How to Freeze Fresh Blueberries: A Step by Step Guide

I love blueberries so much. Learning how to freeze blueberries is a great way to preserve summer produce and use them for so many great recipes throughout the year! They freeze up beautifully and I actually love to eat them frozen as a snack! 

Last weekend I froze 20 pounds of blueberries!  My favorite spot to get blueberries is in West Michigan! My favorite spot is Fritz’s Blueberries in Paw Paw, Michigan. You can read about my experience u-picking blueberries there! I always get delicious berries and I know whether I pick them myself or buy they ready pick they are delicious. 

 

You can get ready pick boxes of 10 and 20 pounds or even get blueberries already frozen, but I like to get them fresh and freeze them myself! I like to be in control of the cleaning process and I want to make sure to do Step 4 for the best results! 

 

If you’ve never frozen blueberries before it is really easy process and worth doing for the fresh flavor and perfect texture compared to store bought frozen blueberries. You keep so much more of the delicious taste when you freeze fresh blueberries! 

How to Freeze Blueberries: Step by Step Guide

Step 1: Wash and Sort

First, wash the blueberries in cold water. As you wash remove stems, leaves, unripe, and  squishy berries. This is probably the longest part of the process, but it’s worth it to have a ready-to-go product.

Turn on a podcast or your favorite playlist and enjoy the relaxing flow of the water as you work. 

Step 2: Allow blueberries to drain and dry fully

Next drain off the excess water with a colander. Then set the blueberries on towels to dry and drain fully. Make sure you have room to spread them out. You don’t want them wet when you freeze them because they will get ice particles and clump together. 

Step 3: Prep for the Freezer

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer blueberries to baking sheet and spread in an even layer. Place cookie sheets of blueberries in freezer. 

Step 4: Flash Freeze the berries

Place the blueberries in the freezer for 2 hours to make sure they all freeze separately. A little longer or shorter doesn’t make too big of a difference! 

Step 5: Transfer to freezer bags or storage containers. 

Once flash frozen, transfer to 1 quart Ziploc freezer bags or a reusable freezer container making sure you remove as much air as possible.. I filled my bags with 3 cups of blueberries each. 

How long can you store blueberries in the freezer?

You can store your frozen blueberries in the freezer for up to a year. (They will probably last longer, but we always eat ours that fast or even more quickly!) 

How to thaw frozen blueberries?

Option 1: Place the blueberries in the refrigerator to thaw overnight or until thawed. Drain the juice off the blueberries. Use in any recipe as usual! 

Option 2: (Faster!) Use this method for when you want to thaw your blueberries faster. Place them in the sink in a bowl of with cold water. Move the bag around every once in a while and refresh the water as needed. 

The final step is of course to create yummy recipes from your frozen berries! Here are some of my favorite ways to use my frozen blueberries. They are all so incredibly tasty! 

Recipes to use Frozen Blueberries In

The BEST Blueberry Cobbler — one of the most popular recipes on my blog! 

Blueberry Baked Oatmeal — Love this for an easy, crowd-pleasing breakfast! 

Lemon Blueberry Muffins — A unique twist on the classic blueberry muffins! 

 

Also, one of my favorite ways to eat blueberries is about a 1/2 to 3/4 cup of frozen (duh!) berries, sprinkle on a teaspoon or so of sweetener, top with about 1/4 cup of milk.  It becomes a blueberry icy!  So good!  It’s what I had for dessert tonight!

Have you frozen blueberries before? What’s your favorite blueberry recipe?