What Are You Canning/preserving?

[lucia]

This thread really makes me feel like a NYCer. A pantry! - what a luxury! And all these lovely gardens! I'm really impressed with y'all.

I think I'm (at least) going to make a batch of kimchi. I've been trying to eat it more since anything fermented is good for our tummies. But it's hard to find kimchi without anchovies, and we're mostly vegetarian in my house (due to my husband). That's my plan anyway.

I did put some tubs of pesto away in the freezer. And I got a big bundle of "pesto basil" from our CSA just yesterday, so I'll be putting away even more.

[GlutenFreeManna]

This thread really makes me feel like a NYCer. A pantry! - what a luxury! And all these lovely gardens! I'm really impressed with y'all.

I think I'm (at least) going to make a batch of kimchi. I've been trying to eat it more since anything fermented is good for our tummies. But it's hard to find kimchi without anchovies, and we're mostly vegetarian in my house (due to my husband). That's my plan anyway.

I did put some tubs of pesto away in the freezer. And I got a big bundle of "pesto basil" from our CSA just yesterday, so I'll be putting away even more.

Could you please share your recipe for kimchi? I would love to make it but have never found a recipe withotu fish sauce. I'm allergic to shellfish (including anchovies) and it's almost impossible to find shellfish-free fish sauce. I Would love it if I could just make kim chi without the fish sauce. I am trying to eat more natural probiotic foods too.

Oh and as far as the garden goes if you have even a small patio/balcony you may be able to do a container garden. I lived in apartments for years and grew cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, eggplant peppers and herbs on patios that were no bigger than two feet by four feet. The bigger plants were in paint buckets with holes drilled in the bottom. My "pantry" at the last few places was an old computer armroir I kept in the living room or dining room close to the kitchen. Everyone always thought it was a desk or tv cabinet unless I opened it up.

[love2travel]

This thread really makes me feel like a NYCer. A pantry! - what a luxury! And all these lovely gardens! I'm really impressed with y'all.

I think I'm (at least) going to make a batch of kimchi. I've been trying to eat it more since anything fermented is good for our tummies. But it's hard to find kimchi without anchovies, and we're mostly vegetarian in my house (due to my husband). That's my plan anyway.

I did put some tubs of pesto away in the freezer. And I got a big bundle of "pesto basil" from our CSA just yesterday, so I'll be putting away even more.

I am blessed with two big pantries - one downstairs that is large and one in the kitchen that is a walk-in size. One of the reasons we bought this house! Lots and lots of storage.

In winter you will be so happy about the pesto. Glad you got more from your CSA!

Our "garden" is the raised beds my husband built for me so I could continue growing things (cannot garden any longer due to chronic pain). The beds hold so much stuff - I plant very intensively. I just love them - my husband also built seating all the way around them so I can sit and plant/harvest. They are nearly two feet high so hold a lot of great organic matter in the soil (he works in our compost).

[lucky28]

So far we have canned pickles, green beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, vegetable soup, and pepper rings. Have also frozen zucchini and squash. I say we loosely, I was just dx in august and for most of the summer I really had no energy so it was my boyfriend who did most of the canning! I have been feeling much better lately and hope to join in with some fall stuff; apples, pears, peas etc.

[Bubba's Mom]

NotMe!..you said you made sourkraut? I just recently read a magazine that said to make it you alternate layers of shredded cabbage with salt. That's it..and then you put a plate on top to keep the cabbage under the liquid that's formed.

My whole life I though it was made with vinegar. Is it really just cabbage and salt..and does it smell bad while fermenting?

I've thought about trying to make some, but my son lives in the basement. if it smalls really bad he won't like it.

[notme]

NotMe!..you said you made sourkraut? I just recently read a magazine that said to make it you alternate layers of shredded cabbage with salt. That's it..and then you put a plate on top to keep the cabbage under the liquid that's formed.

My whole life I though it was made with vinegar. Is it really just cabbage and salt..and does it smell bad while fermenting?

I've thought about trying to make some, but my son lives in the basement. if it smalls really bad he won't like it.

that is all - cabbage and salt my daughter works at a restaurant so she brought me home a 5 gal food grade bucket. layer your cabbage and salt then (my dinner plates were the perfect size to fit pretty snugly) put the plate in UPSIDE DOWN and squish the whole mess down. the salt draws the liquid out of the cabbage - almost immediately we had enough liquid to keep the cabbage underneath. the trick is to keep it completely submerged. some people say scrub a brick and wrap it in plastic, but haven't had good luck with that so i fill a quart jar with water and put it into a gallon ziplok. it will stand right up on the plate and it's easy to smush down (which you should do every day and check to make sure your cabbage stays completely submerged - also if you want to skim the lovely growth that will form on the surface it will keep it from smelling really bad. but you don't have to) this was the first time we made it so when we checked it (4-6 wks depending on the temperature - warmer will be shorter) i kind of freaked because it was all kinds of funky on the surface. but we skimmed it and drained some of the liquid off (i even threw out the top layer just to be safe but i didn't need to!) and it was delicious and crisp underneath. very very delicious. worth the time and trouble plus it is sooo good for you. much better tasting than that vinegary stuff - no chemicals when it was done to our liking (another plus: you can ferment it for as long or as little as you prefer your kraut) we brought it to a boil and packed it into hot jars. water bath for 10 minutes i think or however long the ball blue canning bible says. viola!

