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Post by Rosefriend on Aug 29, 2009 17:42:00 GMT
Having recently received my monthly E-mail from BBC Gardeners World I read the Tips about „conserving/preserving your harvest“ .
I suppose that in these “freezer” days people tend not to bottle things or preserve things the old fashioned way but certainly in this country there is mostly a cupboard full of bottled fruit, beans, beetroot, onions, marmalade and jams etc.
I rarely throw away screw topped jars as I can always use them.
This year I have made strawberry jam, strawberry and rhubarb jam, raspberry and apricot and blackberry jelly.
I was given a bucket of “August” apples which I made into apple sauce – so easy to do and so lovely with your next Pork roast.
I have loads of jars of gherkins which are gorgeous with cold meats. I shall be doing some pickled onions using a very simple method.
5kgs small onions, peeled and soaked overnight in salt water. One teaspoon of salt to one litre of water.
Rinse them next day and put them into screw topped jars.
Add a dessert spoon of mustard and fill the jar to the top with vinegar.
Top on - and shake to mix the mustard and vinegar together.
That’s it – no heating the vinegar and they last a long time.
A lot of people think that you has to always use special jars and always heat the jars afterwards. I never have and just turn my jars over and leave them to seal themselves. There must be different ways of canning/bottling though.
Does anyone else still "Conserve/Preserve their harvest" and what method do you prefer??
RF
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Post by Jasmine on Aug 29, 2009 17:47:18 GMT
I remember being taught to preserve fruit in kilner jars in cookery lessons at secondary school RF - now I make jam or freeze surplus fruit and veggies.
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Post by carolann on Aug 29, 2009 18:52:14 GMT
All my surplus Veggies are frozen all I do is rinse them pat dry then bag up, I never blanch anything as I found it just came out of the freezer in a big lump, Peas are great doing it this way as you can just get what you need for your meal using a scoop or cup measure. I only have 2 Apple trees and this year the total harvest has been 1 apple  even though the trees where fulll of blossom earlier this year. Home made Apple sauce is lovely RF and you cant beat it with Roast Pork or Chicken and as you said it is so easy to make, like you I never throw screw top jars away either so I have lots of them down the cellar. |
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Post by Tig on Aug 29, 2009 19:00:30 GMT
I've made blackcurrant jam, blackberry & apple jam so far this year with 'gifts' from other folks gardens. I tend to freeze surplus veg if I have any, but my plots are not that big, and I have family who are always grateful of any spares ;D My Bramley apples are sorted and all the good ones get stored in racks in the garage. I have been given a recipe for a simple Autumn Chutney which I would be using if the toms hadn't been blighted, but if anyone has surplus green toms they could try this .. 3.5lbs green tomatoes sliced 2lb cooking apples, cored, peeled and chopped 3 inches of root ginger peeled and sliced 2/3 favourite chillies cut in half 1lb cooking onions 1lb sultanas 3 pints white wine vinegar 1lb brown sugar 1oz mustard seeds 2oz salt Juice of 2 lemons Put the chillies and ginger into a muslin bag and tie. Place all the ingredients, including the muslin bag, into a jam pan or thick bottomed pan. Bring to the boil whilst stirring continuously to dissolve the sugar. Simmer for 2 hours. When the chutney has thickened remove from heat and take out the muslin bag. Use sterilised jars with plastic coated lids (to stop the vinegar attacking the metal). Allow the chutney to cool slightly and then ladle into the jars. Fit lid tightly and label. Allow to mature for 2 months and enjoy. There may be simpler recipes available, most of my veg books have tips on preserving and storing veg and fruit, if only I had enough  x Tig |
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Post by isabella on Aug 29, 2009 20:52:32 GMT
I have made Strawberry jam,Raspberry jam and Boysenberry jelly from fruit from the allotment. I have also made lots of tomato,courgette and onion and stashed it in the freezer. I have roasted 4 big trays of tomatoes and stashed those in the freezer - to make soups etc. I also cut the kernels off lots of sweetcorn cobs and froze them too. I am not keen on frozen beans so give them to family and friends when there is a glut. I cooked the surplus plums and froze them - didn't have any sugar to make jam  Next to do will be the Bramleys - sauce etc. and I will freeze them I also plan to freeze some chillies. The Parsley has been fantastic this year so I have frozen some of that ,too, I think I am turning into a squirrel - stashing all my goodies away ;D |
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Post by Tig on Sept 2, 2009 22:38:22 GMT
I would like to make some festive gifts of surplus produce. Any ideas? Might get a few damsons shortly, alcoholic recipes would be good 'cos I know they will go down a treat ;D I did 'clamp' some Jerusalem Artichokes last year and they were as good as new when I retrieved them. Anyone know what other veggies can be clamped, it saves space in the freezer Pam - what can I do to make best use of sage, thyme and oregano? Do I just cut and freeze the leaves? x Tig |
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Post by farmersboy on Sept 3, 2009 6:58:24 GMT
Years ago,Potatoes,Beetroot,and Carrots,were all clamped by farmers,with straw and earth used to keep out the frost
Now i keep all mine in my shed,pots in paper sacks,with the tops folded over,to keep them in the dark,beet and carrots in plastic ones,with the tops left open,they seem to keep well this way right into spring,and the pots into June
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Post by Dutchy on Sept 3, 2009 7:55:37 GMT
FB The Beetroot in plastic containers open top as in let the light in?
