (blueberry season begins in June and lasts about 2 months), then the least useful properties are lost. Based on the fact that freezing blueberries can lead to some loss of their beneficial properties, it is best to buy them based on the maximum daily allowance, that is, 4.5 kg.
We store blueberries in bottles - ripe, freshly picked blueberries must be carefully sorted out from leaves, needles, and other debris. Wash the bottles first and bake thoroughly (2 hours) in the oven. Pour the blueberries into a prepared chilled container, shaking gently (this way the berry will fit tightly). Then seal the bottles and fill with sealing wax. We store our treasure in a cool dry place.
Freeze blueberries - sort out blueberries, select large, ripe berries. Wash and dry. Pour onto a cardboard pallet with sides 2-2.5 cm high, put the pallet in the freezer. Sort the frozen berries into plastic bags, seal them and put them in the freezer for storage.
Drying blueberries - if you want to dry blueberries, then the berries should be picked in warm and sunny weather. Immediately after harvesting, no matter how lazy you are, you need to sort out the berry. Remove damaged and crushed, as well as "extra parts" - leaves, stalks, and so on. The selected berries must be rinsed (through a colander) and then dried (through a sieve). The berries are ready to dry. Blueberries can be dried in the sun, or in various dryers. If you chose the second way, then we remember that artificial drying begins at a temperature of 40-50 ° C, when the berries wither, we increase the temperature to 60-70. During drying, the baking sheet with berries must be shaken periodically. Shaking is needed in order to mix the berries and thereby ensure uniform drying. Dried berries are stored in a dry place. Shelf life is 2 years.
Evaporating blueberries is a good, economical way. We take glass jars, fill them with blueberries (pre-sorted). We put the jars in a saucepan with water, a saucepan on the stove (it turns out a water bath). When the berry begins to settle, add more. We do this until the berries stop settling. Then we roll up the cans and store them together with other stocks.
Blueberry juice - sort out the berries, wash, chop with a wooden pestle. Transfer the resulting pulp under the press. After the first pressing, the pulp remaining in the bag must be loosened, add 1-2 tbsp. spoons of hot water and squeeze again
It is important to extract the coloring matter of the berries as completely as possible. The acidity of natural blueberry juice is small, so it is diluted and a little sugar-coated
The calculation is as follows: 60-80 g of granulated sugar per liter of juice. Then the juice should be heated to 80 ° С, poured into containers, pasteurized at 85 ° С and rolled up.
Blueberries in their own juice (with sugar) - sort out the berries, wash and dry. Sprinkle the finished berries in jars, add a little sugar and shake well. Close the banks and sterilize. Banks with a volume of 0.7-0.9 liters are sterilized for 25 minutes (at a temperature of 90 ° C), cans with a volume of 0.5 liters - 20 minutes, at the same temperature. At the end of sterilization, the jars must be immediately cooled.
Blueberries in their own juice - sort out, wash, dry blueberries. Arrange in sterilized hot jars, pour over with blueberry juice. The juice should be heated to a temperature of 65-70 ° C, cover the cans and pasteurize: half-liter - 10 minutes (temperature 90 ° C), liter - 20 minutes (the same temperature). Store in a cool place.
Blueberry syrup — we need: 3 kg of blueberries. Sort the berries, rinse with cold water, put in a saucepan, add water and boil well. Squeeze the juice, mix it with sugar (1.5 kg) and boil for 5 minutes, periodically removing the foam. Pour the hot syrup into heated bottles. Seal the bottles hermetically and, wrapped in a blanket, allow to cool.
Pickled blueberries - in addition to blueberries, we need 100 ml of 5% table vinegar and 350 g of sugar. Vinegar and sugar are mixed and boiled for 5 minutes in an enamel bowl. Then add 1 kg of berries to the pan. All are boiled over low heat for 15 minutes. The resulting broth is poured, boiled for 10 minutes, and berries are again dipped into it. After that, add cinnamon and cloves, put them in sterilized jars, cover with lids. The cooled jars are wrapped.
