How do you put up produce

[Jogeephus]

Just wondering how ya'll put up produce. Trying a new vacuum sealer this year. I steam blanch, cool and then vacuum seal them. Haven't gotten around to canning anything yet since this seems easy enough. Was just wondering how ya'll do it and see where I might make some improvements.

 

[Jalopy]

Yes we are getting a new vacuum sealer this year for this purpose also. I am not a big fan of canned vegetables but I like frozen vegetables just fine. We are a couple months away from any harvest though.
Jo what brand Sealer did you buy? You can PM me if that is your preference as I don't know if naming a brand would be considered spam or not. Thanks JLP

 

[Lammie]

I freeze them. I have found that with peas I have better luck just freezing them right after I shell them. No blanching. I am also going to try dehydrating tomatoes this year. Maybe onions, too, although I will need to do that outdoors, I guess.

 

[Just_a_girl]

I use a vacuum sealer also....I even vacuum seal bulk food items I buy at the grocery stores, and left overs.

Sealing is great for foods that are not so sticky....like squash or okra. I try to layer the squash and do what I can with the okra. I coat them with a flour mixture and then cornmeal to keep squash or okra from sticking to each other, seal them, and freeze. When it's time to cook, I just cut all 4 sides, left off the top and then lower the frozen squash or okra in the deep fryer....haven't perfected it but it's still good and quick. If I can get the squash or okra in the fryer before they start to defrost then I'm doing really good. :lol2:

I've sealed creamed corn, corn on th cob, off the cob with butter, sprouts, potatoes, and then I boil in the bag. needless to say, I don't have much room in the freezers so I don't know where I'm going to put this year's stuff. I'll figure it out. ;-)

 

[grannysoo]

needless to say, I don't have much room in the freezers so I don't know where I'm going to put this year's stuff. I'll figure it out. ;-)

You're probably going to do like I'm going to do. Time to buy yet another freezer... :lol2:

 

[1982vett]

needless to say, I don't have much room in the freezers so I don't know where I'm going to put this year's stuff. I'll figure it out. ;-)

You're probably going to do like I'm going to do. Time to buy yet another freezer... :lol2:

You just nee to eat more and faster. :lol:

 

[grannysoo]

needless to say, I don't have much room in the freezers so I don't know where I'm going to put this year's stuff. I'll figure it out. ;-)

You're probably going to do like I'm going to do. Time to buy yet another freezer... :lol2:

You just nee to eat more and faster. :lol:

Don't think I can eat more or faster. I'm feeding me and the wife, 2 of the kids, the grandbaby, and my parents. Just sent a shiny new freezer up to Tennessee that was almost full for one of the kids, and the durn things are still almost full. I think that food is breeding when the lights go out.... :lol:

 

[1982vett]

Freezers are kind of like haybarns. Can't have to many and keeping them full is a good thing.

 

[Jogeephus]

Jo what brand Sealer did you buy?

We bought a FoodSaver at Walmart. It works fine. Thing I don't like about it is I am estremely efficient when I cut the rolls of wrap. (I buy the 18' roll and cut to length) There is a 1.5 inch drop between the countertop and the sealer. This may sound knit-picky but I feel like I am wasting some of the bag when this part hangs over. If I built a jig or maybe used a board(new :idea: ) to rest the bag on I could save an inch and a half of plastic. It really shouldn't matter but it just bothers me for some reason. It does do a good job though.

 

[Jalopy]

Jogeephus wrote"We bought a FoodSaver at Walmart."
That is the brand we are looking at. I also wondered about how to waste as little of the plastic as I can. I try to be frugal but really as my son says "Dad you are just cheap". But guess who he calls when he wants to know an inexpensive way to buy or do something.
Thanks for the reply. JLP

 

[mnmtranching]

Do you or can you freeze tomatoes?

 

[Just_a_girl]

Do you or can you freeze tomatoes?

Yes, I do. mostly I use the Roma. I freeze them to put in hot sauce, chili, spaghetti sauce, or taco soup. I place them in a boiling pot of water for about a minute, then I put them in ice water to get the skin to peel off easy. Seal them in a bag then into the freezer.

 

[Susie David]

Sounds like you have a handle on it. I don't use vaccuum bags just freezer bags, works well enough for us.
Did alot of canning last year, took a master food preserver course to make sure that I was doing it right these past years. With the number of freezers we have I don't think that I'll be canning as much this fall.
The key to long term freezing is to get the product as cold as you can as fast as you can. -10 degrees will keep your veggies and beef for so long that you'll forget that it's in the back of the freezer.
Blanching stops the enzime action that turns the food color dark, be sure to cool in ice water immediately after blanching. The U 0f Georgia puts out some good publications on food preserving and safety.
Dave Mc

 

[Just_a_girl]

We have had a ton of tomatoes this year, and they look much better than last year's. I've picking some each day. The yellow squash had me baffled because it was getting mushy long before it's ready to pick and this was without watering or rain.The red potatoes we dug up seem a little too tough and has no flavor. Everything else is coming along fine.