Unraveling the Mystery: Make
Your Own Vinegar
Vinegar (a French word for “sour wine”) is one of those things
that is largely taken for granted. Once upon a time, vinegar
was a ‘must have’ for any kitchen – and not just for cooking
with. In fact, vinegar was used for all manner of cleaning,
food preservation, and even used for medicinal purposes! It’s
a great all around thing to have but to make your own vinegar
– now that is one heck of a skill to have. The upside is
making vinegar is pretty darn easy!
I’ve done a little in the area of making my own apple cider
vinegar (using apple scraps, no less!) last year when I made
apple cider vinegar. It turned out really well, I was so proud
of my little self! When I tried to make it a second time, it
didn’t go so well because I didn’t ensure the apples were
fully submerged. This year, when apples go on sale and I start
making apple sauce, apple butter, and canning apple pie
filling, I plan on making a bunch of the vinegar from the
peels and cores. I love it when you can take the ‘waste’ and
make something useful out of it!
There are pretty much two types of vinegar starts:
Those started with grain and those started with
fruit.
I remember having a bad sunburn as a kid. Grandma diluted some
white vinegar in water and then smoothed it over my red, angry
skin. The cooling feeling of it gave me so much relief, I
remember crying because it felt so good. I also remember using
it on newspapers to clean glass with, again from grandma.
Vinegar is highly acidic and yet still mild, and there are so
many non food uses for it! Now that I’m older, I started
wondering how white vinegar is made. How all vinegars are
made. What I learned is pretty darn cool and so easy, it makes
you ask why everyone doesn’t just make their own! Chances are
pretty good that you have everything you need in your house
already, too.
As we do with all of the “Unraveling the Mystery” articles, we
will first dive into the science of vinegar, then cover the
equipment needed and the process to make your own vinegar, and
lastly, provide you with some links to different kinds of
vinegar you can make!
The Science of Vinegar
Vinegar is made via fermentation. Some might call it “ultra”
fermenting because vinegar is what happens to alcohol when
it’s been left too long. Firs the sugars
make the alcohol, and then the
acid makes it into vinegar. Ever
have a bottle of sour wine?
That’s the start of vinegar.
There’s some kind of joke there,
I’m sure of it.
To ferment, you need sugar for yeast to eat. That process
turns the liquid into alcohol. Once the yeast and sugar have
done their dance, the first stage is over. The second stage of
making vinegar is letting acetobacter, a harmless bacteria,
feed on the alcohol. This process is what makes the vinegar
and gives it that sour, distinct taste and scent. Instead of
sugary, now it’s acidic. Instead of making a sticky mess, now
it cleans sticky messes up. Ah, science!
If you would like to get a more technical explanation on what
happens at the microscopic level, you can check out the Wiki
page that will tell you all about it (and more!).
There are pretty much two kinds of vinegar types: Those made
with fermented grain (rice, corn, etc) and those made with
fermented fruit (apples, etc). The fruit or grain is
fermented, strained, then sometimes fermented again. You can
infuse vinegars with different flavors after fermentation,
too.There are numerous ways to make vinegar that are used the
world over. Whichever method you choose, there are certain
things you need to use (not not use) during the process to end
up with your own homemade vinegar.
The Equipment and Process
The equipment needed is pretty minimal, unless you’re doing
something overly fancy. It’s easy to buy a bunch of ‘gadgets’
for making vinegar but the truth is, you really don’t need it!
Chances are good you already have what you need.
The Equipment
You will need:
Fruit or grain you plan on fermenting
Glass, plastic, or pottery bowl(s) and utensils. NO
METAL
A double boiler (or a pot within a pot will work just as
well). Typically used for vinegar made with grain.
Fine Mesh Strainer
Cheesecloth or other filter to strain out the fine
pieces
Measuring cups, clean cloth, mixing bowl(s)
VERY CLEAN AREA*
Jars or bottles to put the vinegar in when it’s ready.
Time
Some may want to use fermentation airlocks (though not
generally needed in my opinion)
Depending on what you’re making, there may be things here you
don’t need and some items not listed that you do need. It
would be pretty easy to write a book about making vinegar. The
purpose of this post is to show you how easy it is to make
your own, not to cover all possibilities.