Methods for freezing blueberries
First you need to purchase ripe berries without visible defects. Next, you need to separate them from crushed and spoiled berries, debris, stems and leaves. 
Whether you need to wash blueberries before freezing or wash ready-made frozen berries is up to you. If the fruits have retained their integrity and will not lose their shape and a lot of juice after washing them, then it is quite possible to carry out treatment with water before freezing.
Making supplies for the winter. Do not forget to prepare with blueberries: strawberries, pears, herbs, pumpkin, apples, raspberries, spinach, cilantro, apricots, dill, milk mushrooms, sorrel, cherries, gooseberries.
Wash blueberries in small portions in a large enough container of water. Then carefully put the berries in a colander. 
After that, it is imperative to thoroughly dry the blueberry berries by laying them out on paper towels so that they do not freeze together during processing with cold. Next, the fruits are ready for freezing. There are several ways to freeze blueberries.
Did you know? Blueberries are a must for astronauts. The useful substances contained in it are vital for them.
Freezing blueberries without sugar
To prepare frozen berries in bulk for the winter, place the prepared blueberries on a tray, large dish or baking sheet.
It is important that the berries are in one row. After that, they need to be placed in a quick freezer for one hour.
Further, frozen blueberries can be packaged in bags or containers, removed all air from the container and sent for long-term storage in the freezer.
Important! Defrozen berries cannot be frozen again. It is advisable to immediately pack the blueberries of the required amount, so that, if necessary, there is no risk of breaking the tightness of the container.
This will extend the shelf life, taste and useful qualities of the product.
It is advisable to immediately pack the blueberries of the required amount, so that if necessary, there is no risk of breaking the tightness of the container. This will extend the shelf life, taste and useful qualities of the product.
Freezing blueberries with sugar
If you prefer sweet blueberries or are afraid that the berries will freeze together, you can prepare frozen blueberries with sugar.
To do this, the berries prepared for freezing must be laid out in a container in layers, sprinkling with sugar. The ratio of blueberries to sugar should be approximately two to one.
Such blanks are stored in the freezer for a long time and are perfect for preparing fruit drinks, compotes, jelly and jelly, as well as filling for pies or dumplings.
Did you know? During World War II, blueberries were an essential part of the diet of British pilots. Thanks to its beta-carotene, their visual acuity improved and they could see in the dark.
Frozen puree with sugar
If the berries have crumpled a little, but nevertheless have not lost their integrity, you can make frozen puree with sugar from them.
To do this, they still need to be prepared - cleaned of debris, rinsed and dried.Then add sugar and use a blender to turn the mixture into a homogeneous mass.
If you need to get a sweet preparation, then the sugar necessary for mashed potatoes is added in equal proportion to the berries. For a more natural taste, you can cut the sugar dose by half. Arrange the prepared mass in containers, close tightly and send for freezing.
Children will love this raw jam. It can also be used to dress up pies and desserts.
Did you know? The first American colonists boiled blueberries in milk to produce a gray dye.
Frozen puree without sugar
To prepare sugar-free blueberry puree, you just need to beat the blueberry mass previously prepared for freezing with a blender. After that, put the workpiece in plastic containers, close tightly and send to the freezer.
The volume of containers should be small so that the puree is enough for exactly one use.
Important! Sugar-free frozen blueberry puree is ideal for feeding babies.
Frozen blueberry juice
In addition to berries and puree, blueberry fruits can be used to prepare healthy vitamin juice for long-term storage. It is necessary to squeeze juice from the prepared blueberries in any suitable way. Then pour it into small glasses or bottles, without refilling to the brim, close it tightly and send it to the freezing chamber. Such juice is much healthier and tastier than store counterparts. 
How to keep fresh blueberries for a long time?
