Learn More Info About Food Storage inside this Blog Post
Winter is coming up that is why many people are storing and preserving their harvest. Products like tomatoes, summer squash, peas, peppers, corn and beans are great for canning, drying and freezing. It should be done right after picking while the products are tasty and fresh. Whether you want to cold-store or preserve your crops depends on the type of food, your eating preferences and facilities.
The best tasting and healthiest way of products preserving and storing for crops like cabbage, carrots, beets, squash, potatoes and turnips is the cold storage. It may also be less expensive in perspective. Another advantage is that you can eat those vegetables even for 4 – 6 months after their harvesting. But it requires special preparation for its better storage.
There are a lot of books available that inform us about the best and proper ways of harvesting and storing of crops. Here are some tips that can help you.
Tomatoes are one of the most favorite and popular foods to store. You should pick your tomatoes, and even the green ones, before the first frost. Handle you tomatoes gently because any cuts or bruises can make tomatoes spoil quickly. If your fruits are close to be ripe you can store them on the kitchen counter but out of direct sunlight. They will ripen in a couple of days. The green tomatoes should be placed in a cool and dry place like your garage or basement. As soon as the green fruits start to ripen, you can get them inside the kitchen. Check your fruits and always remove those that begin to spoil. You can eat your tomatoes till January this way.
Other vegetables need more effort and help to keep them fresh. If your garden is not that big and u don’t have too much vegetables to store, then you could use a barrel buried in the backyard or and old refrigerator. But those who are more serious about providing their families with vegetables for winter, root cellar would be a good idea. It could be under your house or the one buried outside. You could arrange shelves inside it for the vegetables that need to be kept dry like garlic and onions.
For root cellar your vegetables should be picked at their peak maturity and only those that are free of damage and disease could be stored. Most vegetables should be stored at above the freezing temperatures except for winter squash which is better to store above 50F degrees. The root crops will stay fresh for months if you harvest and store hem with their roots and place them in wet sawdust. Separate the crops to avoid flavors mixing and the squash need to be kept dry. And remember that cold temperatures are essential for your vegetable storage.
This planet gets “hot” - it’s time to be prepared. Learn more about food storage - this information can save your life and the lives of other people you care about. Visit this food storage blog for useful updates in the food storage industry.