Summer in a jar: storing and preserving your harvest

It’s harvest season for Iowa gardens and many of us are up to our elbows in tomatoes and peppers. If you’re finding yourself with enough produce to feed a small army , it’s time to think about preserving it. There are several tried and true methods to choose from that will keep your fruits flavorful and your veggies verdant. We’ve compiled a list of the top long-term storage options so you can stay well-fed this winter.

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First things first, when storing produce for the long haul, it’s important that your fruits and vegetables are relatively undamaged. Little dings and nicks that can be cut off are no problem, but if your produce is already degrading, it’s not fit for storage. You should either use it right away or throw it in the compost.

There are several methods for long-term preservation, and the right answer depends on what you’re working with and what you want to eat. Here’s our quick guide to help you choose between canning, pickling, freezing, dehydrating and curing.

Canning

There are two types of canning : water bath and pressure. Both methods rely on high heat to kill contaminants and vacuum seal your canning jars. While water bath canning is best for high acidity foods like fruits, pickles and jams and jellies, pressure canning is better reserved for low acidity foods like vegetables, meats and pasta sauce.

Regardless of which type of canning you do, you’ll need to use canning-specific jars (not jars recycled from your pantry). Canning jars are built to withstand high heat and pressure, and you can reuse them year to year as long as they’re undamaged and you replace the lids.

Safety First! As much as you may love your grandma’s canned corn, it’s important to use tested recipes and stick to them as written when canning. Botulism is a severe risk if you don’t can foods properly, especially low acidity foods.

Pickling

The process of preserving foods with acid and salt is called pickling. Unlike canned produce, pickled items don’t have to be processed at extreme heat, if you’re storing them in the refrigerator and eating them within a few months. However, if you intend to keep your pickles in the cabinet for a while, you’ll need to process them in a water bath canner to prevent spoilage.

Safety First! The high acid content in pickles is what kills food-borne pathogens. You should always thoroughly wash your produce and use vinegar with 4–6% acetic acid. Following tested recipes will also help you avoid illness.

Freezing

You can freeze just about any fruit or vegetable to preserve it, and there aren’t the same safety concerns as canning or pickling. As always, it’s important to use good quality, undamaged produce for the best flavor and texture and to prevent spoilage. Blanching vegetables and packing fruits in sugar or syrup will also help them retain flavor and texture in the freezer.

Proper storage is as important as processing when freezing produce. It’s important to use freeze-safe items like glass jars, freezer bags or heavyweight aluminum foil that will preserve moisture and prevent air from getting in. If moisture is allowed to evaporate, your produce might develop freezer burn or unwanted flavors.

Dehydrating

If fruit leather, veggie chips or jerky are your thing, dehydrating may be the food preservation method for you. Home food dehydrators prevent spoilage by removing 80–95% of the water from fruits, vegetables, meats and more. It’s possible to dry foods in the sun or in the oven, but these methods take longer, can be unreliable and allow the growth of pathogens.

Curing

This method is only suitable for a handful of vegetables such as potatoes, onions and some squash varieties. Curing usually involves placing your freshly harvested vegetables in a warm, humid location without direct sunlight for the skins to harden and dry before storage, preventing rot. Exact temperature and humidity requirements for curing and storage vary from vegetable to vegetable.

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Want to know more about these methods or need step-by-step instructions? Check out the ISU Horticulture Extension site for fact sheets, recipes and more !