The tips above apply to berries in small amounts. In the event that you have a lot of berries and you want to keep them mostly fresh, you can do it as follows:
As in the first case, first sort out the blueberries and get rid of the spoiled berries, and also remove the stalk (it can burn the berries during storage);
Prepare a vinegar solution in a ratio of 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water. The vinegar treatment will protect blueberries from mold;
Transfer the berries to a sieve or colander, and then place them in a vinegar solution for 20-30 seconds;
Then rinse the blueberries under cold water to get rid of any traces of vinegar;
Dry the berries outdoors or spread on paper towels;
After the berries are completely dry, transfer them to a container with an open valve and place in the refrigerator on the middle shelf.
Subject to these conditions and timely detection of spoiled berries, blueberries can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
How to store frozen blueberries
If you want to preserve the blueberries for several months, they must be frozen.
to get started, prepare a small, always dry, container. A baking sheet, cutting board, or tray will work;
sort out the berries and spread in one layer, evenly, but not tightly. There should be a small distance between them so that the berries are frozen one at a time;
place the container of blueberries in the freezer. It should freeze within 3-4 hours.
pour the fruits into a bag, preferably a vacuum bag, close it tightly and send it to the freezer.
Under these conditions, blueberries can be stored for up to 12 months.
Storing dried blueberries
Dried blueberries can be stored for quite a long time. To maximize its shelf life, follow a few simple rules:
picking berries is best done in warm and clear weather;
it is not worth collecting early in the morning, wait until the dew evaporates under the influence of sunlight;
disassemble the berries, get rid of the crumpled and damaged ones, remove the twigs, stalks and leaves;
rinse the fruits thoroughly under cold water;
leave the berry on a paper towel to drain all the water.
Once the water is completely drained, you can start drying the berries. They can be dried in an electric dryer, oven or air.
The berry will dry out in the air within 7-10 days. When drying in this way, do not leave the blueberries in the open sun, this will allow you to preserve the maximum benefit in them.
When drying in the oven, start with a temperature of 40 degrees, and then gradually increase it. With this drying, periodically shake and stir the berries so that the berries dry evenly.
Dried blueberries are best kept in paper or textile bags in a cool place. Dried berries are suitable for consumption for two years.
Shelf life of blueberries in the refrigerator
In the refrigerator, it is best to store the berries on the lower or middle shelf, since the optimum temperature is maintained there.
Unwashed berries can be stored in the refrigerator in containers for 7-10 days. Berries, cleared of debris and treated with an aqueous solution of vinegar, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Shelf life of blueberries in the freezer
If you plan to store blueberries in the freezer, then freezing should be done in 2 stages:
put the berries in a shallow container and put them in the freezer for 4-5 hours;
then remove the berries and pour into an airtight package.
The shelf life of blueberries in the freezer is 12 months.
Shelf life of blueberries at room temperature
You can store fresh blueberries at room temperature for up to 24 hours. For longer storage, it can be dried in the oven or in the air, and stored for two years.
Shelf life of blueberries in the refrigerator
from 7 to 30 days
Shelf life of blueberries in the freezer
12 months
Shelf life of blueberries at room temperature
up to 2 years
Home - Berries
- Shelf life of blueberries
How to freeze blueberries in the freezer for the winter
Freezing blueberries for the winter at home is carried out in several ways. The traditional way is with whole berries in plastic bags. You can grind until smooth with or without added sugar, then place in the freezer. The squeezed juice retains all active substances, it is frozen in compliance with certain rules.
How to properly freeze blueberries in bags
For harvesting for the winter, they take pre-peeled and dried fruits. Algorithm of actions:
- Place a dry, clean canvas napkin on a baking sheet.
- Spread out the blueberries in a thin layer.
- Placed in a freezer, turned on at the maximum mode.
- Leave for 2-3 hours, during which time the berries will become hard.
- Take out a baking sheet, pour the fruits into packaging bags, about half.