*You are dealing with fermentation. You want to ensure only
the bacteria you want gets into the mix!
The Process
I cannot stress enough how important it is to have a clean
working area. Fermentation requires certain bacteria,
especially for the second round of fermenting. Also, the use
of any metal is a vinegar making no-no. The reason for this is
because you are dealing with acidic liquid and when metal
comes in contact with it, the chemistry changes. Trust me on
this one, it will mess up your batch.
It’s very satisfying to make your
own vinegar!
Fruit based vinegar: Mix your sugar and water. Put your fruit
(or fruit scraps) into the bowl or jar you’re using. Pour in
your sugar mixture (generally 1 TBL to 1 cup of water) until
it completely covers the fruit. Make sure to leave some
headspace, too! Loosely cover with cheesecloth or maybe a
coffee filter. Put it away in a place that will be warm and
dark for about 2 weeks. You can stir it every other day if you
like. A layer may form on the top, simply skim it off. It’s
totally normal.
After 2 weeks, you will be able smell the vinegar but it won’t
have the tang you want just yet. It needs another fermentation
period but this time, without fruit! Strain the liquid well
and then put back into the cupboard, loosely covered, for
another 2 weeks (minimum). If it isn’t as tangy or scented the
way you prefer, simply let it sit longer!
Rough, right? Grain based vinegar is a little more involved
but still easy enough to get it started in an afternoon.
Grain based vinegar: There is more to it when you are using a
grain to make your vinegar with. Other than the normal two
step fermentation process, you may also need to distill the
vinegar which can be rather dangerous. Most people who make
their own tend toward using a fruit instead of a grain for
this very reason. I don’t know too many people who have a
still, let alone know how to safely use it.
White vinegar is generally what you end up with when using
grain and an alcohol base. It tends to be very clear and
strong, much like what you can buy in the store. The
difference is the vinegar in the store is sped up with
chemicals and other additives to turn it into something
sellable more quickly. The downside is the chemical use, the
upside is white vinegar is very inexpensive.
There is so much you can do with this amazing liquid and it’s
very satisfying when you make your own vinegar. This article
has only made one tiny scratch in the surface of the world of
vinegar and I don’t claim to know or have experience with it
all – that would be quite the dedication! Even though I may
not understand every tiny detail, I feel pretty confident in
making and using my own. One less thing to buy at the store!
Additional Resources
What’s the Difference Between Cider Vinegar and White
Vinegar?
How to Make Chive Blossom Vinegar (Infusion)
HUGE LIST of Vinegar Recipes!
Pressure Canning on Electric
vs Propane Stoves
We recently (finally) purchased a stove for the new house and
I am thrilled to be able to cook and bake normally again. The
only catch is it’s propane and not electric. We chose it on
purpose and I don’t have any problems with cooking on propane
but canning was a whole new game. I learned how to can on an
electric stove and admit I was a little apprehensive about
having to deal with the learning curve of electric vs propane
stoves when it came to pressure canning.
I’ve gone 7 months without canning anything and the
withdrawals were getting serious. At least, serious enough to
motivate me into canning up some pinto beans up 2 days after
the stove was installed. I chose beans as my first canning
session on the new stove in the new house because:
They’re inexpensive. If something goes wrong, the loss
is minimal.
They’re super easy to do and take very little prep time
(see below for how I can dry beans!).
We only have one jar left in the pantry and we eat them
about once a week in various dishes.
So I’m off! I get everything I need ready to go and load the
canner up with 7 pints. Normally, I would fill my awesome
canner to capacity but since this was a trial run and I didn’t
want to lose a bunch of jars, I went with less. Noting the
time, I fire the stove up and then sit down to wait for it to
start boiling so I can vent it for 10 minutes. Drop the
knocker on and then sit back to wait for it to get close to 11
pounds of pressure. A mere 6 minutes after putting the knocker
on, I’m at pressure! It took 26 minutes from the time I turned
the stove on to being at pressure and starting my timer for
the beans. I.Couldn’t.Believe.It.
Canning on a propane stove is faster to
get to pressure, easier to control, and
is more cost effective!
