This is a great time of year to enjoy the variety of fresh vegetables and fruits available; and you may be considering home canning or freezing some of this bounty for use this winter.
Freezing is one of the easiest, most convenient and least time-consuming ways to preserve foods at home. The extreme cold stops growth of microorganisms and slows down changes that cause spoilage and affect quality in food.
Fruits should be washed and sorted before freezing. Discard those that are not yet ripe or of poor quality. Allowing fruit to soak in water will cause lose of nutrients and flavor.
Stem, pit, peel or slice fruit as desired; prepare enough fruit for only a few packages at a time to prevent browning. Do not use galvanized equipment in direct contact with fruit. The acid in the fruit dissolves zinc, which can be harmful in large amounts.
Use vegetables at peak flavor and texture. Whenever possible, harvest in the morning and freeze within a few hours. Wash vegetables thoroughly in cold water and sort according to size for blanching and packing. Blanching, which is scalding vegetables in boiling water or steam for a short period of time, should be done to ensure highest frozen food quality and shelf life.
Blanching stops the action of enzymes that can cause loss of flavor, color and texture. Blanching time is crucial and varies with the vegetable and its size. Under-blanching stimulates the activity of enzymes and is worse than not blanching at all; over-blanching can cause loss of flavor, color, vitamins and minerals.
Water blanching is the most widely recommended method for blanching vegetables. Use one gallon of water per pound of vegetables. Put the vegetables in a blanching basket and lower into vigorously boiling water. Place a lid on the pot and start counting blanching time as soon as the water returns to a boil.
As soon as blanching is complete, cool vegetables quickly to stop the cooking process by plunging the basket of vegetables immediately into a large quantity of cold water. Cooling vegetables should take as long as blanching. Drain vegetables completely after cooling.
If you are considering home canning, a pressure canner is needed to ensure safe low-acid canned foods. There are no safe boiling water canning options for vegetables, meats and seafood, soups and some other mixtures of foods. Following current research-based recommendations for proper home canning is critical to assure a safe product.
The National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) is your source for research-based recommendations for most methods of home food preservation to address food safety concerns for those who practice and teach home food preservation and processing methods.
You can also find additional food preservation resources on the Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) Herkimer County website. A variety of “How to” Videos have been added highlighting demonstrations from the NCHFP at the University of Georgia, CCE Saratoga County, NY, University of Maine and University of Minnesota Extension programs.
Article release July 26, 2021