- Let the air out and tie.
Primary freezing can be carried out without additional container. Spread cellophane or baking paper at the bottom of the freezer. Blueberries are laid out in a thin layer, removed together with the lining material and packed in bags. With a large volume of product, pre-freezing manipulations are carried out several times. Packaged berries are removed to the refrigerator compartment with a temperature of at least -15 0 C.
How to freeze sugar blueberries
When the berries are completely frozen, there is a risk that they will freeze to each other. To avoid this, use a method using sugar. For 1 kg of blueberries, 0.5 kg of sugar is needed. The method involves preliminary washing of raw materials.
After the berries are completely dry, they are poured into a plastic container. The layer of fruits is sprinkled with sugar, the container is closed and immediately put to freeze in the chamber.
You can freeze the fruits in this way, if in the future they go for culinary purposes, the method is not suitable for dietary use.
Freezing blueberries for the winter in the form of mashed potatoes with sugar
Blueberry puree is prepared for freezing from ripe, clean raw materials without mechanical damage and sugar. The output product will be in the form of a liquid mass. The ratio of ingredients is selected to taste. To obtain sweet puree for 1 kg of fruit - 1 kg of sugar. To preserve the taste of the culture, 0.5 kg of sugar is enough.
- Mix raw materials with sugar.
- Beat with a mixer, blender or grind with a fine-mesh meat grinder on a grid.
- Packaged in portioned containers.
- Plastic cups with mashed potatoes are covered with cling film on top, containers - with a lid.
- Freeze in a refrigerator compartment.
Use frozen puree in cooking for desserts or as a filling for baked goods.
Freezing sugar-free blueberry puree
Freeze sugar-free blueberry puree for feeding babies from 6 months. The berry does not cause an allergic reaction, while it contains a large amount of nutrients necessary for the development of the child and normal digestion.
The process of making puree for freezing:
- Blueberries are pre-washed in a colander under hot running water.
- Lay out on a paper napkin, dry.
- Beat the berries with a blender so that there are no peel fragments in the mass.
- Poured, frozen.
How to properly freeze blueberry juice in the freezer
Freezing juice is prepared immediately after harvesting the fruit. Or they choose freshly picked, firm, dry berries when buying. They are washed, allow the water to drain well, you do not need to dry it. Squeeze the juice for freezing in the following way:
- Pound the fruit with a pestle for mashed potatoes. Gauze is pulled onto the pan in 2 layers, the mass is poured, squeezed.
- Interrupt with a blender and squeeze through cheesecloth.
- Pass through a meat grinder twice, squeeze the substance.
Poured into small plastic bottles or glasses, closed, frozen. The juice is not poured to the top; when frozen, the mass increases.
Blueberries, grated with sugar
The berry does not lose its value if it is rubbed with sugar and frozen in this form. It will restore vision, remove toxins, and clean blood vessels, despite the presence of a sweet component.
For the winter, without cooking, you can harvest all the berries, and then use them thawed, cook compotes based on them, make desserts and jams. The benefits of fresh berries are undeniable, so the less sugar there is in blueberries, the more useful the product will be and the more vitamins it will retain.
For 1 kg of fresh berries, you will need 0.2 kg of sugar. If you make jam in such a proportion, then it will ferment, but the berries that you defrost will not taste so sour.
Sugar is usually added after the blueberries have been grated; this can be done by hand or in a blender. Then pour sugar inside, stir, let the sugar grains dissolve and put the berries in bags or containers.
Using frozen blueberries
It is necessary to defrost blueberries gradually, removing the required amount of berries from the freezer and placing them in the main compartment of the refrigerator. When the ice comes off the fruits, remove them from the refrigerator and leave at room temperature until completely defrosted.
There are many ways you can use frozen blueberries.
It is an indispensable dietary supplement to hundreds of meals for those who are overweight. Indeed, due to its low calorie content and the presence of tannins, it helps to reduce body weight. Blueberries are added to the preparation of yoghurts, cocktails, fruit salads, and muesli.
