I left fresh strawberries, which I cleaned and froze, on the counter to thaw for 5 hrs by mistake. They mostly thawed. I want to know if I can refreeze them. I use them to blend them up in a meal replacement shake. They are less than a week old.
Thawed frozen fresh strawberries, can i refreeze them
food-safety
Related Solutions
In theory you could thaw and refreeze as many times as you like, though the changes in temperature would definitely alter the quality of the meat's taste and texture.
What matters most is how long the meat has been in the so-called "danger zone" speaking from a temperature perspective. The "danger zone" is defined as being between 41 to 135 °F (5 to 57 °C).
Here is an excerpt from The Professional Chef, by the Culinary Institute of America:
Foods left in the danger zone for a period longer than four hours are considered adulterated. Additionally, one should be fully aware that the four-hour period is cumulative, meaning that the meter starts running again every time the food enters the danger zone. Therefore, once the four-hour period has been exceeded, heating, cooling, or any other cooking method cannot recover foods.
I strongly believe it's no good any more.
Update after hearing some comments [2nd update]
When u see liquid in the bag, it means the temp is usually above zero C which means it isn't the ideal temp for frozen berries.
I think it's usually quite ok to keep in the fridge for a few days, but not weeks
[3rd update] I am sorry for whatever confused I caused and I removed the comments about liquid in my previous answer to avoid confusion when people see this post in the future. Anyway, I found a box of forzen berries and here is what the pack suggests.
Please don't eat the berries if they are in the fridge for more than a few days
Best Answer
Refreeze them if you aren't using right away
Your strawberries started out well below freezing point of water. Home freezers operate at close to 0 F. Cooling is a function of temperature difference between substance and surroundings. Your strawberries are in no danger, unless they were absolutely covered in bacteria before freezing, like you had rubbed rotten halibut on them for some reason.
Any texture will be changed with freezing and blending, so don't worry about that.
I like frozen fruit in smoothies, as it gives thick texture without ice addition.