Safe Food Preservation 

Freezing: arguably the easiest way to preserve food, freezing is a simple and effective way to preserve fruit, vegetables, meat and other food for long term storage.  There are a few things you need to keep in mind, however, when you are freezing your harvest.

Blanching: some foods need to be blanched before they are frozen to maintain either their texture or nutritional density.  Blanching is the process of boiling the food prior to freezing to stop the enzyme activity that breaks it down once harvested.  Some examples of food that needs to be blanched include broccoli, Cauliflower, Corn, Peas, and many more.

Direct freeze: Not all foods need to be blanched.  There are some that do well with just freezing.  Peppers and onions can be sliced/diced and frozen directly without blanching.  I’d recommend freezing them in a single layer on a baking sheet, and then placing in a freezer approved container.  This way you can grab only what you need and leave the rest frozen for future use.

Storage: Make sure you are choosing the right container to put in your freezer as not all containers are well suited for the extreme cold.  No matter what you use, be sure to leave enough headspace in your container for food to expand without breaking the container…this is especially true for glass.  Pro tip – if using glass jars to freeze liquid, leave the lid off the jar until the contents are completely frozen.  Once frozen, you can add the lid to the jar, and freeze.

Most fruit and vegetables will last in a freezer for about 12 months.  However, if you are freezing meat, it will only last for about 3-6 months unless it is vacuum sealed.  If you vacuum seal your meat, it will last for about 9-12 months.

Dehydration: The process of removing all the moisture from food in order to preserve it at room temperature.  This can be done a few different ways, but I highly recommend investing in a good dehydrator.  

Herbs: When most people hear about dehydrating food, they immediately think of herbs, and herbs are some of the most common foods to be dried and then used as seasoning in cooking.  In order to do this without burning your herbs, make sure you put your dehydrator on a very low setting.  Turning it up too high can result in burning your herbs and ruining their flavor.  You will want to leave the herbs drying until they are crisp/crunchy.  You can then grind them into your desired consistency and store at room temperature.  Pro-tip: watch your humidity level.  If your dried herbs are consistently exposed to humidity or moisture, they could mold and ruin your whole jar.

Vegetables: Often overlooked are other vegetables that can be dehydrated and saved for future use.  In my kitchen, I will dehydrate several varieties of peppers to get the spicy seasoning my family loves such as chili peppers, paprika, and more.  In addition, you can dehydrate onions and garlic to make your own powders for use in cooking.  You can also dehydrate celery other vegetables to use in the future for soups and stews.  

Hang drying: If you don’t have dehydrator, you can also hang dry your herbs and certain vegetables, although it will take a significantly longer time to dry than a dehydrator.  Just make sure you watch the humidity level they are exposed to as a high humidity level will just make them mold instead of dry.  You can also hang dry certain chili peppers and green beans for future use as well.  Dried green beans are often called “Leather Britches.”

Careful what and where you dry – if you are going to be dehydrating anything spicy or that has a strong odor (ex – garlic or onion), be careful about dehydrating them in your house as you might find yourself accidentally “macing” your friends and family.

Canning: Often what most people consider the scariest, and most controversial, form of food preservation.  Canning is the ability to preserve food and store it at room temperature – “shelf stable.”  The correct processing of foods using canning methods destroys the botulism bacteria, along with molds, yeasts, and other potentially dangerous bacteria, that is often found in incorrectly canned foods.  

Water Bath Canning: Often how most people are introduced to canning.  Water bath canning is used for high acid foods such as jellies, jams, most tomato products, and pickling.  You don’t need a fancy canner for this process, but rather, a large stock pot that you can fully submerge your jars in.  It is important to keep in mind that the pot needs to be big enough that you will have at least 1 inch of water over your jars.  You will find that even with high acid foods, you will still need to add additional acid to ensure safety during preservation.  

Steam Canning: Relatively new canning process that has been introduced to the public, steam canning provides all the ease of water bath canning without using as much water.  Instead of submerging jars into a large pot of water, a steam canner allows you to use less water, and achieve the same results for any food that requires 45 minutes or less of canning time.  

Pressure Canning: Pressure canning often scares the most people because of horror stories that have gone viral that includes photos of kitchens and canners that have exploded and caused significant damage.  However, following safe practices will prevent this.  Pressure canning is for low-acid foods which encompasses most vegetables such as green beans, broth/stock, soups, all meats and more.  Pressure canners will come in either weighted or dial-gauge form and should have standard, at a minimum, standard pressures of 5, 10, and 15 PSI.  Follow the recipe for the PSI needed to achieve safe processing.

Pro-Tips:

Keep your altitude in mind – pressures and length of processing vary based on your altitude.  Follow the processing guidelines for your altitude to process your food safely.

Processing times for water bath canning starts when you submerge the jars and the water starts boiling again.  Processing times for pressure canning starts when you reach the correct PSI for the recipe.

Jars cannot be placed directly on the bottom of any canner but must be elevated.  Most canners will come with a “shelf” to place jars on.

If you lose pressure in your pressure canner, or the water stops boiling in your water bath canner, you must start your timer over when you’ve achieved the correct PSI, or the water returns to a boil.

Store your completed jars without a ring, and in a cool, dark place.  They will store safely for up to 18 months.  Exposure to sun and fluctuating temperatures will shorten the life of your canned goods. 

Get your pressure canner calibrated and checked annually to keep it safe for use.  Most county extension offices will do this free of charge, or for a small fee.

Fermentation: Fermentation is arguably the “healthiest” preservation method because it encourages the growth of good bacteria – often called probiotics – that are good for your gut health.  This is done by encouraging the growth of Lactobacillus, which is found on all fruits, vegetables, nuts, herbs, etc.  When you combine this bacterium with sale and water to create an anaerobic environment, it flourishes and naturally ferments food.

Culturing: Involves using a microbial starter to initiate fermentation.  Some examples of foods that need a starter include yogurt, kefir, kombucha, and more.

Wild Fermentation: Allows the natural yeast found in the air to combine with the lactobacillus bacteria to develop a ferment.  Though often thought of as a solid, such as sourdough sauerkraut or kimchi, wild fermentation can also be used for liquid use in mead and old-world style beers.   

Pro Tip: Make sure that if your recipe calls for food to be fully submerged that you use a food grade weight to keep it under the water level.  This will prevent spoilage by not allowing mold to develop.