K
KYHeirloomer
Guest
Mama's "Are You Prepared" thread got me to thinking. There are many people who don't begin to understand how they can put foods by to assure a safe, nutritious, and tasty food supply.
I'm thinking we need to get a thread going in which we explore the options. But first, perhaps, there needs to be an understanding of how food is preserved.
There are three routes to food degradation: pathogens (i.e., bacteria and viruses), molds, and enzyme action. We'll leave the last out of the discussion, because most food-preservation methods automatically handle that problem as part of their processes.
So, ok. In order to preserve food you have to 1. remove or destroy as many pathogens as possible, and, 2. more importantly, create an environment which retards their growth, or which makes their growth difficult or impossible.
Until fairly recently, retarding pathogen growth was strictly a short-term preservation method. You accomplish that by pasturization or by cooling. When Mr. Birdseye invented freezing, retardation became long-term.
Root cellering belongs under the "cooling" category, but is in a special case.
Other than that, food preservation always revolves around water. You either remove it (drying), modify it (brining), or replace it (pickling) so that it's below the level that will support pathogen growth.
Historically, here is the way food preservation developed:
Drying, and it's associated smoke curing, are the oldest intentional forms of preservation. As far back as we can trace in neolithic times, people have dried and/or smoked foods.
Salting & fermentation. Depends which authority you want to accept as to which of these came first. Genereally speaking we can say they arose at about the same time (independently in various places, btw), and, it seems, by fortuitous accident.
Fermentation can be either long-term (i.e, pickles) or short-term (i.e, cheese) preservation. Salting is always long term, and is often associated with drying. Brining is long-term only so long as the saline level is maintained.
Canning---which only dates from 1813---uses combinations of heat, acid, and vacuum to destory pathogens and prevent their further growth. It is sometimes used in conjunction with fermentation as well, for longer-term storage, or for commercial purposes.
Freezing. As noted, was the invention of Mr. Birdseye, and only dates, in practical terms, from the 1940s.
Freeze-drying is a highly technical process, dating from the 1960, and cannot be done in the home.
What I'm hoping is that those who are experienced with the various preservation methods will post directions and comments. And that others will ask questions to help guide the discussion along.
I'm thinking we need to get a thread going in which we explore the options. But first, perhaps, there needs to be an understanding of how food is preserved.
There are three routes to food degradation: pathogens (i.e., bacteria and viruses), molds, and enzyme action. We'll leave the last out of the discussion, because most food-preservation methods automatically handle that problem as part of their processes.
So, ok. In order to preserve food you have to 1. remove or destroy as many pathogens as possible, and, 2. more importantly, create an environment which retards their growth, or which makes their growth difficult or impossible.
Until fairly recently, retarding pathogen growth was strictly a short-term preservation method. You accomplish that by pasturization or by cooling. When Mr. Birdseye invented freezing, retardation became long-term.
Root cellering belongs under the "cooling" category, but is in a special case.
Other than that, food preservation always revolves around water. You either remove it (drying), modify it (brining), or replace it (pickling) so that it's below the level that will support pathogen growth.
Historically, here is the way food preservation developed:
Drying, and it's associated smoke curing, are the oldest intentional forms of preservation. As far back as we can trace in neolithic times, people have dried and/or smoked foods.
Salting & fermentation. Depends which authority you want to accept as to which of these came first. Genereally speaking we can say they arose at about the same time (independently in various places, btw), and, it seems, by fortuitous accident.
Fermentation can be either long-term (i.e, pickles) or short-term (i.e, cheese) preservation. Salting is always long term, and is often associated with drying. Brining is long-term only so long as the saline level is maintained.
Canning---which only dates from 1813---uses combinations of heat, acid, and vacuum to destory pathogens and prevent their further growth. It is sometimes used in conjunction with fermentation as well, for longer-term storage, or for commercial purposes.
Freezing. As noted, was the invention of Mr. Birdseye, and only dates, in practical terms, from the 1940s.
Freeze-drying is a highly technical process, dating from the 1960, and cannot be done in the home.
What I'm hoping is that those who are experienced with the various preservation methods will post directions and comments. And that others will ask questions to help guide the discussion along.