RF lovely simple onion recipy finally something I might be able to do ;D
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Post by oldmoleskins on Sept 3, 2009 8:02:20 GMT
Reading through this thread makes me feel slightly inadequate - I don't really conserve anything other than apples and toms, but that's mainly because I don't grow anything else in quantity... apples just go in wooden boxes and toms as a 'universal sauce' in the freezer.
So, I'll ask a 'supplementary':
if there was one thing that could be grown that's outstandingly rewarding and provides a readily conservable harvest, what would that be - and how do you conserve it?
OM
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Post by farmersboy on Sept 3, 2009 8:16:24 GMT
FB The Beetroot in plastic containers open top as in let the light in? RF lovely simple onion recipy finally something I might be able to do ;D Well its not too light in my shed,but to not keep the tops open on a plastic bag,i think they may sweat and rot |
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Post by isabella on Sept 3, 2009 20:37:25 GMT
I would like to make some festive gifts of surplus produce. Any ideas? Might get a few damsons shortly, alcoholic recipes would be good 'cos I know they will go down a treat ;D I did 'clamp' some Jerusalem Artichokes last year and they were as good as new when I retrieved them. Anyone know what other veggies can be clamped, it saves space in the freezer Pam - what can I do to make best use of sage, thyme and oregano? Do I just cut and freeze the leaves? x Tig Tig - I have only ever frozen Parsley I looked up a couple of herb sites and it said soft herbs can be frozen - just wash and dry them and open freeze or chop them and put into ice cube trays with a little water added. Thyme and Oregano can be dried. Sorry not much help am I |
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Post by Dutchy on Sept 4, 2009 7:59:39 GMT
FB Don't they have to sit in sand?
I can understand the bit about rotting but thought that to simply leave them would not work.
So far I have cooked and frozen them but I have no freezer and but little space in my freezer drawers in the fridge.
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totp
Assistant Gardener
Posts: 128
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Post by totp on Sept 5, 2009 6:25:59 GMT
Slice toms thinly roast in the oven on a very low heat about for 2,3 hours until they are dry then store in jars covered in oil with a few cloves of garlic thrown in. For the last half hour of raosting you could top the toms with basil. Taste amazing in sandwiches.
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Post by Rosefriend on Sept 5, 2009 6:36:28 GMT
What a great idea totp - that is certainly down on my list of things to try.
A marvellous way of using up excess toms as well without making a sauce out of them.
RF
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Post by farmersboy on Sept 5, 2009 6:40:03 GMT
FB Don't they have to sit in sand? I can understand the bit about rotting but thought that to simply leave them would not work. So far I have cooked and frozen them but I have no freezer and but little space in my freezer drawers in the fridge. Well it works for me Dutchy,i dont clean them,store just as they come out of the ground,dont mind a bit of soil on,it helps to keep them,i harvest them in Nov,when the soil is damp,put them in plastic bags,old compost ones are ideal if you have a lot to store,and they are fine till April at least |
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Post by Rosefriend on Sept 7, 2009 14:51:19 GMT
On a German cookery programme this last weekend, one of the cooks made a tomato sauce to go with left over pasta and said that the sauce, once cooked and put into screw-topped jars lasted for weeks in the fridge and was a lovely way of using up a glut of toms.
Anyway - this is what he did...
One dessert spoonful sugar on a oven tray, - take core out of 10 toms, half them and put them on the tray cut side down - in the oven at 240deg plus the grill for 10mins until the skin begins to go black.
Take out and take the skins off...looked very easy...
Mash the toms with a fork, slice some garlic and scatter over the toms together with Ol, Salt, Pepper and Thyme.
Back in the oven at 220deg (without grill) for 15 minutes.
It certainly looked good.
RF
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Post by borderbabe on Sept 7, 2009 18:43:34 GMT
I freeze my surplus fruit and veg. To avoid "lumps" i open freeze stuff spread out on trays so that its freezes as separate pieces and then put it in bags or boxes - its easier to get out as much or as little as you need this way.