while it is fermenting, cover it with cheesecloth or a towel. i did both. you can jam it in a closet or in the garage if it is warm enough or where ever if you are worried about stinkiness. jusssst don't tightly cover it because it will EXPLODE (like with a fitted lid or something - the towel gives it room to breathe)

lucky28: i tried to reply on the pm (?) i think but i may have messed it up!! probably!! i hope this helps you as well. my apologies to anyone who has messaged me because i have no idea where my replies are going. probably to the wrong person

[Bubba's Mom]

Thanks so much for this info! I'd like to try this. It sounds like my kind of "cooking"

I'm gonna look for one of those buckets.

[love2travel]

we had the biggest garden this year than we have ever had! i am sick of my pressure-canner! lol just kidding, i am really getting some use out of it this year. i am on the last batch of cukes and i still have green peppers and jalapenos left to put up. probably make jelly - love2, is your recipe sweet/hot? that is what i want, i think.

so far we have:

a TON of sauerkraut - and i fermented it for a few weeks. my family loves me haha

chow-chow - about 5 qts although i am making ALOT more next time, everybody loves it!

beets - 5 qts - i could have put up more but everybody kept eating them

stewed tomatoes - 9 qts

roasted tomatoes w/garlic - 9 qts

bread n butter pickles - 6 qts

half sour pickles - first attempt - 4 1/2 qts

"hamburger" dill chips - 7 pints

dill cuke relish - is brining right now

and i have one more batch of cukes left - debating on sweet relish or trying the half sour fermenting again.... hmmm....

experimental success - all ingredients are natural and gluten free. with my husband's hunting skills, we could eat all winter if we had to. the kids, however, will starve. HAHAHA kidding. they are all grown, they can forage for berries. and eat slugs <gluten free

Oh, wow! How wonderful! It will be fantastic pulling those foods off the shelf in winter. I'm sad because I hurt my back yet again (the third time lately) and am unable to continue canning right now. I have so many red and green tomatoes, lots of apples, cukes, etc. and will have to end up giving a lot away. I so badly wanted to can much more!

[sb2178]

Now that we've had our first frost canning is in the air. Today I am canning a big batch of yummy salsa and tomorrow I am making dill pickles. Hopefully on Friday I will make yellow tomato butter.

So far I have made:

- nectarine almond chutney

- pear relish

- marinara sauce

- roasted plum preserves

- roasted applesauce

...and have tons and tons of other things to "put by". Can hardly wait! I am making a balsamic red wine herbed jelly, jalapeno jelly, pizza sauce and about 6 kinds of pesto.

Not enough! Was supposed to teach a canning class tomorrow; fortunately, it was canceled as I'm beat and need the down time. So, far I've only done rather a lot of jars of lemon apricot sauce. Will hopefully do some spiced plums and pickled cauliflower... but this year is getting away from me.

I have been playing with lactofermented veg, though. I've done cucumbers, persian cucumber, carrots, and kohlrabi. The carrots are fantastic! Dill, summac, peppercorns, and a few grapeleaves.

[notme]

Oh, wow! How wonderful! It will be fantastic pulling those foods off the shelf in winter. I'm sad because I hurt my back yet again (the third time lately) and am unable to continue canning right now. I have so many red and green tomatoes, lots of apples, cukes, etc. and will have to end up giving a lot away. I so badly wanted to can much more!

you poor baby! i know how you love to cook and also the timing of garden veges - i lost a bunch of wax beans because i ran out of time with everything coming in at once! also i was surprised at how long cucumbers will keep very nicely in the fridger till i was ready to do the second batch (or was that the fourth?? lol) anyway, maybe you will feel better enough to do some more...

[notme]

I have been playing with lactofermented veg, though. I've done cucumbers, persian cucumber, carrots, and kohlrabi. The carrots are fantastic! Dill, summac, peppercorns, and a few grapeleaves.

yums - i am also experimenting husband is a 'survivalist' - we are almost out of venison and wild boar lol good thing hunting season is right around the corner! i have cured salmon with salt/sugar and herbs - also yums - at first i would make the stuff and not eat it - afraid it wasn't safe haha i'm not dead yet and better than storebought and no freaky chemicals. i eat anything, now. except gluten

[lucia]

Could you please share your recipe for kimchi? I would love to make it but have never found a recipe withotu fish sauce. I'm allergic to shellfish (including anchovies) and it's almost impossible to find shellfish-free fish sauce. I Would love it if I could just make kim chi without the fish sauce. I am trying to eat more natural probiotic foods too.

