Karen K. Brees - Preserving: Can it. Freeze it. Pickle it. Preserve it.

Appendixes

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To my mother-in-law, the late Frances Briggs Brees, who showed me how to begin

Home food preservation is enjoying a remarkable surge in interest as people look for ways to cut costs, eat healthier foods, and eliminate unnecessary additives and preservatives from their diets. Combined with the increased interest in home gardening, the expansion of bulk foods warehouses, and the burgeoning growth of farmers markets, the timing couldnt be better to begin preserving food at home.

Some of us learned to preserve foods by watching our mothers and grandmothers, asking questions, and peeling countless apples and pears while we apprenticed in this art. Others of us didnt have that early experience and came to home food preservation via books or classes taught by experts in the field.

However it happened, we got hooked.

The saying Life is hard by the yard; its a cinch by the inch applies nicely to learning how to preserve foods. Take it one step at a time, follow the directions, use tested and approved recipes, and youll be a pro before you know it.

Its fun. Sometimes that part of putting up food gets overlooked. Its a hobby that pays you back instead of costing you bucks. It lets you get creative with gift possibilities. And not to put too fine a point on it, it lets you play with food.

Whatever your reasons for perusing this book, youve come to the right place if you want to get started putting food by, as the old phrase used to say. If you have any questions about preserving and you dont find them answered here, drop me a line and Ill do my best to answer them. Thats what a food safety advisor and master food preserver for the Cooperative Extension Service does. You can reach me at karenbrees@gmail.com. I look forward to hearing from you. Happy preserving!

The chapters in this book are organized into six main parts, with each one representing one aspect of food preservation:

, To Your Health, discusses the many reasons for preserving food at home. Youll discover the many methods available for putting up food, plus important safety procedures for protecting your preserved foods.

, Freezing, provides a great starting place for the novice home food preserver. Youll learn essential procedures, get experience, and gain confidence. Pick your own produce or patronize the farmers market and youll start with the freshest ingredientsthe key to great-quality frozen foods.

, Canning, raises the ante. With the basics under your belt, youre ready to move to the next level. Youll learn how to fill your pantry with nutritious foods at a fraction of the cost of their grocery store counterparts.

, Pickles, Relishes & Fermented Foods, shares the secrets of pickling and fermenting and gives you choices of traditional or quick recipes to add just the right touch to complete your main courses.

, Fruit Spreads, celebrates the wonderful world of jams and jellies, conserves and chutneys. Get the whole family involved and start a new family tradition.

, Drying, Salting, Smoking & Root Cellaring, takes you on a quick trip through time. Youll explore ancient methods of preserving foods, although with a decidedly modern twist. Complete your food preserving repertoire with one or more of these methods.

Following the chapters, youll find some helpful information in the appendixes:

is the glossary. If youre stumped by an unfamiliar term, heres where youll find the answer.

is the syrup chart, which gives you exact amounts of sugar and water to create different syrup strengths.

gives you the recommended processing times for different foods. It includes recommendations for when to use boiling water or the pressure canner.

is a handy reference for the recommended freezer storage times for different foods.

gives you the best methods for preserving different types of foods.

provides additional resources to help you expand your food preserving knowledge and skills.

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Food nourishes our bodies, provides comfort, and binds us together in shared traditions. Of all the reasons to preserve food, the most important is health. In this first part of the book, well look at what food preservation is and well review some basic principles of food safety.

Part 1: To Your Health | Contents

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What is food preservation? The easy answer is that food preservation is saving surplus food for a time when youll need it. Each time you return the milk carton to the fridge or close the twisty tie on a loaf of bread, youre practicing the ancient art of food preservation. Youre extending the life of the food product. If you left the milk on the counter, it wouldnt take too long for it to get warm, for bacteria to grow, and for the milk to sour. It would go bad. The bread without its protective wrapper would get hard and stale. It would also go bad. Granted, these are simple examples, but the basic idea holds for whatever food you have that you dont need to use all at once. We look for ways to preserve itto make it last longer.

Since the beginning of our existence, weve sought ways to keep our foods edible beyond the immediate moment and weve developed some sound practices that will do just that. This book will give you an introduction to a variety of methods for preserving food so it will be there for you when you need it. Weve become used to a safe and reliable food supply. Weve come to expect it and take it for granted. This isnt guaranteed, however, and recent developments have driven the point home. The pandemic has shown us we cant really take anything for granted. Its shown us that the old-fashioned virtue of self-sufficiency is timeless. Home food preservers understand this very well, and for those of us who freeze, can, pickle, root cellar, salt, and dry, empty shelves in grocery stores are just a minor inconvenience. Were prepared to take care of our families and weather the storms that come, however unexpected they might be.

The ideal situation is to grow your own food. Gardening is a wonderful hobby, and if you dont intend to be totally off the grid, you dont need 40 acres and a plow to grow a considerable amount of produce. A windowsill, a back deck, or a portion of the backyard can yield an astounding harvest. If this isnt your cup of tea, seek out the many farmers markets that have sprouted in cities and rural areas alike. Buy farm direct and you eliminate many hands from touching what you eat. Farmers markets go back to the foundations of colonial America. In 1643, Hartford, Connecticut, was ordered by the general court of the colony to provide a public market and the idea took off.