Macerated Strawberries
Juicy, syrupy macerated strawberries to enjoy on top of ice cream, yogurt, cake, and more– only three ingredients and ready in just 40 minutes!
Are you ready for the juiciest strawberries? Then, you’ll want to make these macerated berries. They are so simple that you almost don’t need a recipe.
Slice your berries, add a pinch of sugar a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. That’s it! Place in the fridge and enjoy as a snack, over yogurt for breakfast (like my PB&J granola bowls), on ice cream, you name it. They are also fantastic over my orange olive oil cake or almond cake.
How to Make These Macerated Strawberries
Wash the Strawberries
Wash and chop your strawberries, then place them in a large bowl.
Add the sugar and balsamic vinegar
Add the sugar and the balsamic vinegar and stir together. Place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or longer, depending on how juicy you want your berries.
What does maceration mean?
Maceration is when the fruit is combined with a flavorful substance (sugar, vinegar, or other fruit juice), which tenderizes the fruit and intensifies its natural flavor. I know it feels counterintuitive to add a little sugar to berries, but it really brings out the berries’ natural sugars– especially for out of season or bland berries.
The sugar draws out the water in the berries, which creates syrupy, jammy berries. As the berries continue to sit in the juice, they will continue to soften.
Stone fruits like peaches, berries, and tomatoes all benefit from maceration. I use the same process in my heirloom tomato salad.
How long should the berries sit?
The larger you cut your fresh strawberries, the longer you will need to let the berries sit. And, the longer that they sit, the juicier and softer they will become. You’ll also get a lot of juice the longer that the strawberries macerate. I like to let my berries sit for about an hour.
A good rule of thumb for maceration is a tablespoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar for every pound of strawberries.
Variations and Notes for Success
You can use any other fruit for this recipe, like blueberries, plums, peaches, raspberries, blackberries, and others. The softer the fruit is already, the less time it needs to sit. So, raspberries really need to only macerate for 10-15 minutes; longer and they will be very mushy.
The balsamic vinegar is optional, but I like the slight tang that it gives the berries. However, you can use another acid, like lemon juice, vanilla extract or white balsamic vinegar for a slightly sweeter tang.
You can also use another sweetener, like brown sugar, maple syrup, or honey, instead of the sugar. Lastly, a fresh herb– like mint or basil can really make the macerated strawberries pop.
Ways to Serve Macerated Berries
These sweet strawberries are great anywhere you want fresh strawberries. Enjoy them over vanilla ice cream, pound cake, in strawberry shortcake, yogurt, overnight oats, granola bowls, pancakes and waffles.
I like making a bowl of them and storing them in the fridge for a day for easy snacking.
If you make these macerated strawberries, make sure to come back to leave a rating and a comment. Your feedback helps other readers and seeing you make my recipes makes my day!
Macerated Strawberries
Ingredients
- 1 pound strawberries
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Hull the strawberries, then halve or quarter depending on size. Or, you can cube or slice depending on how you want to enjoy the berries.
- Place the strawberries in a large bowl and sprinkle with the sugar and balsamic vinegar. Toss together and place in the fridge.
- The longer that you let the berries sit, the softer and more jammy they will become. They will start to collapse and become very juicy if let for more than a day in the fridge. I find the sweet spot is about an hour, but depends on how you want to enjoy the berries!