Frozen blueberries: useful properties and contraindications

Bilberry ordinary has long been known to us due to its extremely useful properties. In medicine, blueberry leaves and shoots have been successfully used to treat diabetes and many other diseases. Berries, in addition to medicine, are used in the cosmetic and food industry. Fresh fruits will delight us in the summer and autumn, and in order to be available all year round, they are frozen. Frozen blueberries retains all the beneficial properties of fresh berries and serves as an excellent alternative to them in winter and spring.

Black and blue juicy round blueberries ripen from July to September. They have a lot of tannins, giving blueberry fruits astringent properties. Thanks to them, a protective film is formed on the surface of the mucous membranes of the stomach and intestines, which protects the tissues of these organs from irritation, reduces inflammation and pain, and reduces peristalsis. Kissel made from fresh or frozen blueberries is a great tonic for diarrhea in adults and children. It is noteworthy that fresh berries (and frozen too) are effective both for diarrhea and for constipation.

The presence of organic acids (malic, succinic, citric, quinic, etc.) provides an antiseptic effect and creates in the intestine an environment that is beneficial for beneficial microflora. Pectins, which are also abundant in blueberries, can absorb toxins and remove them from the body. Bilberry has anti-inflammatory, tonic, choleretic and diuretic effects, relieves spasms, regulates salt and carbohydrate metabolism.

Blueberries contain a lot of ascorbic acid, carotene, vitamins of group B, micro and macro elements (sodium, potassium, manganese, iron, phosphorus, etc.). The red-purple color of the fruit pulp is caused by special substances - anthocyanins, which are in excess of blueberries. Anthocyanins have a pronounced antioxidant effect, strengthen the walls of blood vessels and capillaries, reduce their fragility and increase elasticity. The permeability of the vascular wall decreases, the blood microcirculation increases, the nutrition of tissues and the functioning of organs and systems are improved.

Blueberry anthocyanins enhance the formation of the photosensitive pigment rhodopsin in the retina, thereby increasing visual acuity. Accumulating in the retina, these substances improve the blood supply and nutrition of the eyeball, suppress the pathological processes that cause the formation of cataracts. The powerful antioxidant properties of anthocyanins suggest their use for the prevention of cancer.

In addition to these substances, the nutritional value of blueberries are proteins, fats, carbohydrates (glucose, fructose). This is a low-calorie berry: according to various sources, its caloric content ranges from 38 to 57 kcal per 100 grams. The rich composition of nutrients with a low calorie content makes blueberries a real boon for those who follow weight.

Fresh, frozen, and dried blueberry fruits will help with these diseases:

• gastritis with low acidity, dyspepsia;
• enterocolitis, inflammatory bowel disease, accompanied by a disorder, spasms;
• anemia, hemorrhoidal bleeding;
• urolithiasis, bedwetting;
• colds, inflammation of the upper respiratory tract and oral cavity;

• chronic constipation;
• metabolic disorders (diabetes, gout);
• rheumatism;
• inflammatory skin diseases;
• decreased visual acuity, eye fatigue.

In addition to medical use, blueberries, due to its valuable for the human body composition and low calorie content, is very popular in therapeutic and dietary nutrition. It is added to cereals, cooked yogurt, sauces and cocktails, fruit salads and jellies. Fresh and frozen blueberries are used to prepare various drinks (fruit drinks, compotes, jellies), jam and jams, berries used for baking.

Bilberry extracts are used in cosmetology for making creams and masks.Such cosmetics saturate the skin with vitamins and nutrients, tone up and relieve fatigue, improve complexion and protect against premature aging. In medical cosmetics extracts from blueberries are used to combat rashes, irritation and inflammation of the skin.

Frozen blueberries (provided they are properly frozen and stored) are not inferior in anything fresh in value and will delight you with their tasty and healthy berries even in winter.

You can always buy frozen blueberries in the supermarket, but you can easily cook fresh-frozen high-quality berries for everyone. For harvesting for the winter blueberries can be purchased on the market. If you have the opportunity and desire to pick the berries yourself, you should consider a few nuances.

1. You only need to collect the ripe whole fruit, gently folding them into a basket or other convenient container. It is not necessary to recruit too many berries in one container, otherwise the bottom layer can be crushed. For the same reason, do not shift the berries from one container to another.
2. The collection is best done in the morning, when the dew dries, or in the evening, before the dew has time to settle.
3. If you use any devices for faster collection of berries (rake, combine), remember that you are harming the plant by cutting leaves and branches with buds along with the berries. After such a shrub will long recover. Also, with this method of harvesting together with ripe fruits, it is possible to pick under-ripe berries that are not suitable for harvesting.

It is necessary to freeze blueberries as quickly as possible, because after 2-3 days of storage in the refrigerator, the vitamins in the berries begin to break down. This is one of the arguments in favor of self-harvesting, because this is how you choose ripe and whole fruits yourself and are completely confident in their freshness.

Collected blueberries need to sort, remove the stem and leaves. It is better not to wash the fruits before freezing, so blueberries better retain their shape and taste as a result of freezing. However, if you still want to rinse it, then it should be done carefully, washing the berries in small batches in a large water tank and transferring them to a colander. When water is drained, blueberries should be well dried. For drying use a sieve or paper towels.

Absolutely dry prepared in this way (this is important!) And whole berries should be laid out on a baking sheet or on a tray with sides of one thin layer and placed in a freezer for quick freezing for 1-1.5 hours. After that, the berries are removed, packaged in plastic bags in an amount sufficient for a single use.

Blueberries frozen in this way are stored for a long time and do not lose their useful qualities throughout the year.

Although health is much more beneficial to use blueberries without sugar, sweet lovers can try the method of freezing blueberries with sugar. In this case, you will need containers in which you place the layers of prepared (as described above) blueberries and pour them with sugar. The ratio of blueberries and sugar should be 2: 1. Containers should be tightly closed and sent to the freezer for storage.

If the berries are crushed, it doesn't matter: you can make blueberry puree from them, which will be perfectly preserved in frozen form. Of course, for this purpose, only pure berries are suitable, which are carefully made by a blender until a homogeneous mass. Optionally, add some sugar. The finished mash is decomposed into small containers so that it can be used at one time, tightly closed and put into the freezer.This option is suitable for preparing various desserts and is especially good as a vitamin supplement for baby food.

You can squeeze out the juice from crushed or slightly burst berries, which you then need to pour into small bottles or plastic glasses and freeze. Containers should be tightly closed, but not filled to the brim. Thus you can keep this healthy drink for quite some time.

If you need fast and deep (shock) freezing to maximize the preservation of all beneficial components of blueberries, then you need to thaw the berries slowly, otherwise you can get an incomprehensible porridge. To do this, a portion of frozen berries should be taken in advance from the freezer and placed in a refrigerator on the shelf in the zone with the highest temperature. Gradually bilberry thaws naturally, while retaining all its qualities as much as possible.

Everything is good in moderation. This also applies to blueberries. Of course, if you are allergic to these berries, then you should not eat them. In addition, people with high acidity of gastric juice and chronic constipation should also use blueberries with caution and in small doses. Undoubtedly, this berry will bring only benefit if used in moderation.

How to freeze blueberries for the winter, see the following video.