GlutenFreeManna,

I have a recipe for kimchi, but it includes fish sauce. I've read that you can just leave the fish sauce out. I've had prepackaged kimchi that excludes the fish sauce (probably for vegetarians). I guess people may prefer the flavor with fish sauce, but I liked the veg version just fine (and my husband could eat it too). I haven't made it yet, but I'll try to remember to let you know how it comes out and share the recipe if it's good.

[GlutenFreeManna]

GlutenFreeManna,

I have a recipe for kimchi, but it includes fish sauce. I've read that you can just leave the fish sauce out. I've had prepackaged kimchi that excludes the fish sauce (probably for vegetarians). I guess people may prefer the flavor with fish sauce, but I liked the veg version just fine (and my husband could eat it too). I haven't made it yet, but I'll try to remember to let you know how it comes out and share the recipe if it's good.

Thank you! It had not occurred to me to just leave it out. I thought I would need somethign else salty to replace that fish sauce (I imagine it is salty anyway, haven't tried it myself). Please let me know how yours turns out if you make it.

[Bubba's Mom]

I had to go several places to find a bucket for making sour kraut. Found one at Walmart!

The "recipe" I have says to use canning salt. I couldn't find that either, so I got Kosher salt. Ingredients: salt

Will start slicing and layering tomorrow.

I made bread for the first time today, and will start making kraut tomorrow. I didn't can tomatoes this year. Just didn't have the energy..and our home grown ones didn't produce as much as usual.

Still...pretty good for a gal who doesn't like to cook!

[love2travel]

I had to go several places to find a bucket for making sour kraut. Found one at Walmart!

The "recipe" I have says to use canning salt. I couldn't find that either, so I got Kosher salt. Ingredients: salt

Will start slicing and layering tomorrow.

I made bread for the first time today, and will start making kraut tomorrow. I didn't can tomatoes this year. Just didn't have the energy..and our home grown ones didn't produce as much as usual.

Still...pretty good for a gal who doesn't like to cook!

Canning salt is coarse salt - is your Kosher coarse? Fine and coarse salts measure differently so you may want to check before you make the saurkraut! Even coarse Kosher probably is not coarse enough. Canning salt is very chunky, almost like a finishing salt (but don't use that - far too expensive). Pickling/canning salt is very inexpensive - it may be in the seasonal canning section in your store.

[notme]

we used kosher salt - it was close enough i think they recommend pickling salt or kosher salt because there are no additives like iodine or anti-caking agents. love2travel has a good point, but in the US the crystal size is pretty close (i have both and can hardly tell the difference - both are morton brand) my dad said my hungarian grandma used to not even measure the salt lol just chopped cabbage and chucked in a handful of salt! and added more cabbage and so on. the very same woman who brought us HEAD CHEESE <whatever that was i wouldn't eat it! also she made the most awesome stuffed cabbage rolls that she tied each one with sewing thread - we called them "glomkies" i'm sure there is a proper hungarian name for them...

anyway, kosher salt worked for us. keep your plate submerged! lol

[Bubba's Mom]

Thanks for the input on the salt. The Kosher I bought seems just a little more coarse than regular salt. I thought canning salt was basically salt with no additives that might make brines, etc. cloudy?

I'm going for it! LOL

[Simona19]

Oh, wow! How wonderful! It will be fantastic pulling those foods off the shelf in winter. I'm sad because I hurt my back yet again (the third time lately) and am unable to continue canning right now. I have so many red and green tomatoes, lots of apples, cukes, etc. and will have to end up giving a lot away. I so badly wanted to can much more!

Hi! I will jump in this tread. I would like to give you suggestion about green tomatoes. Every year I will make this:

Ingredients: small green tomatoes, or cut big tomato on quarters, shredded small red cabbage, at least 5 jalapenos, or chilli peppers per jar,(how hot you like), cauliflower - take apart like broccoli, small onions (1 inch big) and liquid like for sweet and sour pickles, spices for pickles (add double of sugar like usual).

We have in my country little packets with spices, preservatives, and salt for pickling. My family will send me some every year. I don't know, if you have something like that. In my recipe I will use vinegar, sugar, water and 1-2 packets for pickling. You can use your original recipe for pickles, but add double of sugar to make it more sweet and sour.

