How to preserve your extra produce

There’s nothing more satisfying than a thriving garden — until you realize you’ve got way more tomatoes, zucchinis, or herbs than you can eat. Instead of letting your hard-earned harvest go to waste, try these simple ways to preserve your extra produce. 

1. Freeze it

Freezing is one of the easiest ways to preserve produce. 

How to do it:

• Berries: Wash, lay them out on a baking sheet first, then transfer to bags to prevent clumping. 

• Peaches/fruits: Wash and chop produce into convenient sizes.

• Green beans, broccoli, and corn: Blanch vegetables for 2–3 minutes to keep color and flavor.

• Herbs: Blend herbs (ex: basil) with olive oil and pour into an ice cube tray. 

Downside: Freezer space is limited unless you have an extra freezer. 

Frozen pesto cubes

2. Pickle it or make kimchi

Who doesn’t like a pickle cucumber in your sandwich?

Quick pickling:

• Prepare the food and brine: Wash and cut vegetables. Heat up a mixture of vinegar, water, salt, and sugar in a pot – this is the brine.

• Fill the jars: Place spices and herbs in the bottom of a clean jar, then pack the produce tightly on top. Pour the brine over the food in the jars, making sure the contents are completely submerged. Seal the jars tightly.

• Cool and store: Allow the jars to cool to room temperature before placing them in the refrigerator. Or you can get to the next step learning how to can it.

Kimchi:

You might be surprised that you can make kimchi with other produce than napa cabbage – cucumber, yellow squash, zucchini, etc. We recommend the kimchi recipe from Maangchi.

3. Can it

Canning is the best method to free space from your fridge and freezer. There are two main types of canning methods: water bath (good for high-acidic foods) and pressure canning (good for low-acidic foods). Low-acid foods like vegetables, beans, etc. can’t be safely preserved in a boiling water bath because dangerous bacteria like Clostridium botulinum (which causes botulism) can survive at 212°F. Pressure canning does require a pressure canner so we will only cover the most common one – water bath canning.

Water Bath Canning

This method is perfect for high-acid foods, such as fruits, jams, jellies, pickles, and tomato products.

What you’ll need:

• A deep pot with a rack or you can get water bath canner

• Mason jars with new lids and bands (old lids won’t seal)

• A jar lifter (to move jar in and out the boiling water)

How it works:

• Fill out jars, wipe the rim and place a new lid and band – tighten to fingertip-tight (otherwise it won’t seal.)

• Submerge jars: Carefully lower the filled jars onto the rack in the canner using a jar lifter. Ensure the jars are fully submerged in water.

• Bring to a boil: Cover the canner and bring the water to a full rolling boil. Set the timer (the length depends on the types of foods you have in the jars).

• Remove jars: Carefully remove the jars from the canner and place them upright on a towel-lined counter or a cutting board, leaving space between them.

• Let jars cool completely: Do not touch or tighten the rings. Let them cool completely and you might hear a “bop” sound which indicates the seal.

• Check seals: After 12-24 hours, check each jar to ensure it has sealed properly. You can remove the band when you store it. (So you know if it’s a false seal or if the food goes bad.) 

For Utah: Increase the boiling time for altitude.

4. Dehydrate it 

You can utilize the Utah scorching sun in summer, get a dehydrater or dry in a low temperature in your oven.  For herbs, leaving them on the table for 2 weeks will be sufficient. And you can put the dried leaves in a spice grinder to reduce the volume.

Best for: apples, pears, tomatoes, and herbs.