What method(s) do you use to preserve food?

[MaryMary]

I've been thinking of starting this thread for a while now, and I'll give credit where credit is due - I'm starting it because of @headfullofbees' thread about his first attempt at pressure canning.

(Link to that thread: https://www.gardening-forums.com/threads/first-attempt-at-pressure-canning.12470/)


I admit all I do is freeze pre-cooked stuff; soups and sauces, to be exact.

I'm interested in all of it. What do you can, what do you freeze? Did you used to can certain items, and then switch to freezing? Or vice-versa? (And why?) I have a friend who told me she used to can green beans, but switched to freezing them because it is quicker, easier, and "makes the beans less mushy." Does she lose some longevity by freezing?

Are there things you preserve by dehydrating? What? And why?

I found a website detailing how to freeze eggs. https://www.incredibleegg.org/eggcyclopedia/f/freezing-eggs/ It's from the "The Incredible Edible Egg™, American Egg Board" so I have to believe they know what they're talking about, but does anyone do this? (Did you know you could? Next time I see an awesome sale, I will be trying it! .)

No post too long, no details too picky!





(And because it is amusing me to no end, I have to tell you that the spell-checker is flagging "pre-cooked" as wrong, but when I right-click it to add to dictionary, one of the options it suggests is "pee-cooked," which is apparently totally acceptable. .)

 

[Durgan]

Why do you want to preserve? We live in areas where all and sundry is available almost all year around in various almost fresh forms. Preserving takes time and effort, and to make it desirable other than just being food takes much effort. Most people wont expend the required work.

Now that I have put the damper on, I will expound a bit on why I preserve. The bounty during our short growing season is almost unlimited Most goes to waste even from a small backyard garden, since most plants produces abundance for a shot time, then decline. I made a conscientious effort to reduce meat and expand on plant food. The world obesity epidemic was a catalyst to some degree. Often I eat for nutrition value alone and dispense with taste to a large degree. Also all added sugar has been removed almost completely.

The preserving methods all have limitations. Freezing is terrible except for meat and similar; dehydration is expensive and not particularly desirable on a regular basis; pickling has severe limitations, usually reduced to cabbage and cucumbers; root cellar has it uses, potatoes, garlic, onions; bulk barns can give a lot of variety with some practice,dried grains, pulses, and beans; slurry/juicing Pressure Canning as you probably know I use for most of my preserving. Of course, in all circumstance anything fresh should be utilized.

Now after one has preserved in the desirable manner lay back and determine if it is possible to make a meal from what you have. And further extend it for a longer periods, to determine viability. Most people give up and float back to the prepared commercial route suppliers.

 

[Beth_B]

What Durgan said, really. 100 percent.

I've tried canning, freezing in bulk...but to be honest that's a lot of work, especially when one can buy the same produce fresh, year around, for pennies on the dollar.

So I'm one that floats back to commercially bought produce. I use what I can during the growing season, freeze what is left over...otherwise I'm buying imported or commercial product and I'm ok with that.

 

[Durgan]

Scrutinize the commercial products. I suspect many if not most have some severe unhealthy aspects. For example grape juice and tomato is nothing like what I produce, In fact, all commercial juices are to me just colored water with many additions that are suspect. I subject them with the name Americanized, addition of salt, sugar and fat in various degrees, plus shelf life preservatives with unpronounceable names unknown to most.

 

[Chuck]

Well, I must first say that @Durgan and I are not on the same culinary dance floor. Food to me is not just for nutrition. I like taste and I like texture in my foods so juices/slurrys are at the bottom of food sources for me. However, everything else he says about processed foods and foods in general I agree with. When we buy a can of green beans at the store we have no idea what all is in that can. All we really think/know is that the government says it is just fine. I for one do not believe a word of what the government says, about anything. I guess I have been a skeptic for too long to ever change. Properly canned foods taste just as good and many times much better than their government approved counter parts and over time a lot cheaper too.
About the only food preservation method most folks are familiar with is freezing. Freezing, to me is the only good option for some fresh foods and meat is at the top of the list. But freezing meat has its own problems such as what happens when the electricity is out for an extended period of time or what happens to meat that is forgotten in the bottom of the freezer. Many people can their own meats for these very reasons but I for one do not. Canning meats changes its texture and to some extent its taste also no matter if the meat is fresh or in a cooked and finished form such as beef stew. Just compare any canned item in the grocery store to the same thing homecooked on the stove and you can feel and taste the difference.
Not to put a damper on any would be future canners out there but getting set up to can is not a cheap process. A large canner such as mine costs over $100 but will last as long as the person using it. The jars, rings and lids cost about $12 per case. You can use the rings over and over. Some people reuse the lids too but that is dangerous no matter how carefully they are removed. One good dose of botulism is usually the cure for being unwilling to spend $0.15 for a new lid. I think the only foods that I buy from the store and can are dried beans. A pound of dried pinto beans will make 3 1/2 pints of canned beans. I buy 5lbs and that equals 18 pints which is what my canner will hold. 18 pints of pintos costs at least $1.00 per can at the store. Five lbs of beans cost less than $5.00 so I have saved at least $13.00. Think of green beans where they are always at least $1.79 per lb at the store or $.69 per 12 oz can and you have 25 lbs on plants in your back yard. Think of the costs of tomato products. Sauce, stewed, diced, whole, all of them expensive and you have a garden full of them. Canning/preserving is NOT a money maker but it is a money saver and just about anything you see in a can or jar at the store you can make at home
I dehydrate some things, mostly fruit and I make beef jerky from some of the deer I kill. Dehydration is something that I consider specialized, not run of the mill food preservation. I have dehydrated tomatoes and peppers but I have not mastered the process and don't do it very often.

