Categories
- Books and blogs (6)
- Fermented foods (27)
- Fruits (40)
- Herbs (6)
- Nuts (2)
- Pickles (44)
- Preserving science (19)
- Sweet preserves (30)
- Vegetables (54)
- Wild foods (12)
The Joy of Pickling
The Joy of Jams, Jellies, and Other Sweet Preserves
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Archives
- Win Canning Jars, Lids, and The Joy of Jams!
- Bamboo for Dinner
- A Mixed Pickle of Mixed Parentage
- One Fine Mixer: Fermented Lemon Brine
- Experiments with Tibicos (Water Kefir)
- Homegrown Belgian Endive
- Eating and Drinking in New Orleans
- A Quick Wintertime Refrigerator Relish
- Citron Melon Again, for Dessert
- A Bean Worth Drying: The Scarlet Runner
Category Archives: Preserving science
Experiments with Tibicos (Water Kefir)
When my friend Rose Marie first asked me what I knew about water kefir, I was baffled. Water kefir, she explained, was a culture for a bubbly beverage made from water, not milk, in the form of “grains” that resemble … Continue reading
Posted in Books and blogs, Fermented foods, Fruits, Preserving science
Tagged carbonated drinks, carbonated water, carbonation, fruit syrups, honey, pop, quince, soda, syrup, tibi, tibicos, water kefir
10 Comments
Check That Vinegar Label
Until recently, cider and distilled vinegar sold in the United States was dependably diluted to 5-percent acetic acid. All U.S. Department of Agriculture home-canning recipes that call for vinegar specify a strength of 5 percent, and in writing recipes myself … Continue reading
Posted in Pickles, Preserving science
Tagged checking pickle pH, Four Monks, Mizkan, percent acid, pH meter, vinegar
14 Comments
Clear Juice from Cherry Tomatoes
What do you do with a glut of cherry tomatoes? Small, sweet, tart, juicy tomatoes—whether shaped like cherries, grapes, or plums—are the best varieties for snacking. You can halve them and add them to salads, pile them into kids’ lunch … Continue reading
Posted in Preserving science, Vegetables
Tagged canning, cherry tomatoes, Cold Soups, steam juicer, tomato consomme, tomato juice, tomato water, USDA
8 Comments
Rice Vinegar for Home Canning
Tom Reynolds, director of food service and industrial marketing for Marukan, wants to sell the company’s rice vinegar to home canners. Apparently he has a ready market; more than three hundred home canners “liked” Marukan rice vinegar on the company’s … Continue reading
Posted in Pickles, Preserving science
Tagged canning, carrots, food preservation, pickles, rice vinegar, USDA
13 Comments
Delightfully Bitter Marmalade from Seville Oranges
Just as I’d imagined, orange trees lined the streets of Sevilla, Spain, where I found myself for a few hours several winters ago. As I reached for a fruit though, my friend stopped me: The oranges of Sevilla belong to … Continue reading
Posted in Fruits, Preserving science, Sweet preserves
Tagged albedo, bitter orange, David Karp, lemon juice, marmalade, New Seasons Market, pectin, Seville orange, sour orange
14 Comments
Innovations in Canning Tools
A company called Progressive is about to release to the market a set of five new tools for home canners, and I’ve had an early opportunity to try them out. Here’s what I’ve found. The stainless-steel wire jar rack, 10½ inches … Continue reading
Posted in Pickles, Preserving science
Tagged canning, canning rack, food preservation, funnel, jar lifter, ladle, lid lifter, Progressive, tools
27 Comments
A Handmade Crock Weight
If you have access to potter’s clay and a kiln, why not fashion a weight to fit your crock and your taste? That’s what Rose Jaress did for her mom, Monica, at the suggestion of her dad, Gene, and with … Continue reading
Posted in Fermented foods, Pickles, Preserving science
Tagged brining, fermentation, pickles, pickling
3 Comments
Glass Weights for Small-Batch Pickling
When you’re making fermented pickles, you must usually weight the food, because until it is well acidified it can easily spoil on exposure to air. Vegetables or fruits fermenting in a crock or plastic bucket are typically weighted with a … Continue reading
Posted in Fermented foods, Fruits, Pickles, Preserving science
Tagged brining, Fermented foods, ferrmenting, glass weights, lemons, pickling, preserved lemons
12 Comments
Home Canning, BPA-Free
About a year and a half ago, home canners began to learn that the flat metal lids they use to seal their jars, like the metal cans that so much store-bought food comes in, were lined with a plastic coating … Continue reading
Posted in Preserving science
Tagged Ball, bisphenol-A, BPA, canning, EFSA, EPA, FAO, jar lids, Jarden, Kerr, Leifheit, preserving, Quattro Stagioni, Tattler, Weck, WHO
61 Comments
More Evidence that Alcoholic Drinks Are Good for You
Here’s to the man who drinks water pure and goes to bed quite sober. Here’s to the man who drinks water pure and goes to bed quite sober. He falls as the leaves do fall, falls as the leaves do … Continue reading
