One way to preserve the results of your Victory Garden is to pickle some, if not most, of your harvest. Here’s why.
The USDA recommends using frozen foods within 6 months. The USDA also recommends using home-canned items, such as tomatoes, within a year. But with due diligence pickled foods can last two or more years. We’ve personally used dill pickles, green tomatoes and jalapeno peppers three years after pickling.
Here are a few other things to remember.
Vinegar, honey and salt are natural preservatives. Honey is not only a preservative, but it is also a natural antibiotic. One can open a jar of honey and leave it out; exposed to all types of air-borne mold spores and bacteria, and 30 years later it will still have no mold growing. The ancient Egyptians would place dead infants and small children in large urns, cover them with honey, and 3,000 years later, archeologists discovered the bodies preserved with remarkably little change.
During the U.S. Civil War, salt pork was a food staple. Salt is not too good for the heart, but it is a natural preservative. Because of the acid content in vinegar, it acts much the same as honey, except vinegar evaporates so it must be kept covered. Regardless of the preservation abilities of honey, salt and vinegar, we recommend keeping all pickled foods covered and if possible, once the jar is opened, keep it under refrigeration. If refrigeration is not available, once the jar is opened, consume quickly – don’t gamble with your family’s health.
Sauerkraut is really nothing more than pickled cabbage. The vegetable items that can be pickled is literally wide-open. Cauliflower, carrots, beets and yes, even tomatoes can be successfully pickled.
The USDA recommends using frozen foods within 6 months. The USDA also recommends using home-canned items, such as tomatoes, within a year. But with due diligence pickled foods can last two or more years. We’ve personally used dill pickles, green tomatoes and jalapeno peppers three years after pickling.
Here are a few other things to remember.
Vinegar, honey and salt are natural preservatives. Honey is not only a preservative, but it is also a natural antibiotic. One can open a jar of honey and leave it out; exposed to all types of air-borne mold spores and bacteria, and 30 years later it will still have no mold growing. The ancient Egyptians would place dead infants and small children in large urns, cover them with honey, and 3,000 years later, archeologists discovered the bodies preserved with remarkably little change.
During the U.S. Civil War, salt pork was a food staple. Salt is not too good for the heart, but it is a natural preservative. Because of the acid content in vinegar, it acts much the same as honey, except vinegar evaporates so it must be kept covered. Regardless of the preservation abilities of honey, salt and vinegar, we recommend keeping all pickled foods covered and if possible, once the jar is opened, keep it under refrigeration. If refrigeration is not available, once the jar is opened, consume quickly – don’t gamble with your family’s health.
Sauerkraut is really nothing more than pickled cabbage. The vegetable items that can be pickled is literally wide-open. Cauliflower, carrots, beets and yes, even tomatoes can be successfully pickled.
Whenever it suits our taste buds, we try to use combinations of salt, vinegar and honey when we pickle. One must adjust the following suggested recipes to the family’s personal preferences. EXPERIMENT!!!
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