Blueberries frozen with whole berries are used in many recipes to garnish dishes. Housewives add berries to pancakes, pies, cakes, casseroles, dumplings, muffins, jellies and ice cream. Drinks made from black fruits are also very tasty and healthy - compotes, fruit drinks, jelly.
Blueberries have indisputable positive properties, are tasty, healthy and unpretentious in freezing. Anyone will find a way to use this wonderful berry to their taste.
Common blueberries have long been known to us for their extremely beneficial properties. In medicine, blueberry leaves and shoots are successfully used to treat diabetes mellitus and many other diseases. Berries, in addition to medicine, are used in the cosmetic and food industries. Fresh fruits will delight us in summer and autumn, and in order to be available all year round, they are frozen.Frozen blueberries retain all the beneficial properties of fresh berries and serve as an excellent alternative in winter and spring.
Blueberry wine
Consider how to make real homemade dry blueberry wine. Collect 3 kg of fresh berries, wash them and crush them completely.
Important! For the correct preparation of an alcoholic drink, it is important to use only freshly picked berries. As the cooking experience shows, if the blueberries ferment a little, then the drink will get a not very pleasant smell .. The resulting mixture is laid out in a large glass container and 2 kg of sugar are added
Pour all 3 liters of water, and put several layers of gauze on the neck of the bottle and leave in a warm place for three days. During this time, primary fermentation should begin. After the time has elapsed, the composition is filtered. The bottle is thoroughly washed and refilled with the already strained juice. Additionally, a pre-mixed glass of honey and a liter of water are added. Seal with a water seal and leave for 2 months in a warm place. Then they filter, wash the bottle and insist again, only in a cool place
The resulting mixture is placed in a large glass container and 2 kg of sugar are added. Pour all 3 liters of water, and put several layers of gauze on the neck of the bottle and leave in a warm place for three days. During this time, primary fermentation should begin. After the time has elapsed, the composition is filtered.
The bottle is thoroughly washed and refilled with the already strained juice. Additionally, a pre-mixed glass of honey and a liter of water are added. Seal with a water seal and leave for 2 months in a warm place. Then they filter, wash the bottle and insist again, only in a cool place.
After the last two months, they are strained for the last time and poured into small bottles, which can be stored for a long time if they are practically in a horizontal position. You can use it after such storage for at least 60 days, during which time the wine will acquire an amazing shade and original taste.
Useful properties of blueberries
Blueberries are an excellent antiseptic and antibiotic. Berries and a decoction of the leaves are used to treat cough or throat.
Diseases of the stomach, colitis are treated with blueberry juice and broth, fresh and dry berries. Constipation is treated with fresh berries and diarrhea with dried berries. In blueberries there are substances that have disinfecting effects, the intestinal microflora improves, and putrefactive processes inside the intestines are prevented.
Bilberry has anti-inflammatory effect and is used for diseases of rheumatism, gall bladder, liver.
In ancient times, healers advised blueberries to regulate the menstrual cycle. Today, blueberry-based preparations fight diseases of the bladder and kidneys.
For complications from diabetes, blueberries help lower blood sugar and stabilize organs and glands.
Blueberries are used in cosmetic preparations designed to moisturize the skin and have an anti-inflammatory effect.
Blueberries remove toxins (free radicals), which are directly related to the aging process and destruction of the whole organism.
Blueberries are used not only for diseases, but also for prevention. The use of drugs using blueberries in the composition, as well as the berries themselves, leads to an increase in immunity, the prevention of the development of diseases of the cardiovascular system, and improves the functioning of all organs.
Blueberries also have a dietary value: a few dozen calories, and you have already enriched yourself with a huge amount of vitamins and minerals
When losing weight, pay attention to blueberries: they have everything the body needs: carbohydrates, proteins, fiber, but few calories