Anyone who has canned on an electric stove knows that it’s a
yoyo game of trying to dial in the right temperature. Even
after you get used to what setting the knob should be on to
maintain constant pressure, it still takes tweaking and
sometimes just sitting there while it processes. Heat is
constantly coursing around the coils, ebbing and flowing,
which can make the pressure drop below the desired number.
Speaking of hitting and maintaining the second number, I have
never been able to really keep it at 11 pounds of pressure. By
the time I would get things equalized out, it would be at 12
or 13 but I didn’t want to fiddle with it and just left it.
Pressure canning on a propane stove doesn’t require such
constant babysitting, I’m thrilled to say! I was able to set
it and leave it be for 20 minutes before checking on it. When
I came back, it had risen a little bit but not enough to do
anything about. I checked half an hour after that and it had
risen to a little over 12 pounds so I lowered the flame a
smidge. On the third check (now 1 hour and 15 minutes in), it
had lowered back down to 11 pounds and that was it! Before, I
would basically sit in the kitchen the entire time, no matter
how long it took for processing (meat also takes a long time).
My overall experience mirrors others I’ve read about: pressure
canning on electric vs. propane stoves is a no brainer!
Propane is the clear choice between the two. I didn’t realize
it but I learned how to do it the hard way first so switching
over to propane truly felt like a breeze. It’s not only
(much!) faster for getting to pressure, it’s also easier to
control and uses less energy. Our tank of propane will last us
over a year versus paying the electric bill monthly that used
to get pretty high during the harvest and heavy canning
season. You don’t have to move the heavy canner off the burner
when it’s done processing, either. Just turn the propane off.
It seemed to lose pressure more quickly, too. Could be because
there is more air underneath it than on an electric stove. If
you have the choice, go propane.
“What’s the catch?”, you
might ask. Well, you need
to do it in an area where
the wind won’t be blowing
the flame around. That can
make it fluctuate more than
you’d like, which I learned
from having the fan on when
it first came to pressure.
Also, you need to have a
burner that will get low enough (tiny flame) to keep the
pressure steady. Most propane burners have an additional flame
adjustment, check the manufacturer’s information to make sure
you do it right.
Other than that, there really are no “cons” to pressure
canning on a propane stove and plenty of “pros.” I’m hooked!
Pressure Canning Dry Beans
As promised, here is how I pressure can my beans. Please note
that, as my canning friend over at Simply Canning says, “There
are no canning police!” Use good judgement and safe practices
when canning any food to avoid getting sick. That being said,
my method for canning dry beans varies a little from what my
canning book says. It says for “dry beans,” you are to boil
them for two minutes and then soak for an hour before
processing. I skip that step.
I usually can jars of beans as a filler to ensure my canner is
always full when I process a batch to maximize the energy used
compared to what I get out of it. Plus, it is very fast to
fill the jar and add it to the canner if you find you have
extra space. The seasonings and added ingredients to the jars
are my own preferences. Due to the length of processing time,
any vegetable you want to toss in there will be plenty cooked
through, too. Be careful what spices you use when canning
though, as some will make your food inedible!
Ingredients
Dry beans – Pinto, kidney, northern, navy, lima…you get the
idea.
Vegetables – Carrots, onion, celery
Seasonings – Pepper, basil, rosemary, garlic, etc. I
personally never use salt unless I am canning salmon.
For Pint Jars
Measure a heaping 1/3rd cup of the dry beans into the jar. Add
in your vegetables but keep in mind that you don’t want to
fill the jar more than halfway. Just under half is best, due
to the expansion of the beans. Add seasonings: always add less
than you think you should. It’s easier to add more than to
take away. Fill with water, leaving 1 inch headspace as
normal. I like to use my homemade vegetable stock (if I have
enough). Process for 75 minutes at the pressure suited for
your elevation. Under 1,000 feet is 11 pounds pressure.
For Quart Jars
Measure out a heaping 1/2 cup or slightly less than 3/4 cup
dry beans. Follow the same instructions as for pints but
increase your processing time to 90 minutes at 11 pounds of
pressure if under 1,000 above sea level.
BONUS: We love to pressure can meals in a jar that include
meat, beans, carrots and onions, garlic, and other fresh
edibles from the garden and so can you!
Make
5
Foods
with
5
Ingredients (from Scratch!)
