All About Preserving

Preserving food is a valuable skill that helps reduce waste, save money, and build up your pantry for the months ahead. There are many effective methods to choose from, including canning, dehydrating, freeze drying, freezing, salt curing, and fermentation—each with its own benefits and best uses. Learning how to safely preserve your harvest or bulk purchases not only supports a more self-sufficient lifestyle but also connects you with traditional practices that have sustained families for generations.

Basics

Learn the basics of preserving food. You will feel empowered as you create homemade, from-scratch pantry foods.

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Canning

Canning is the ultimate form of made-from-scratch convenience food. By learning the basics, you’ll be able to preserve your harvest and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Over the years, I’ve learned to safely create and modify canning recipes that are tried and true. Our family loves them all, but my most popular recipes are cranberry applesauce and ketchup for canning.

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Dehydration

Dehydration is one of the oldest forms of food preservation. It removes moisture from food, which prevents spoilage. Dehydrated foods can last 5-10 years and are shelf-stable.

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Fermenting

Fermentation is a natural method of preserving food that requires no appliances. All you need to get started with lacto-fermentation of vegetables is: Microbes, Vegetables, and Salt.

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Freeze Drying

Freeze drying is a way to keep food fresh for a long time. You’ll need a freeze dryer to do it. The food stays suitable for up to 25 years. You can dry fruits, veggies, meats, and more to use in meals or eat as snacks. Below are simple recipes to help you get started. My personal favorite is freeze-dried cranberries.

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Freezing

Freezing is a simple and easy method of preserving food that maintains most of the nutrients.

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