Can you Refreeze Applesauce? (Updated 2022)

You might have heard that we can re-freeze any thawed food if they are defrosted in the refrigerator. It does not apply to pastries or bread; those need to defrost only at room temperature. But at the same time, re-freezing any food might keep it safe but will diminish its quality.

One thing is clear that you can freeze an Applesauce! There are some chances that you have defrosted applesauce more than required and now want to re-freeze the remaining one. So, the big doubt is, Can you Refreeze Applesauce and use it again without any changes in its texture and taste?

Applesauce can be made from one or more variety of apples like Fuji, Golden Delicious, Jonathan, Granny Smith, and McIntosh. If you are sure about using the applesauce within the next two weeks, put it in an airtight container and refrigerate it.

It is a typical sauce available in many households that can be used with many recipes. So generally prepare it in bulk! Therefore, the best practice is to store them in smaller, airtight bags. It is to be kept in the freezer so that there will be a lesser possibility of leftovers or wastage.

Unsweetened applesauce prepared at home can also be used as a substitution for oil and butter, and in some meals eat it directly. So it is meant to be used for universal purposes, be it morning breakfast, lunch, dinner, or solely during snack time.

To enhance the taste, you can serve it with vanilla yogurt or vanilla ice cream. By the way, taking a scoop out of the frozen layer of applesauce and tasting it is also a delicious treat!

So before moving ahead and finding its answer, let us first take a look at the basic recipe for preparing Applesauce!

A Basic Recipe to make Applesauce

There are different ways to create applesauce. Here is a standard method;

• Take some apples, peel, core, and make their small chunks by slicing them. Further, transfer them to a large pot or saucepan.
• You can add a cinnamon stick, lemon juice, and water to it.
• Provide high heat so that the mixture will start boiling. Next, reduce the heat, cover the container, and let it simmer for 20-30 minutes so that the apples become softer.
• Make a puree of the cooked mix using an immersion blender, food processor, or blender to make smooth applesauce.
• To add taste into it, take the puree back on the pan, add brown sugar to it and let it cook without covering so that the sauce will get thick in nearly 10 minutes.
• Another way is to add vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and butter to the applesauce and stir the mixture once all the butter is melted.
• You can serve it directly after cooking it in a cold or warm state, or prepare to save it in the refrigerator for a few weeks, or freeze it for a few months.

Applesauce can also be made without cooking them! It is possible by letting the pieces of apple freeze, thaw, and mush them after some time so that they will become soft and mushy. At the same time, they will become sweeter to get more enhanced flavors out of it!

Now, let us further examine what happens when we freeze any food into the refrigerator and defrost it!

An Outlook on the Science behind Freezing and Defrosting

During freezing, especially at homes, water in it will be converted into ice crystals. Thus, the cell walls present at the surface are destroyed. So during the process of thawing, much moisture leaks out.

After the second thaw, more cells got damaged and leached out moisture, which can change both the taste and integrity of the food. Also, there are higher chances of bacteria forming on thawed food after clearing the ice crystals.

So the freezing and thawing process is a matter of significant concern while dealing with storing the foods for a long time. The grocery and restaurant industries do need to follow certain legal restrictions to retain the food safe to consume for us. Therefore, we should also be careful with it at our homes!

Further, to store the food by retaining its overall quality for a long time, it is necessary to freeze it properly. If done correctly, the product will last longer, i.e., for about one year if kept under deep freezer!

7 Best Tips on Freezing Applesauce

Here are some helpful suggestions on saving the applesauce for the first time in a freezer;

1. Make sure to peel the apples before cutting them to make puree; otherwise, the peels will be unnoticeable.
2. It is not suggested to add spices to the applesauce before freezing the same. So to ensure its taste will remain the same even after using it 6-9 months later.
3. Try not to put more than 2 cups of applesauce in a freezer bag and remove all the air from it. Also, keep it flat so that it would not take much space while expanding inside the freezer. After the sauce is thoroughly frozen, you can lift the flatten bags and place them conveniently. It is required to make and use most of your freezer space for other purposes.
4. You should allow some space left in the container or bottle while freezing the applesauce so that it will have much room to expand.
5. It is good to mark the bags or boxes with a label mentioning the date of freezing, to make sure you will not keep it more than required.
6. You can thaw applesauce by taking outside in a bowl and put it in a microwave to let it pop at the lowest setting. The second way is to transfer the container or bags from the freezer into the fridge for defrosting at the right temperature.
7. If you are thawing in the refrigerator, it can be kept for 3 to 5 days fresher in the fridge. But, in case of cold water or microwave defrosting, it should be consumed the sooner possible.

Conclusion

You might always think to discard the applesauce if you will find any indication of mold, off appearance or flavor, or lousy odor before being used. It may happen if the packages or jars used for freezing purposes are damaged like severely dented, bulged, rusted, or leaked.

It might also be the case even if your freezer was accidentally left inactive for a long time due to technical, power cut, or any other reason! In this case, you need to have the right idea about, Can you Refreeze Applesauce!

An alternative way to store applesauce is to can it in bottles or jars. First, sterilize the jars, seal them well after putting enough sauce in them, and let them boil. But, it demands your more work and time to prepare the applesauce for freezing. Hence, people prefer it less over freezer-safe containers, jars, or bags that can be well sealed.

The third method to store applesauce is to make dried homemade snacks. In another way, better to say fruit leather! It needs more time in its preparation to save it for months or kitchen shelves or even longer in a fridge.

After concluding everything, we can say you can freeze the applesauce for sure and store it for the next two months. Let the homemade sauce be cooling down further to put it on a gallon or quart-sized freezer bag. After getting thawed and using it, you cannot refreeze the applesauce.

Finally, you might be clear on, Can you Refreeze Applesauce. A simple solution to keep the product for a long time is to freeze it in small bags or containers. Otherwise, it can be ‘water bath canned‘ to store it safely for long-term use rather than think about thawing and refreezing it again and again!