 

[Durgan]

http://durgan.org/2016/October%202016/12%20October%202016%20%20Dehydrating%20Vegetables/HTML/ 12 October 2016 Dehydrating Vegetables
Dehydrating vegetables from a slurry into a powder for storage at room temperature. The vegetables available were onion, sweet potato, tomato, and egg plant.The nixtamalized corn 1/2 cup was added to prevent the slurry from sticking to the pan during dehydration.The material was dehydrated in an Excalibur for about 12 hours. The dried product was blended into a powder and stored in a 250 ml jar for storage at room temperature. Pictures depict the process.

 

[Durgan]

http://durgan.org/2016/October%202016/21%20Ocober%202016%20Making%20Dried%20Tomato%20Powder./HTML/ 21 October 2016 Making Dried Tomato Powder.
Four trays of 750 ml each of tomatoes were made into a slurry, dehydrated and stored as a powder. These are the tomatoes ripening in the house. There are too many for immediate use, so this is the chosen storage method. Process is to blend into a slurry of about 750 ml with the addition of half a cup of nixtamalized corn to each blender full. The nixtamalized corn prevents the slurry from sticking to the pan when dehydrating. The dried slurry is scraped off into a plastic container to prevent the brittle pieces from flying all over. The dehydrator,Excalibur, was set at 125F for ten hours until dry. Storage is 250 ml canning jars.

 

[MaryMary]

Why do you want to preserve?

I'm not sure that I want to, but it is something I'm thinking about. For a couple reasons, I suppose. One reason is to try to cut back on the amount of additives in the foods I eat. Preservatives, artificial coloring, salt, chemicals I can't pronounce , I'll never get away from it, but I could cut back. Part of it is that I see it as a way to save money, after the initial investment. I have the time, and I like to learn new things.

The bounty during our short growing season is almost unlimited Most goes to waste even from a small backyard garden,

This is another reason. I live in a rural community where everyone has a backyard garden that produces more food than they can eat. I can drive down the street and see piles of veggies displayed in people's front yards with signs that say something to the effect of "Take them, PLEASE!"

There's a Mom and Pop shop I frequent, and they have a box most of the summer. One time, I took two zucchini, and Pop got so happy he grabbed a bag and told me I needed more. As he was putting four more in a bag, I tried to tell him no, no, I don't need more, they ought to be left for other people, I was only going to eat one, the other one was going to be fed to my fish... (I felt a little guilty about that.) Pop just grinned from ear to ear and said, "Fish eat 'em? That's great!!" He was nodding and smiling to keep eye contact as he quietly put the bag into my hands and herded me to the door. I was in the parking lot by the time I realized I now had six zucchini, because I had the original two held in my arm.

I have a friend that I am half afraid to visit in the summer, because the last time I did, (over my protestations,) he put five big cardboard boxes of produce in the back seat of my car. There's only two of us here, we can't possibly eat all that before it goes bad, if I have to take my beer out of the refrigerator, I'm gonna be really mad... I gave a good part to my neighbors, but if I knew how to can it... I could feel free to visit my friend!!




I want this thread to help me decide whether or not to do it, and also to really know what's best for what? I'd also like to hear from people who freeze vegetables, it's not something I do, either. Why do they freeze instead of can? Just because it's easier, or do they feel some things are better frozen? Like my friend who likes frozen green beans better than canned...

 

[Durgan]

Preservation grows on a person. It is really quite simple and the effort becomes second nature. There is often new recipes to try particularly from other countries. I have discovered tortillas, nixtamalized corn, fermented soy beans, various gruels, also that the most comfortable, nourishing foods are the least processed.

Over a few years I have added a flour making machine, pressure canner, food mill, hand blender, good counter blender, Dutch oven, fermenting container. Not only that I use them.

And above all I have quit using sugar, in fact, don't buy any.

 

[Chuck]

I'm not sure that I want to, but it is something I'm thinking about. For a couple reasons, I suppose. One reason is to try to cut back on the amount of additives in the foods I eat. Preservatives, artificial coloring, salt, chemicals I can't pronounce , I'll never get away from it, but I could cut back. Part of it is that I see it as a way to save money, after the initial investment. I have the time, and I like to learn new things.



