Food Storage
Proper food storage can help food last a long time. Dried foods, such as beef jerky, dried fruits, or even dried vegetables, are popular and tasty. Canning your own food is not as common as it was fifty years ago, but is still done by millions of people. They can enjoy the taste of fresh food long after the season is over, and save money by buying bulk foods in season when they are at their lowest price.
Dried Food Drying food, dehydration, is usually a simple procedure, involving little or no equipment, and will allow the food to last for extended periods of time. Foods can be dried in the sun (with or without a solar dehydrator), in an oven, or with an electric dehydrator.
Drying removes the moisture from the food so that bacteria and molds can’t grow and spoil the food. The best temperature for drying food is 140°F. Higher temperatures will cook the food instead of drying it.
Fruit can be dried outdoors in the sun over a period of several days. Dehydrators, costing as little as $50 or less, speed up the drying process by lowering the humidity of the surrounding air.
Drying Foods
www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/dry.htmll
From National Center for Home Food Preservation.
Dehydration of Food
www.canningpantry.com/dehydration-of-food.html
Foods and how to dry them.
Canned Food Canned food can include fruits, vegetables, sauces, meats, and soups. Canning food is both simple and inexpensive. If you know how to boil water, you know how to can food. You can buy a cheap canner for $20 or less, and probably get free glass jars from friends or yard sales. You’ll need rings and lids for the jars, but these are very inexpensive. Some fresh food, and an hour or two of your time, and you will have done it.
Canning 101
www.backwoodshome.com/articles/clay53.html
Simple instructions for canning.
Canning Food
www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_home.htmll
From National Center for Home Food Preservation.
Keep food cool without refrigeration You don’t necessarily need a refrigerator or freezer to keep foods cool long-term. For centuries people have preserved food in cool environments such as cellars, cold water (in containers), and by using the cooling effects of evaporation, in clay pots.
The key to food storage is lowering the temperature where the food is stored. You also want to minimize exposure to light and keep it in as dry (non-humid) an area as possible. Optimum food storage prolongs shelf life, nutritional value, taste, texture and color. Date all food containers and rotate, so that you’re continually selecting from the longest-stored foods.
Resources
Cool Food Storage
www.inthewake.org/b1cool.html
Various methods including water immersion, cold rooms, root cellars, ice caves, and pot-in-pot.
Pot-in-Pot Cooling
A simple technique that can be used anywhere in the world.
Refrigerator Alternatives
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/RefrigeratorAlternatives
A Yahoo discussion group on energy-efficient home refrigeration, including traditional refrigerators as well as root cellars, cooling cabinets, brine solutions and much more.
National Center for Home Food Preservation
www.uga.edu/nchfp
Many types of preservation for many types of food.
Prudent Food Storage FAQ
www.survival-center.com/foodfaq
Excellent and very comprehensive information.
Dried Food Drying food, dehydration, is usually a simple procedure, involving little or no equipment, and will allow the food to last for extended periods of time. Foods can be dried in the sun (with or without a solar dehydrator), in an oven, or with an electric dehydrator.
Drying removes the moisture from the food so that bacteria and molds can’t grow and spoil the food. The best temperature for drying food is 140°F. Higher temperatures will cook the food instead of drying it.
Fruit can be dried outdoors in the sun over a period of several days. Dehydrators, costing as little as $50 or less, speed up the drying process by lowering the humidity of the surrounding air.
Drying Foods
www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/dry.htmll
From National Center for Home Food Preservation.
Dehydration of Food
www.canningpantry.com/dehydration-of-food.html
Foods and how to dry them.
Canned Food Canned food can include fruits, vegetables, sauces, meats, and soups. Canning food is both simple and inexpensive. If you know how to boil water, you know how to can food. You can buy a cheap canner for $20 or less, and probably get free glass jars from friends or yard sales. You’ll need rings and lids for the jars, but these are very inexpensive. Some fresh food, and an hour or two of your time, and you will have done it.
Canning 101
www.backwoodshome.com/articles/clay53.html
Simple instructions for canning.
Canning Food
www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_home.htmll
From National Center for Home Food Preservation.
Keep food cool without refrigeration You don’t necessarily need a refrigerator or freezer to keep foods cool long-term. For centuries people have preserved food in cool environments such as cellars, cold water (in containers), and by using the cooling effects of evaporation, in clay pots.
The key to food storage is lowering the temperature where the food is stored. You also want to minimize exposure to light and keep it in as dry (non-humid) an area as possible. Optimum food storage prolongs shelf life, nutritional value, taste, texture and color. Date all food containers and rotate, so that you’re continually selecting from the longest-stored foods.
Resources
Cool Food Storage
www.inthewake.org/b1cool.html
Various methods including water immersion, cold rooms, root cellars, ice caves, and pot-in-pot.
Pot-in-Pot Cooling
A simple technique that can be used anywhere in the world.
Refrigerator Alternatives
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/RefrigeratorAlternatives
A Yahoo discussion group on energy-efficient home refrigeration, including traditional refrigerators as well as root cellars, cooling cabinets, brine solutions and much more.
National Center for Home Food Preservation
www.uga.edu/nchfp
Many types of preservation for many types of food.
Prudent Food Storage FAQ
www.survival-center.com/foodfaq
Excellent and very comprehensive information.