With rising food prices, consumers are trying to find ways to save the family food dollar. Home gardening and food preservation has been a family food source for generations. Not only can the quality of the food exceed store purchased items, but the whole family can become involved in the process.
Freezing is one of the easiest, most convenient and least time-consuming ways to preserve foods at home. The extreme cold stops growth of microorganisms and slows down changes that cause spoilage and affect quality in food.
The National Center for Home Food Preservation, hosted by the College of Family and Consumer Sciences at the University of Georgia, conducted a survey of home freezing practices. The survey revealed that 94.4 percent of respondents home freeze some type of food item. Plastic bags are the most frequently used packaging material for freezing food items. Other suitable containers for freezing fruits and vegetables are plastic freezer containers or glass canning/freezing jars. Do not use paper cartons such as milk boxes. Many purchased foods like yogurt, sour cream and dips are packaged in plastic containers that do not provide characteristics for preserving food quality in the freezer. Freezer foil and coated freezer paper are good choices for odd shaped foods.
To prepare fruits for freezing, first wash and discard those that are not yet ripe or are of poor quality. Allowing fruit to soak in water will cause loss of nutrients and flavor.
Stem, pit, peel or slice fruit as desired; prepare enough fruit for only a few packages at a time to prevent browning. Do not use galvanized equipment in direct contact with fruit since the acid in the fruit will dissolve the zinc which can be harmful in large amounts.
There are several ways to pack fruit for freezing, such as a syrup pack, sugar pack, dry pack or unsweetened pack. Most fruits have better texture and flavor if packed in sugar or syrup, however sugar is not needed to preserve the fruit.
Sugar syrups can be made by totally dissolving sugar in water and then pouring it completely around and over fruit in the packed container. The water may need to be heated some to dissolve all the sugar, but make sure that it is totally cool or even cold before using it on the fruit. Use 2 ¾ cups sugar to 4 cups of water for most fruits. For mild flavor or very sweet fruits, use 1 ¾ cups sugar per 4 cups water. About 1/2 -2/3 cups of syrup is needed per pint of fruit.
To make sugar packs, simply sprinkle sugar over the fruit and mix gently until the juice is drawn out and the sugar dissolved. Dry packing works best with berries and smaller fruits that give good flavor without sugar. Pack the fruit, seal and freeze.
Peaches, apples, pears and apricots darken quickly when exposed to air and can darken in thawing. Use ascorbic acid in the package to prevent discoloration of fruits during the freezing process. Ascorbic acid in powder form is available at some drugstores or where freezing supplies are sold. Add ½ teaspoon (1500 milligrams) of pure powdered ascorbic acid to cold syrup shortly before using, stir gently to avoid adding air. To use in sugar or dry packs, dissolve in 2 or 3 tablespoons of cold water and sprinkle over fruit just before adding sugar. If you use a commercially sold fruit color preserver that is not pure ascorbic acid, follow the directions on the box.
Most foods require headspace between the packed food and closure to allow for expansion as food freezes. Headspace recommendations can be found at the website listed below.
All packaged food should be room temperature or cooler before putting in the freezer. Do not overload your freezer with too much warm food at one time. Quick freezing is best for frozen food quality. Spread the new packages around until they are frozen completely, then they can be stacked together if desired.
Be sure to label all packages with the name of the food, date and type of pack. Frozen fruits will typically remain high in quality for eight to twelve months. Longer storage will not make the food unfit for use, but may impair its quality. It is a good idea to post a list of the frozen foods with freezing dates near the freezer and check the packages off the list as they are removed for eating.
For recipes or more information on home preserving fruits and/or vegetables, visit the National Center for Home Food Preservation online at http://nchfp.uga.edu or contact the Decatur County Extension office at 229-248-3033.
