Save Mushy Strawberries This Season With One Simple Hack

Strawberries are a nutritious, low-calorie fruit that are an excellent source of vitamin C, fiber, antioxidants, and folate. They're also fairly inexpensive, making them a sweet treat that just about anyone can enjoy. One of the downfalls of the delicious food, though, is that they can go bad fast. On average, strawberries can last for about a week in the refrigerator, if they are stored properly. Frozen strawberries can last for about a year in the freezer.

Some signs of a strawberry going bad are mold, an unpleasant smell, discoloration, and a mushy texture. If you notice mold or dark spots, it is best to discard the berries. However, if your strawberries are just soft or slightly mushy, there is a simple and ingenious hack you can use to save them — submerge them in ice water. This easy trick takes less than 30 minutes and it's a great way to quickly plump and revive soft strawberries so that you can enjoy them.

To revive your mushy strawberries with ice water, all you need to do is fill a bowl with the berries — being gentle so that you don't mash them — and leaving enough room to add ice. Then, place ice cubes on top of the berries and pour enough water into the bowl so that the ice begins to float. Leave the berries in the ice water for 20 minutes, drain them, gently pat them dry, and enjoy your newly rejuvenated strawberries.

This trick works because strawberries are porous, and can soak up the ice water and become plump once more. It is important to note that if you submerge mushy strawberries in water for too long, though, they may become even more mushy depending on how ripe they are when you place them in the water. 

Water can cause the strawberries to absorb too much moisture, making them softer and potentially causing them to lose their texture and shape. To help revive their quality and bring back their flavor, you should only submerge the soft strawberries in ice water for no longer than the recommended 20 minutes.

If the ice water trick doesn't work for you, it's most likely because your berries were too soft. If you try this method and your strawberries still aren't the texture you'd like them to be, you have more options to salvage them. You can cut off the affected parts, for one, using the remaining firm sections or eating them raw. You can also freeze them and use them in smoothies, or as a topping for yogurt or ice cream. Mushy berries can also be used to make a sauce or syrup, simply by cooking them in sugar or honey, or they can be made into jellies or jams.

To make a fresh sorbet, you can puree overripe berries with sugar and cream, and then freeze the mixture until it's set. For something simpler, toss the overripe strawberries into some pancake batter or bake them into muffins or a cake. You can use them to make a strawberry pie or a strawberry cheesecake, too. Mushy strawberries don't have to end up in the trash bin — you just have to get a little creative.