Freeze Applesauce The Right Way
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People love apples. They love everything about an apple. They love an apple raw, cooked, or any form possible. Apple-pie applesauce, apple-chips, apple-butter, and the list goes on. You can feed someone apple snacks every day and I bet they will not complain forever. Apple-pie is one famous snack made of apple. But recently we got our attention on applesauce. It is sweet, tasty, easy to make, easy to store, and whatnot. Let’s get into how to make and freeze applesauce.
But regarding storing this snack and using it at any time of the year, we have seen problems. But with the proper strategy, we can always freeze applesauce and use it throughout the year. In this discussion let us talk about it in detail.
1. Selecting the apples
This is the first step of the whole process. Selecting fine apples is always an added advantage. When you go out for selecting apples for your applesauce, your priority should be getting your hands on the fresh apples.
You can detect them almost right away. They don’t look dull. They look full. Fresh fruits have a vibrant color. So detecting them certainly will not bother you that much. Mcintosh and Golden delicious will give you a classic flavor in your apple sauce. Fuji and Cortland are fine too.
2. Preparing your apples
After you bought them from the market, it is essential to make them germ-free. Boil them in low heat in clean water for a little time. That will make it germ-free. Now you have to peel the skin off the apples.
Using a vegetable peeler is the best to use. But if you are confident with your knife skills you can go with a knife also. Slowly peel away the skin. Try not to cut any portion of the core here. If you do accidentally then keep it for later use.
Now the next step comes where you have to cut and produce equal slices of the apple. Knife skills are necessary here. Cut straight. Leave them in two halves if you want to. If it’s a big apple go for six to eight pieces or even more if you want. But for small apples lower your piece count.
Clean your apple. Leave off any unnecessary parts. You can leave the middle portion of your apple. Making sauce with this thing sounds a little absurd. So you need to scoop it out before the main play. Use a big spoon or you can cut in a circular motion also.
Best practices are to cut in small pieces because then the process of making sauce gets quicker. The big size of the piece will lead to more cooking time. And smaller pieces will lead to less than average time. So if you don’t have any special requirements, go with the smaller pieces.
3. Cooking the apple
Bring the pieces in the pot where you will cook. Add water accordingly. Do not give too much water. Your sauce can become watery because of that. One more important thing is if you think the apples are sticking to the pot during cooking, add more water.
Give low to medium heat to the mixture. You do not need to stir the mixture continuously. Give it a good simmer until the pieces are soft. You can add sweetener or sugar if you want. It depends on individual preference
If the apples are sweet, you can cancel the sugar part. Any external species are welcome in this step. You can add cinnamon or nutmeg to the mixture. The quantities will depend on the one who is cooking the mixture.
4. Making the sauce
After around 15 minutes, turn off the flames of your stove. Now certainly the mixture has gotten thick. The pieces have become softer. Now you have to do one more important thing. You can use a blender for creating a smoother texture here.
Blend the thick mixture in the mixture. Blend twice for more smoothness. The final color depends on the apple that you used in making. Pour in a jar or a big pot. Wait for it to become cold. Make sure to get everything from the blender. You can mix some nuts in the blender with it too.
5. Freeze Applesauce
People want to savor this beautiful snack throughout the year. But applesauce has a shelf life of only a few weeks. Then what to do? The answer is freezing it. Freezing the applesauce can considerably extend its shelf life.
Some might want to freeze the sauce or some may just keep it in the refrigerator. It depends on the needs of someone. If you are using a bag then make sure to get all the air out of it. Use a straw for that purpose.
Pour the sauce into the bag. It is wise to use a bag, to be honest. It is more user friendly and convenient to use. So go with it accordingly. If you want to use it for a few weeks then do not freeze your applesauce. Just give it a good chill.
If you decide to use a container, then you have to leave some space before packing the container. Because when the applesauce gets frozen it can penetrate the sides or the edges if you leave it without some space. To avoid that to happen at least leave one centimeter between the container and the apple sauce layer.
6. Label Applesauce Bags
This part is for the people who want to enjoy their applesauce every season. Label your freezer bags before entering them in the deep freezer. Write down the date, the quantity, etc. Do not forget to check once in a while. Label your container too.
The next and final step comes now. When you want to get some of your applesauce, getting it frozen is a work of a fool. Boil your container or bag in low heat. When it gets warm, then you need to bring it out and serve. That way you can enjoy this awesome dish to its full taste.
