Need some resources on canning, making preserves, pickling, freezing, and storing. My fam had a veggie garden last season which yeilded quite a few veggies that went to waste because we couldn't use them fast enough (mostly hot peppers and tomoatoes). Plus, winter is making me sick of having to go out and restock on veggies. I'd wing it, but I'm scared to death of botulism.
Consider drying rather than canning. It's cheaper, easier, and pretty much foolproof. For tomatoes check here: http://homecooking.about.com/od/howtocookvegetables/a/sundriedrecipe.htm For peppers: http://www.howtodothings.com/food-and-drink/a2086-how-to-dry-peppers.html You can also check with your local county extension service. In New York, find your's here: http://www.cce.cornell.edu/editor/show/In_Your_Community They have great, free info like this: http://web.search.cornell.edu/search?output=xml_no_dtd&client=default_frontend&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&q=canning Regular visitors to this forum have probably heard me rant about county agents. Anyone want to find their local agent, start looking on the National Pesticide Information Center web site: http://npic.orst.edu/countyext.htm Peace, poor_old_dad
Two books that I really like, though have yet to fully try out are Solar Food Dryer and Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables Though not about canning they are about low energy food preservation.
Thanks so much! Hmmm, drying, never even thought of that one... I found a number of websites on my own, but didn't even see the ones you guys just gave me. Extremely helpful. Thanks again.
There is an awesome book called "The Encyclopedia of Country Living: An Old Fashioned Recipe Book" by Carla Emery that teaches you how to do canning and a million other similar things. There is also a book called "The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It" by John Seymour that you might enjoy. Both are worth having, IMO.
peppers--just throw them in the freezer and they will stay perfect until you need them and thats it....i still have some from last summer
Wow, I forgot this post existed... Gonna get on this for sure this summer. We have a loooooong produce list when we go grocery shopping, and it's so annoying. I always have a lot of peppers, both sweet and hot. Need red ones this year for my green curry... Good to know they keep well in the freezer!
My mom & I have been canning jellies & jams together for over 20 years, and we've also done relishes & pickles - though not recently. (there are STILL jars of zucchini relish from her 1987 harvest in their basement!) There was something about tomatoes that was trickier - had to do with the sugar content or pH in different types of tomatoes or something, that made Mom steer clear of even trying. Apparently you "need" a pressure-canner to do it right with tomatoes, and she JUST picked one up this last winter so we'll be experimenting with salsas & tomato sauces this fall. We have always used the hot-water bath method, and it is VERY time-consuming. To can a single batch of something takes literally from sunup to sundown with two women who've done this for 20 years working as fast as they can. It's worth it, but it's hard - physically and it's really a job for 2 people since you have to move quickly & be several places at once. The pressure canner is supposed to cut down on all that waiting. I can't tell you yet by how much, but Mom estimates we'll work at 2-3 times the speed... her mom had a pressure canner when she was a little girl, so we're guessing based on 60 year old memories. Mom swears by the canning cookbooks/recipes put out by the Ball canning company. I don't know if they still make it, but her favorite is simply called "The Blue Canning Book" or something like that. Ball lids seal better than the ones by Kerr too - from personal experience. I wish I could tell you more, but unfortunately we haven't worked with tomatoes yet other than to dry them. Pop them in the dehydrator & then store them in an airproof container... they're awesome in soups & baked dishes. Peppers, we just slice them & freeze them. They'll be good for absolutely everything short of salads... they do get just a bit softer/squishier, so tend to be better in prepared meals. Good luck! I think having all those home-grown goodies in the dead of winter makes the whole thing worth it... and have found it quite addicting to can/prepare our harvest each fall. love, mom
Canning tomatos can be done with the water bath method in glass jars. Because of their acidity they are ok to do that way. Where the confusion comes in are the warnings about leaking cans of tomato products and that's because of the way the acid reacts with the metal creating toxic chemicals. Especially since alot of the older cans were made out of really cheap metals. So go ahead and can away just use glass. And with any can goods before you eat them make sure they are still sealed, the lid isn't bulging and when you open them they smell alright. Nothing lasts for ever, even pickles can go bad. (1) As high temperatures kill the botulism toxin, follow The Tomato Queen’s advice when canning tomatoes. (2) Before eating the canned tomatoes, boil them for at least 10 minutes. (3) Discard any jars that have lost their airtight seal.
Gardener - what about the metal lids? We've only worked with glass jars, but if I remember right, it was the lids themselves that had her worried before. I know that we use the ones that do NOT have the white plasticky coating on the inside but are rather a brassy color throughout. We've had cans go bad... and every once in awhile we have one that never sets right to start with. (they get used first & go straight to the fridge) The funny part is seeing some of these that are still GOOD after so long! Every once in awhile she'll find yet another relish or crabapple jelly jar that had been stored UNDER her food-shelves rather than on them, and they're still good when she opens them! Weird. love, mom
There's a risk with all of them for sure. That's why it's wise to inspect all your canned goods before you use them and throw them out if you aren't sure about them. A dark cool place for storage is a must. And my granny always rotated out all of hers before a year. Threw out anything older. Personally I like to make spaghetti sauce out of mine and freeze it. I use as a base for chili, stews and pasta, and I don't have to stand around boiling jars.
Since there have been suggestions other than canning on here I will share another storage method we tried out a little bit last year, fermenting. Another "old school" food preservation method where things like pickles and sauerkraut originally came from. Fermented pickles are so good and not nearly as acidic as those that use vinegar.
HI, There was something about tomatoes that was trickier - had to do with the sugar content or pH in different types of tomatoes or something, that made Mom steer clear of even trying. Apparently you "need" a pressure-canner to do it right with tomatoes, and she JUST picked one up this last winter so we'll be experimenting with salsas & tomato sauces this fall. I edited out the link. Sorry, can't have links in posts. Peace, poor_old_dad