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Post by Ladygardener on Oct 12, 2009 9:12:30 GMT
I'm sure I read somewhere recently about drying chilies and putting them in a blender to make chili powder/flakes. Does anyone know how to do this properly? I have quite a few and they're very hot, would be perfect if I could turn them into chili powder/flakes. ;D
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 12, 2009 9:20:29 GMT
Here's one solution LG - off another forum
I place them on a baking sheet, pop the sheet into the freezer and let the chillies freeze loose for about 4 hours. I then remove them and slide the whole lot into a plastic bag, storing them in the freezer for up to a year. When you want to use one, just run the chilli pepper under cool tap water for a few minutes and then chop or slice as you desire.
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 12, 2009 9:22:28 GMT
And here is an oven drying one which mentions peppers so I guess it would be ok for chillies too. (Apparently air drying takes a long time).
Oven-drying is a good method of preserving some types of fruit and vegetables including tomatoes, peppers and apples. They can then be added to salads, soups or casseroles to lend flavour, colour or texture. Be aware that fruits and vegetables dried commercially are often treated with chemicals to help the food keep its colour, so don't be disappointed if your home efforts lose some colour.
A very low oven (130C/250F/Gas ½) or the bottom, cool oven of an Aga is ideal.
•Slice the washed and prepared fruit or vegetable very finely using a serrated-edged knife.
•Arrange in a single layer on a large baking tray and leave in the oven for several hours or until totally dry and verging on crisp.
•Cool and store in an airtight container and use within a few weeks.
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Post by Ladygardener on Oct 12, 2009 18:33:33 GMT
Jasmine thanks very much for both of those methods and taking the time to look them up. I've done the frozen one today and popped them into the lower drawer now they're frozen. I'll try the oven drying tomorrow as I'm not sure how long it would actually take them.  |
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 12, 2009 18:35:12 GMT
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Post by Ladygardener on Oct 12, 2009 18:40:53 GMT
I'd say perhaps they will be a bit soggy but useable Jasmine.The others I'd guess I could I blend after I've oven dried them.  |
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 12, 2009 18:42:44 GMT
I think that's what I'd do - if they have dried to a crisp they should blend ok.
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Post by oldmoleskins on Oct 13, 2009 16:43:06 GMT
I'm sure I read somewhere recently about drying chilies... I'm trying this:  I saw an OldGirl in the fish and veg market, Lagos, threading fresh chillis and bought a 'necklace', back in nineteen-hundred-and-frozen-to-death. They gradually dried and stayed useable for ages... not sure they ever got beyond the leathery stage, so may not 'flake-up', but they had good heat/flavour to the end. OM. |
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Post by Ladygardener on Oct 13, 2009 19:35:10 GMT
Excellent OM I have a few left and some more green ones on the plant I may well just hang them up like that, they look good too. ;D
Jasmine, I dried them out in the oven but 100 was far too hot they were starting to colour so I turned it down. I've blended them but they're not as dry as they should be so I'm letting them finish off in their flakes. They smell yummy. ;D
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Post by pharmerlaura on Oct 14, 2009 1:04:42 GMT
I'm sure I read somewhere recently about drying chilies and putting them in a blender to make chili powder/flakes. Does anyone know how to do this properly? I have quite a few and they're very hot, would be perfect if I could turn them into chili powder/flakes. ;D We dehydrate most of our hot peppers & store them untill we are ready to grind into powder. We use a coffee bean grinder for this & only this. We have another grinder for herbs. We just sold 8 ounces of our pepper powder. We grind it fine to medium. Depending on the type of peppers we use it for chili to seasoned chicken. |
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Post by Spruance on Oct 14, 2009 1:09:14 GMT
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Post by Ladygardener on Oct 14, 2009 6:24:10 GMT
Laura you must grind a lot of chilies to get 8 ounces. I've used for the first time a small attachment of my kitchen equipment to do mine. I'll most likely keep it for this use only as I've had the machine for years and never used this little one. It sure is a good way to use up a glut. |
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Post by pharmerlaura on Oct 15, 2009 1:47:21 GMT
Spruance..we use an Excalibur dehydrator.it has 9 shelves. It takes quite some time to dry all the ones we do.
We also freeze lots. I cut up 4 gallon size bags worth tonight & they are in the freezer.
Ladygardener..we have a huge amount of dry peppers from last year that we are still grinding. They are a pain to do in the house as you have to wear something over your mouth & nose..or all you will do is cough & sneeze.
We have some dragon claws drying like the above picture..I havent gotten them strung up yet.
We have been eating pepper dishes more now..they are real good fresh.. ;D
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even though the trees where fulll of blossom earlier this year. Home made Apple sauce is lovely RF and you cant beat it with Roast Pork or Chicken and as you said it is so easy to make, like you I never throw screw top jars away either so I have lots of them down the cellar.
