For Day 2, we will be on Emily's farm again.
Agenda for the day:
- Learn about different types of food preservation techniques
- Make pressure canned carrots, applesauce, dried fruits, and crock pickles
- Discussion about food preservation techniques from the past compared to today
Preserving foods is an important skill to have. Knowing how to keep foods fresh for the months when they are not available is imperative, especially if you live in areas where you are not able to cultivate the ground year-round. There are several methods available when it comes to modern day food preservation.
Water bath canning - sometimes referred to as the boiling-water method of canning, is the simplest and easiest method for preserving high-acid food. Water-bath canning destroys any active bacteria and microorganisms in your food, making it safe for consumption at a later time. This is the preferred method for making jams, jellies, fruit sauces, and the like.
Drying or dehydrating - foods can easily be preserved by drying them with low heat and air flow to reduce moisture, and thus the growth of mold. Once dried properly, foods can be stored in airtight containers and have a good shelf life for reuse. Some foods dry beautifully - dried beans, rice, peas, grains, fruits, meats, etc.
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Pressure canning - to can low-acid foods, you use a pressure canner. Pressure canning is the only safe way to can low-acid foods. Each step of the pressure-canning process is important to produce safe, home-canned foods. Pressure canning is the preferred method for preserving meats, soups, vegetables, tomatoes, etc.
Pickling - when foods are pickled through anaerobic fermentation in a heavily salted brine solution. This usually gives the food a salty or sour taste. Pickling began 4000 years ago using cucumbers native to India. It is called "achar" in northern India. This was used as a way to preserve food for out-of-season use and for long journeys, especially by sea. Salt pork and salt beef were common staples for sailors before the days of steam engines. Although the process was invented to preserve foods, pickles are also made and eaten because people enjoy the resulting flavors. Pickling may also improve the nutritional value of food by introducing B vitamins produced by bacteria. This method is particularly good when preserving cucumbers (pickles), cabbage (saurkraut or kimchi), olives, beets, eggs, pigs feet, meats, bologna, herring, peppers, etc.
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Freezing - when foods are frozen, their properties are able to maintain better consistency and have a very long 'shelf life'. Freezing can be done for foods that can't be canned (because of starch quality or because it contains milk proteins that can protect harmful bacteria that can't be killed in canning methods). Nearly anything can be frozen to preserve it. The only issue becomes having enough freezer space to store it all!
Smoking - The modern method of smoking foods has evolved from a process of preserving. Long before refrigerators and chemical preservatives, smoke was used to extend the shelf life of food, particularly meat. Now days smoking, as it relates to barbecue is so much more. Smoking adds flavor, it tenderizes, and it turns some of the worst cuts of meat into a wonderful meal. Most people know about smoked ham, bacon or fish. In barbecue, smoking takes anywhere from 1-2 hours up to 20 or even more. To do the really long smoke will require the right kind of equipment, to include a smoker or smoke house.
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Salting - the preservation of food with dry edible salt. It is related to pickling (preparing food with brine, i.e. salty water). It is one of the oldest methods of preserving food, and two historically significant salt-cured foods are dried and salted cod (usually referred to as salt fish) and salt-cured meat. Vegetables such as runner beans and cabbage are also often preserved in this manner.
Salting is used because most bacteria, fungi and other potentially pathogenic organisms cannot survive in a highly salty environment, due to the hypertonic nature of salt. Any living cell in such an environment will become dehydrated through osmosis and die or become temporarily inactivated. |
Candied fruits - also known as crystallized fruit or glacé fruit, has been around since the 14th century. Whole fruit, smaller pieces of fruit, or pieces of peel, are placed in heated sugar syrup, which absorbs the moisture from within the fruit and eventually preserves it. Depending on size and type of fruit, this process of preservation can take from several days to several months.
The continual process of drenching the fruit in syrup causes the fruit to become saturated with sugar, preventing the growth of spoilage microorganisms due to the unfavourable osmotic pressure this creates. Fruits that are commonly candied include dates, cherries, pineapple, and ginger. The principal candied peels are orange and citron; these with candied lemon peel are the usual ingredients of mixed chopped peel (which may also include glacé cherries). |
Pasteurization - a process for preservation of liquid food. It was originally applied to combat the souring of young local wines. Today, the process is mainly applied to dairy products. In this method, milk is heated at about 160°F for 15 to 30 seconds to kill the bacteria present in it and cooling it quickly to 40°F to prevent the remaining bacteria from growing. The milk is then stored in sterilized bottles or pouches in cold places. This method was invented by Louis Pasteur in 1862.
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Directions for canning applesauce here.
Directions for canning carrots here.
Always check canning regulations given by the standards outlined by the USDA here.
Directions for canning carrots here.
Always check canning regulations given by the standards outlined by the USDA here.
Homework: Research one food preserving method and consider how you might be able to try this at home? In your response below, add a few sentences about why this method(s) appeal to you and how you think you might be able to incorporate it in your life. Or, if you already do preserve food using some of these methods, discuss how you use them in your life already.