Dried apricots are a type of dried fruit with a sweet and tart flavor. Dried apricots are often eaten whole or in pieces, or as an ingredient in baked goods.
Dried apricots are not only used as a healthy snack but are also eaten as part of festive occasions such as Ramadan or other religious holidays such as Easter or Christmas.
If you enjoy eating or using dried apricots for cooking, you may wonder if you can freeze them to keep them fresh.
Yes, you can freeze dried apricots. Freezing can preserve the taste and nutrients of the dried apricots. Dried apricots are a great choice for freezing because they don’t need to be soaked in water before being frozen. Properly stored, dried apricots will last for up to 18 months in the freezer.
Does Dried Apricots Freeze Well?
The answer is yes, dried apricots freeze well, but with some caveats. The first caveat is that freezing dried apricots will not preserve the nutritive value of the fruit.
The second caveat is that they will not taste as good as fresh apricots because they are already dehydrated when they are freeze-dried.
Therefore, if you’re planning to eat it fresh, it may not taste very good. Frozen dried apricots are much better if you’re planning to use them for cooking or part of a meal.
How To Freeze Dried Apricots
If you bought dried apricots from the store or dehydrated them yourself at home, the process of freezing them is the same.
Below are the steps to freezing dried apricots:
Step 1: Preparation
Make sure the apricots are dried. Any moisture that’s on the apricots will cause them to become soggy when it’s frozen and thawed.
Step 2: Wrapping
Wrap each dried apricot with plastic wrap. This will help provide extra protection while it’s stored in the freezer.
Alternatively, you can wrap a couple of dried apricots together.
Whether it’s wrapped as a single piece or a couple of pieces together, ensure that it’s wrapped with no part of the fruit exposed.
Step 3: Place In Freezer Bag
Once the dried apricots are wrapped, place them into the freezer bag. Then press on the bag to remove excess air before sealing.
Besides the freezer bag, you can also use an airtight container to store the dried apricots. Make sure the container is freezer-safe to prevent the fruit from getting freezer burned.
Step 4: Label and Freeze
With a marker, write the date of freezing on the bag. This will help you keep track of when it was frozen and how long it will remain fresh. Then place the dried apricots into the freezer.
How Long Can You Freeze Dried Apricots?
Dried apricots are a popular summer snack. They can be stored in the freezer for a long time, but they will eventually lose their sweetness and become hard. The length of time that you can freeze dried apricots is dependent on the quality of the apricots, as well as how they are stored.
Generally, if the apricots are stored properly, you can expect them to last for about 12-18 months in the freezer.
How Do You Defrost Dried Apricots?
There are many ways to defrost dried apricots. You could use a bowl of cold water, or you could place the apricots in a colander and run cool water over them until they are soft enough to eat.
If you don’t need to use the dried apricots right away, you can let them thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
Can You Refreeze Dried Apricots?
Refreezing dried apricots is possible, only if the fruit doesn’t have any moisture on it.
Usually, after the dried fruit is thawed, there will be some moisture forming on it. If you try to freeze the dried apricots with moisture, it will damage the fruit.
On the other hand, if the fruit is dry after it’s thawed, you can refreeze it without any changes to its texture or flavor of it.
Related Questions
Is it safe to eat dried apricots that have turned black?
Dried fruits including apricots are sulfured to keep the color from darkening. Over time, the sulfur will start to dissipate and apricots will start to turn darker.
The dried apricots are still safe to eat when they turn black. Just make sure that it doesn’t have any mold growing on them or it smells bad.