In the summer, and especially in the autumn, when counters are crammed with tomatoes, almost no dish is complete without them. In winter, tomatoes are also available in stores and on the market. But how can they be compared to summer ones grown under the real sun?
Therefore, the hostess is trying as much as possible to harvest tomatoes for the winter. Tomatoes make marinades, pickles, winter salads. Of course, they are tasty, but still there are not so many vitamins in them as in fresh ones.
Therefore, the last time the mistress increasingly began to freeze tomatoes. Indeed, in frozen tomatoes, not only their true taste and aroma, but almost all the vitamins are preserved.
Tomatoes can be frozen completely, cut into slices, and even in the form of mashed potatoes or juice.
How to prepare tomatoes for freezing
Practically all ripe tomatoes are suitable for freezing. Which variety to choose depends on how they are frozen. But tomatoes must be strong, not overripe, without wormholes, signs of illness, all sorts of damage. For freezing select strong tomatoes with whole skin. Do not freeze unripe tomatoes, as they can be bitter, and the good of them a bit.
Tomatoes are sorted by ripeness. Then they are well washed in running water, laid out on a towel and wait until the water dries.
How to freeze whole tomatoes
For freezing whole tomatoes are best suited varieties with hard peel, fleshy and with a minimum amount of juice. For example, cherry, cream, de barao. It is best if the tomatoes are small or medium size. Prepared tomatoes are laid out in one layer on a tray and put into a freezer for a few hours so that they are frozen. Then the fruits are laid out in bags, if possible remove the air from them and sealed or tied. Very good if you use special packages for freezing. Packed in this way, tomatoes are stored in the freezer.
If the tomatoes are hard and completely dried from moisture, you can skip the pre-freeze. To do this, the tomatoes are immediately laid out in several pieces in bags in one layer, remove the air and sealed or well knotted. Cleaned in the freezer.
Whole tomatoes can be frozen with or without skin. To freeze peeled tomatoes, do this. On a clean tomato, make a small cross-shaped incision, grabbing only the skin. Tomatoes are immersed in boiling water for a minute and then immediately immersed in cold water for the same time. After such a manipulation, the skin is easily removed, it is enough to just pick it up with a knife and pull.
Peeled tomatoes are laid out in one layer on a tray covered with film and put into the freezer for primary freezing. When the tomatoes are completely frozen, they are put in several pieces in bags, tightly tied or sealed and put into the freezer.
How to freeze sliced tomatoes
Clean and well-dried tomatoes are cut with a sharp knife in 8-10 mm thick slices.
The tray is lined with film or parchment and laid out on it circles of tomatoes so that they do not touch each other. You can make two or three layers of circles, but in this case, each layer of tomatoes is insulated from each other by a film so that the tomatoes do not freeze together. The tray is put into the freezer for a few hours (it depends on the ability of the cell to freeze food). When the tomato circles are completely frozen, the tray is taken out, and the tomato circles are laid out in small portion sachets and tightly closed. Then clean in the freezer for further storage.
How to freeze sliced tomatoes
Only dense, fleshy and not watery tomatoes are suitable for freezing.
Tomatoes are cut into equal pieces (diced or sliced). If you need to freeze without a skin, then it is removed beforehand, immersing the tomato first in hot water and then in cold water.
Chopped tomatoes (without juice) are laid out in small bags, well sealed and put into the freezer.
How to freeze chopped tomatoes (mashed potatoes)
For this type of freezing suitable more juicy varieties of tomatoes, as well as slightly overripe, but not spoiled.
Washed and peeled tomatoes cut into several pieces and scroll through a meat grinder or chop in a blender. Together with the tomatoes, you can scroll and pepper, adding also chopped greens.
Tomato mixture is laid out in small plastic containers, tightly closed and cleaned in the freezer. It must be remembered that liquids expand during freezing, so the mixture is not poured to the brim.
For this purpose you can use both silicone baking tins and ice freezing tins. After the mixture hardens well, it can be removed from the molds and put into bags, tied up well. All kinds of frozen tomatoes are stored for 8-10 months at -18 °. At higher temperatures, billet can be stored for about 3-4 months.
How to defrost frozen tomatoes
Whole tomatoes are taken out of the freezer and kept at room temperature for 10-15 minutes. Then they cut the still frozen tomatoes into slices or cubes. For the salad, frozen tomatoes are sliced into thin slices and added to the dish before serving.
If the tomatoes are frozen with the skin and need to be removed, then the frozen tomato is dipped for a few seconds in hot water and then quickly peeled.
Frozen sliced tomatoes are used without defrosting. Otherwise they will lose their shape and “they will forgive”.
Chopped sliced tomatoes are put in a dish while cooking, without defrosting. If the tomatoes were cut into thin slices, then add them to the salad just before serving.
Tomatoes scrolled through a meat grinder are also used in frozen form, adding them to dishes during cooking. But you can defrost them, for example, to make some sauce. To do this, they are thawed at room temperature or in the plus section of the refrigerator.