This is another reason. I live in a rural community where everyone has a backyard garden that produces more food than they can eat. I can drive down the street and see piles of veggies displayed in people's front yards with signs that say something to the effect of "Take them, PLEASE!"

There's a Mom and Pop shop I frequent, and they have a box most of the summer. One time, I took two zucchini, and Pop got so happy he grabbed a bag and told me I needed more. As he was putting four more in a bag, I tried to tell him no, no, I don't need more, they ought to be left for other people, I was only going to eat one, the other one was going to be fed to my fish... (I felt a little guilty about that.) Pop just grinned from ear to ear and said, "Fish eat 'em? That's great!!" He was nodding and smiling to keep eye contact as he quietly put the bag into my hands and herded me to the door. I was in the parking lot by the time I realized I now had six zucchini, because I had the original two held in my arm.

I have a friend that I am half afraid to visit in the summer, because the last time I did, (over my protestations,) he put five big cardboard boxes of produce in the back seat of my car. There's only two of us here, we can't possibly eat all that before it goes bad, if I have to take my beer out of the refrigerator, I'm gonna be really mad... I gave a good part to my neighbors, but if I knew how to can it... I could feel free to visit my friend!!




I want this thread to help me decide whether or not to do it, and also to really know what's best for what? I'd also like to hear from people who freeze vegetables, it's not something I do, either. Why do they freeze instead of can? Just because it's easier, or do they feel some things are better frozen? Like my friend who likes frozen green beans better than canned...

Let's talk about freezing vegetables. There are 2 ways to freeze. By blanching first or by just freezing. Most vegetables such as all the greens, cole crops such as brocolli and cauliflower, green beans and squash must be blanched before putting on a cookie sheet to quick freeze. Greens should be blanched and put into freezer bags and covered with water before freezing. Tomatoes do not freeze well but you can if you cook them first. Peppers and okra do not need blanching. Just put them either sliced up or whole on a metal cookie sheet to freeze first before putting them into freezer bags. Fresh corn on the cob should be soaked in water and placed on a cookie sheet with the husks still on. You can cut them in half or not. I usually cut mine because it will take up less space in the freezer but always freeze corn on the cob with the husks still on them. You must thaw them completely before cooking. Other corn such as cream style or kernel IMO should be pressure canned although freezing works well although the kernel corn should be spread on a cookie sheet and frozen before putting into a freezer bag. Baby carrots are excellent frozen but large carrots should be pressure canned. Brocolli, cauliflower, cabbage and brussle sprouts should not be pressure canned as they will severely discolor and turn to mush. All in all freezing is an excellent method of preserving food for a moderate length of time.
And your friend either cooked the beans too long or under too much pressure. Follow directions and they will come out perfect every time if the beans are fresh.

 

[Durgan]

A good source of complete protein.
http://durgan.org/2017/August%202017/24%20August%202014%20Tempeh/HTML/ 24 August 2014 Tempeh
Tempeh made total time 24 hours. This shows the fermenting part. The beans were prepared by boiling for ~30 minutes, running under cold water and removing the skins by hand rubbing and flushing,, steam pressure cooked for ~30 minutes, cooled to room temperature, tablespoon of vinegar added and mixed, starter powder 1/2 teaspoon added and mixed. Placed in molds and placed in the fermenter set at 31C for 24 hours.

 

[Tjohn]

I preserve because I like the feeling of having my own veggies available on those winter days when going out is nearly impossible, and very dangerous. I freeze beans and peas because they have little acid and can be subject to botulism if not done right. Other than that, I can most everything else, meat included, because we are guaranteed to have a power outage at the worst possible time! I hate running the generator if I don't have to, and I also hate putting all my food out in the snowbanks to stay frozen. The local wildlife love that.....

 

[Chuck]

I preserve because I like the feeling of having my own veggies available on those winter days when going out is nearly impossible, and very dangerous. I freeze beans and peas because they have little acid and can be subject to botulism if not done right. Other than that, I can most everything else, meat included, because we are guaranteed to have a power outage at the worst possible time! I hate running the generator if I don't have to, and I also hate putting all my food out in the snowbanks to stay frozen. The local wildlife love that.....

On your beans and peas.................you do totally cook them first and then freeze in containers? Or do you 1/2 cook, freeze and then finish cooking?

 

[Tjohn]

I half cook (blanch) and freeze in bags with a little of the processing water to cover them. When it's time to eat, just remove the bag and throw the whole thing in a pot and let it melt the ice and cook at the same time. Seems to keep the flavor in pretty well.

 

[marlingardener]

I like to preserve our vegetables. Even though we have a long growing season, and can grow a lot of veggies, I still really enjoy having a freezer full of sauces, casseroles, herb breads, and blanched vegetables. I also can lots of tomatoes and some fruits.
It probably isn't cost saving, but it sure is flavor saving! When I make a batch of chili with our own vegetables, we can tell the difference from chili made with purchased tomatoes, peppers, onions, etc.
My husband says that if the Russian army ever invaded central Texas, I can feed them and teach them the joys of democracy and gardening!