You know those days when you stare in your cupboards, seeing
only the most basic ingredients, and declare there is “nothing
to eat?” Yeah…me too. The things is, over the last 4 years, I
have made it part of my habit to learn how to make the things
we love most ourselves. Through that, I have learned how to
take the basic ingredients and make some pretty cool stuff! I
can make 5 foods with 5 ingredients and almost every house
will already have what they need!
We have come so far away from where we used to be when it came
to cooking. I mean real cooking, not opening a box or aluminum
can to heat and eat. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love the
convenience of it but I don’t care for the chemical taste
anymore (so I started making my own meals in a jar!). I’m a
big girl and my love of TV dinners, hot pockets, and pizza is
evident and won’t be fixed overnight. We have gotten so deeply
ingrained to a homesteading lifestyle that when we do splurge
and get a TV Dinner, we are less than enthused about it. In
fact, last week we decided not to get something quick and easy
to eat. Though I was incredibly tired, I wanted something that
would taste good, and not just so-so. The greatest compliment
my husband has recently given me is saying he would rather not
get take out because it just wouldn’t be as good as what I
make. Oh yes, he got an exceptional dinner that night.
OK so on to it! What are these magic ingredients and what can
you make with them?
The Ingredients
Flour
Sugar
Egg
Milk (powdered or liquid)
Butter/Lard/Shortening
The Foods You Can Make
Crackers (We’ve been making our own for a while now
and love them)
Tortillas (the recipe I used calls for baking powder but
you can make it without, too)
Dumplings
Pancakes
Bonus recipe! Old Fashioned Swedish Pancakes.
Double Bonus Recipe – CREPES!!
Pasta or Egg Noodles
Truthfully, there’s much more you can do with these basic
ingredients than what I’ve listed here. If you can add one or
two other basic ingredients, the possibilities increase
rapidly! One of my favorite sites to help me with figuring out
what the heck to make using only what I have on hand is
Supercook.com. Input the ingredients you have available and
then get a list of recipes you can make using only what you
have. It helps stretch the budget out and introduces new ways
to make sure nothing is wasted. Plus, you’re likely gong to
learn some new recipes for cooking from scratch and that is
always a bonus!
Making Flour Tortillas from
Scratch
Don’t you hate it when you have plans to make something for
dinner, have everything prepped and then realize you forgot a
key component? What’s even worse is you are flat broke and
can’t go buy what you need, let alone spare the fumes in the
car to get there and back. Ya…that happened to me last week
but it turned out to be an eye opening and very fun
experience. I had a crash course in making flour tortillas
from scratch.
Necessity is the mother of all invention, as the saying goes
and it certainly applies to this case. I needed flour
tortillas to complete this masterpiece of home-cooked goodness
I was expertly concocting. No, really. My refried beans and
burger mixture is so good that people use it as a chip dip and
the makings for both tacos and burritos. Maybe I’ll share it
with you sometime but this article is all about the awesome
experience of making flour tortillas from scratch!
I was in a rut and needed a solution so, naturally, I went to
the internet. I admit I did check my cookbooks to make sure
there was a recipe for them there, too. Anyway, off I went and
found a recipe that was, to my surprise, very similar to the
recipe I use to make crackers from scratch! I thought, “Wait,
if making flour tortillas is as easy as making crackers… WHY
didn’t I do this sooner!”
I cannot stress this enough to you. STOP PAYING those insanely
exorbitant prices of flour tortialls at the grocery store.
Here, an 8 pack of taco size flour shells will run you around
$4. Making the same amount yourself in the same size for
ohhh….thirty cents? Let me show it to you this way: Store
bought – $4. Homemade – $0.30. That means you are paying $3.70
for convenience, preservatives, and questionable ingredients.
I’m not saying it is bad to pay for convenience. What I am
saying is this simple recipe can be easily made and
customized.
The ingredients are as follows:
4
1
1
2
2
C. Flour
tsp Salt
1/2 C Water
TBL Lard (there are lard-less recipes out there, too!)
tsp Baking Powder
Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder
together in a mixing bowl. Mix in the lard with
your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal.
Add the water and mix until the dough comes
together; place on a lightly floured surface and
knead a few minutes until smooth and elastic.
Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces and roll
each piece into a ball.
Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Use a well-floured rolling pin to roll a dough
ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the
hot skillet, and cook until bubbly and golden;
flip and continue cooking until golden on the
other side. Place the cooked tortilla in a
tortilla warmer; continue rolling and cooking
the remaining dough. (source)
That’s it. Mix the lard in with the salt and flour until it
looks like cornmeal. Now, the original recipe says not to use
shortening but it was all I had. I used double the amount of
shortening than the measurement called for in lard. Then you
add part of the water, mix, add a little more, and mix until
the dough forms a ball. Knead it a few times to make sure it’s
fully mixed on a lightly floured counter top. Let it sit for
10 minutes.
Heat a skillet up without any oil; it’s not needed due to the
lard (or in my case shortening). Pinch off a golf ball size of
dough and roll it out using a well floured rolling pin.
Thickness is a personal preference. I suggest you go thinner
to start with. Once rolled out, put it in the hot skillet
until it’s browned (but not too crunchy*). Flip it over and do
the same on the other side. Repeat until done!
It’s best to store them in a tortilla warmer so they don’t get
too crunchy or dry out. If you don’t have one, place a clean
kitchen towel on a plate and fold over the tortillas as they
are done. If not large enough, another towel on the top will
work, too.
*I think because I used shortening that the one I let get
really brown broke when I tried to fold it around the burrito
filling. Lard wouldn’t have likely done that as easily.
CUSTOMIZE TO YOUR TASTE
So, after I made these and got over the fact that I should’ve
been making my own for years, my imagination started to go.
Just like with the crackers, it would be incredibly simple to
tailor these to suit whatever it is you were making. Think
about all you could really do with it! Flavors like oregano
and rosemary, garlic and black pepper….the possibilties are
truly endless. But you can go even further than that!
What about substituting some of the white flour with wheat? I
know from experience that it will make the dough thicker and
more elastic. That could make for a harder time rolling it out
so you wouldn’t want to make it half white and half wheat. You
would end up with more of a bread than a tortilla. Another
thing you could do is use some corn meal, say 1/2 a cup’s
worth substituted for the same amount of flour. It would give
it a good flavor! So many options!
Do you make your own flour tortillas?
Corn? Share below!!
Getting 4 Different
From One Roast
Meals
In our household, there are just the two of us to cook for. It
seems no matter what I do, there is always enough leftover for
at least one more adult to eat. Though we don’t mind
leftovers, eating the same thing for three days straight
doesn’t exactly get your appetite roused. I do my best when we
buy meat twice a year to vacuum seal it into portions small
enough for the two of us and still, there are leftovers. I had
to use some imagination to turn a roast or loin into 4
different meals.
I know, first world problems, right? Food plays a huge role in
our morale, though. Anyone who has gone without something they
love for a long time tends to get giddy when the idea of
having their favorite food again comes up. Take chocolate, for
example. Imagine going without it for 6 months and then
getting a Hershey’s bar. It would be better than Christmas and
birthday wrapped up in one!
Recently, I pulled out a pork loin. We take a whole loin, cut
it into thirds, and then vacuum seal them. That is still a
good amount of meat for only two people. Oh sure, I may cut
some off and boil or cook it plain for a nice dog treat but
even then, we still have too much for one meal. We’ve done it
and got sick of eating ‘pork roast’ for three nights. I swore
the next time, I would do something different. Following is
what I came up with to ensure we wouldn’t feel like we were
eating the same thing. It worked so well, we didn’t even
notice we were eating pork 4 nights in a row! The best part is
nothing went to waste (from leftovers not being eaten).
Night 1 – Pork Steaks
After the loin was thawed, I cut three nice pork steaks off
it, leaving a good 2/3rd of the loin left. Since I knew I was
going to use the rest of it within a few days, I stored it in
a tupperware-type container. I marinated the steaks, grilled
them up and had home-canned green beans and applesauce as
sides.
Night 2 – Fried Pork and Noodles
There are so many ways you can make this meal. I took the
leftover pork steak that wasn’t eaten the night before and cut
it into small cubes, maybe half an inch or so. The steaks were
pretty thick and it ended up being a good amount. Take a small
skillet and put a little olive oil in, just enough to give a
good coating on the bottom when warm. Bring it to medium heat
and add the cubed pork in there with some favorite seasonings.
