Growing your own food is great and there are lots of ways you can ensure it stays good enough to eat. While freshly-picked produce isn’t going to last long, you can naturally preserve it to last months if needed.
Here, we’ll look at three different methods you can use to enjoy your produce all year round. Discover below how canning, drying and freezing can help you to get the most out of your harvest this year.
Canning Your Food
The process of canning food is done to kill off microorganisms that would otherwise cause the food to start spoiling. It involves sealing the produce in jars, then adding heat to kill the microorganisms.
The easiest way to do this at home is to use boiling water from the kettle. After placing the produce in jars, seal them and submerge them in boiling water until they reach a temperature of 212 degrees. This technique is best used for tomatoes and pickled foods.
A good tip here is to only can produce that is at its freshest. You’ll also want to use glass jars and ensure you follow the instructions for canning based upon the food you’re storing.
Drying It
Another option you have is to dry out the food. This is the oldest method used for preservation and originally it was completely done by hand. These days, however, you can purchase dehydrating machines. An electric dehydrator will speed up and simplify the process.
The best way to dry out your harvest is:
- Prepare it by cleaning the produce and removing any excess moisture. Cut off any stems and bad bits of the produce and cut veggies such as peppers into slices.
- For vegetables, make sure you blanch them by cooling them in ice cold water and then draining them and leaving them to dry. Skip this step if you’re drying out fruits or herbs.
- Place the produce into your electric dehydrator. Follow the instructions that came with the dehydrator, or ensure you’ve researched how long each piece of produce should be dried for.
This is the basic way to dry out your produce. Remember, the drying process does change the taste and texture of the food. You’ll also need to keep an eye on it while it’s drying as it can easily burn.
How to Freeze Fresh Produce
The most common way of preserving home-grown produce is to freeze it. You’ll find this process to be the easiest one to follow too. Make sure you blanch your vegetables prior to freezing and place them in the freezer as quickly as you can after harvesting them.
Make sure that the produce you are freezing is suitable. Not all vegetables and fruits can be frozen.
As you can see, preserving your produce is easy once you know how. You can choose from a variety of different methods. Freezing and storing food in the refrigerator won’t affect the taste as much as drying and canning. However, it’s worth researching everything you can about the storing methods relating to the specific produce you’re growing. This will help you to identify the best way to preserve your home-grown food.