In a jar put a row of tomatoes with 1 jalapeno or chili, cover with little cabbage, another row make with cauliflower with jalapeno, red cabbage, then onions with jalapeno and cabbage....Continue, or mix how you like. Make juice with spices and everything that you use. Bring to boil and cook for 5 minutes. Let it cool down little, for 15 minutes and then pure everything through a strainer. Pure the liquid into jars, cover tide and cook in water bath for 30-40 minutes on medium heat, or lower, if you need. I will feel the cover on top of jars, if is very hot and I can't hold my finger on it for 3 seconds. That is the point when I know that everything is sealed properly. This is very good with kolbasy on a grill, or grilled ribs, pork.

Another recipe with green tomatoes:

2 bigger white cabbages, 5-6 big onions, 3-4 red pepper,3-4 green Italian pepper, 10-15 green tomatoes, chili or jalapenos- optional. Chop, slice everything on tin slices. Mix in a very big bowl or pot. Make liquid like for sweet and sour pickles- 3 quarters, or 1 gallon of liquid with everything) and pure into mix trough strainer. Make little hall in middle of mixture and sink strainer with spices in it. Leave everything in fridge over night. In the morning put everything into jars, cover tide and sterilize for 30-40 minutes. This is good with pork chop and mashed potatoes, or any meat and gravy.

Apple recipe:

Clean apples and cut them on quarters. Make syrup with sugar, pectin, water, citric acid and 5-6 whole cloves per one big jar. This is very good with meat like pork chop, fried chicken and mashed potatoes, or anything else.

I know much more recipes. I was forced to help with pickling and canning when I was just a "baby". I learned joung.

I have a different recipe for sour Kraft. It's much better, but you need to use more ingredients then salt. The cabbage will be stinky for 2 weeks only and later you will have a wonderful cabbage that you can eat strait from bucket.

[Bubba's Mom]

Your various pickle mixes sound interesting Simona. I've never tried to pickle any other vegetables other than cucumbers.

I'm going to have some green tomatoes. We are going to get very cold weather here tonight, so the tomato plants will be killed. I usually just bring the green ones in and set them on the windowsill in the sun room to ripen.

When I started making my kraut I got a little worried. I didn't have much liquid. I placed the plate/jar of water on top and covered with a thick towel. Then I sat one of my cast iron frying pans on top to push it down better. I didn't have enough liquid to cover the plate until the second day. It already smells like sour kraut. This is an interesting experiment!

[wheeleezdryver]

Our local church cannery has apples and pears for a really good price, so I am hoping to get some today to can... this will be my first time canning anything.... even went out and bought the Mason Jars earlier this week, as I didn't have any.

My only question is this: does anyone know of a website I can go to that has a tutorial for canning apples or pears, that they could share with me?

I know of one that has a tutorial for canning peaches, would that be close enough?

(I will share that website later, I don't have the link to it at the moment!)

[Simona19]

I would like to give one very good suggestion: You don

[Bubba's Mom]

I haven't tried canning apples, but have done pears in the past. They were easy! I added cinnamon to a couple of jars for spiced pears and they were good too.

Open Original Shared Link

[notme]

simona: i do use the leftover jars from spaghetti sauce, etc, when i am just doing hot water bath processing, like for pickles or jams, etc. but when i am pressure canning i have had trouble with having the jars seal properly unless i use the specified canning 'mason' jars.

bubba's mom: how did your kraut turn out?? i can't eat rueben sandwiches anymore with store-bought sauerkraut also, we 'make' our own corned beef (whoop-de-do boil meat. the end LOL) and i make the spread from dill pickle relish, ketchup, mayo and dijon mustard. yummmmzzzz eating is so much fun when it's not killing you!!!!!!!!!

[Bubba's Mom]

my kraut is still sitting there..fermenting itself.

About a week after I started it I'd get a faint smell of something like a spoiled potato every once in a while. I went through the basket of potatoes and found they were ok. Later I smelled it again. Then I realized..it was the kraut. Doh!

Now it smells like sour kraut should. I'm hopeful/excited to see how it turns out.

In all the years I've eaten it I never knew how it was made. I thought it was made with vinegar? It couldn't get much easier to make? Slice cabbage, sprinkle with salt, repeat layers.

I haven't had a Reuben since Dx and it was a while before that. Maybe 6 months ago? Sure does sound good!

I guess I should play with making an imitation rye bread? I always liked it toasted with cream cheese too.

[GlutenFreeManna]

Our local church cannery has apples and pears for a really good price, so I am hoping to get some today to can... this will be my first time canning anything.... even went out and bought the Mason Jars earlier this week, as I didn't have any.

My only question is this: does anyone know of a website I can go to that has a tutorial for canning apples or pears, that they could share with me?

I know of one that has a tutorial for canning peaches, would that be close enough?

(I will share that website later, I don't have the link to it at the moment!)

Try this website:

Open Original Shared Link

Also if you can pick up a Ball Canning book it's worth it to buy--it's a thin book with all the recipes you could need, saftey info and step by steps in it.