We looove garlic so added some powdered garlic, fresh onion,
and black pepper. NO SALT. Get them good and hot in the pan so
the garlic and seasonings stick to the meat, set aside.
I admit we cheated on this one (no one is perfect, don’t
judge!
) and used ramen noodles. While the pork was frying,
I heated water to a boil and made the noodles. Just before
they were done (and before I added the seasoning packet), I
cracked two eggs into the water and whisked them around with a
fork, kind of like an egg drop soup. Once the egg was cooked,
the pork was added along with the season packets (hence why
you don’t add any more salt) and let it come back to heat for
a moment before serving. Some people prefer to scramble their
eggs before adding it to the broth. Don’t know it ’til you try
it. It is an incredibly inexpensive and filling meal.
Night 3 – Shredded Quesadillas
On the morning of day three, I took the rest of the loin and
put it into the crock pot with some onions, celery, and
homemade vegetable stock to slow cook all day long. When I got
home (it smelled so good when I walked in), I drained off the
broth and shredded the whole thing up. The onions and celery
that hadn’t liquified already was taken care of in the
shredding.
Quesadillas are pretty straightforward. A flour tortilla, some
shredded pork, and grated cheese over that. I also added some
fresh onion. You can put all sorts of things like bell pepper
slices or cabbage – just about anything your heart desires!
Make sure there is some shredded cheese on top before you put
the other tortilla on top. Heat it up until it browns on the
bottom, then flip it over. When both sides are browned,
crunchy, and the cheese is melted, it’s done!
Serve with sour cream and salsa. We used about half of the
shredded pork up that night.
Night 4 – Open Face BBQ Pork Sandwiches
It does not get any easier than this. Take the leftover
shredded pork and add your favorite BBQ sauce. Mix well. Toast
or pan fry some bread to get it crunchy and add the BBQ pork
on top. Add a slice of cheese and broil or put into a toaster
oven until the cheese is melted. Serve with a salad!
It was a huge success! I started thinking of ways I could do
the same kind of thing with a beef roast, a whole chicken,
ham, a turkey… The possibilities are truly endless. It’s just
a matter of preparing the larger portion of meat in a way that
is easily changed to taste differently. It all depends on what
spices you use and changing the texture of it (shredded versus
a cut of steak for example) will make it seem like you are
eating something entirely different each night.
Do any of you do things like this? I want
to know about it! Give me a comment
below; let’s get some great ideas going!
Cooking with Home Canned Food
Cooking with food you canned yourself is a real joy to
experience.Not everyone has experience or are intimidated by
cooking home canned food. When it is cold and snowy in the
middle of February, is there anything better than opening a
jar of jam you made yourself? The sweet taste of summer teases
your senses and makes your heart yearn for the warmth of the
sun and digging in the garden!
Most food that is water bath canned is pretty straightforward
when it comes to consumption. Pickles, jam, sauerkraut,
applesauce…all are open-and-eat foods but what about the stuff
you pressure canned? Meats, veggies, sauces…it can be a
challenge for some to know what to make with all of it. Sure,
you could also open-and-eat these but I don’t know many people
that pop open a jar of carrots and eat them for a snack. It’s
easy to look at those beautiful jars and see the carrots, the
canned pork, and beans but still be stumped on what to make.
It happens even if you are looking at a cupboard full of boxed
and processed foods so it’s pretty understandable that cooking
with home canned foods may be a bigger challenge.
The idea that people may have some problems figuring out what
to make with food they preserved is well known to me. When I
first began this journey, I had no idea how to eat very
healthy (other than salads, etc.) or how to cook a lot of
different things with whole foods. I was 100% a typical
overweight American who lived off all things frozen, prepackaged, and preserved with chemicals. I used to joke that I
would starve if I was locked in a health food store because I
had no idea what to do with 75% of the food there. Thankfully,
I kept at it and learned.
Not all of my experiments were successful (my poor husband
haha!) and resulted in a meal that, while edible, was anything
but tasty. A fine example would be pressure canned beans and
rice with canned pork. What a gloopy, gobby mess that turned
out to be! Too much salt, then too much pepper, then rice
added (dry) to help take some of the salt out that ended up
soaking all the liquid up and making the whole mess form into
some high school science experiment gone very, very wrong. I
kept at it though and have come up with some really great ways
to use up all that food you worked so hard to grow and
preserve.
A real eye opener for me was how fast meals were ready when I
used jarred food I processed. Some of you may be saying,
“There’s no difference between cooking with your jar of
carrots versus an aluminum can of carrots bought at the store.
You cook the same with both!”
They would be both right and wrong.
There is a difference in taste, color, and chemical content.
Canned green beans from the store taste and cook differently.
I can cook jarred green beans in a crock pot, on high, for 10
hours and it keeps its shape and flavor whereas with store
bought cans of green beans, after a few hours, any stirring
will cause it to break apart and turn to mush. I admit the
bragging rights are a nice bonus.
There is also the
difference that comes with the knowledge that what you are
eating is much healthier, tastes better, and you just took a
shot at big food companies by making your own ‘convenience’
foods!
*Please note that I cook for only 2-3 people. Adjust amounts
as needed and desired. Recipes below are suggestions.
Vegetable Soup
1 pint Carrots
1 pint Green Beans
½ pint Peas
1 quart Tomato Juice (V-8 is a fantastic substitute!)
Any other veggies you want to add
Any spices you want to add
Directions: Pop the jars open and drain water. Combine all
ingredients in a crock pot or a pot on the stove. Add spices
and bring the whole thing to heat. Allow it to simmer for at
least 20 minutes.
HD Notes: I will combine the above ingredients into my crock
pot in the morning and set it on low to cook all day long but
I have also dumped it all into a pot on the stove, heated it
up and let it simmer about 30 minutes before serving. There is
so much you can do with this!
Meat and Gravy Over….
1 pint Beef (Pork also works well for this!)
1 pint Vegetable (your choice)
1 quart Potato cubes
Corn Starch
Spices to taste
Optional: Instead of potatoes, you can use pasta or rice
Pop open your jar of canned meat and pour the whole thing into
a saucepan or pot (I don’t use spiced when I make batches of
canned meat). Assuming you use a pint jar, measure a heaping
half teaspoon of cornstarch and mix into 2 teaspoons of water.
Add it to the meat. Turn the heat to medium and let it get to
a good simmer. The cornstarch will thicken the broth into a
lovely gravy. Once you see it start to thicken, turn the heat
back and make sure to stir. Total simmer time should be around
5 minutes or so. Let stand to thicken.
Pop open your jar of vegetables and heat them up as preferred.
The potatoes can be heated and left as is in cube form or you
can mash them up (drain the water first!) after heating them.
You can also fry them up in a little olive oil though it tends
to get messy. If you are going for jarred potatoes, mashing
them after heating them up tends to be easier.
Season all to taste! Your meat and gravy is served over the
potatoes with some veggies on the side.
HD Notes: I use the juices from the meat to mix the starch
into. I will also add in some granulated garlic, chopped
onion/garlic, chives, pepper…whatever I have on hand and feel
like. This is truly one of our favorite ‘fast food’ meals as
it only takes about 20 minutes to make the whole thing. It’s
perfect for those nights when you just don’t want to ‘cook’
but have to make something. The best part is you know how the
food was processed because you did it yourself and also know
there aren’t a bunch of preservatives and other chemicals in
there.
Other Ideas
Take a jar of pinto beans to make refried beans for
burritos or a great bean dip.
A quart of homemade vegetable stock is perfect for more
than just making soup! Use it to make your stuffing
instead of water (a huge hit at our house) or you could
use the stock to soak dry beans in versus water. The
beans will soak up the flavor and nutrients!
A pint of jarred meat can be quickly turned into an open
faced sandwich just by draining the juice (or save it
for later) and mixing the meat with mayo or whatever you
prefer to make a tasty (and fast!) meal.
We have also taken a pint jar of pork, drained it and
shredded the meat. Layering shredded pork and cheese, we
made fantastic quesadillas!
There are so many ideas out there that would honestly fill
volumes of pages. I hope this gets the creativity and
inspiration flowing on different things you can do and make
with your home canned food!
What do YOU make with your home
canned food? Give us a comment
below and share the inspiration!