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 The presence of vegetables and fruits in dry, canned and fresh form is of no small importance in the work of a cook.
Fresh vegetables and fruits are abundant in summer and autumn, but the need for them is the same both in summer and winter, because vegetables and fruits contain nutrients such as carbohydrates and acids, aromas and flavors that facilitate the absorption of food. and the presence of vitamins A, C and others in them protects the human body from a number of diseases.
Therefore, in order for the food to be complete throughout the year, it is necessary to preserve vegetables and fruits for a longer time. This can be achieved by canning them.
The presence of a large amount of moisture in vegetables and fruits has a beneficial effect on the development of microorganisms that spoil vegetables and fruits. This can be prevented by creating conditions unfavorable for their life for microorganisms. To do this, at home, fruits and vegetables can be dried, salted, fermented, soaked, pickled, preserved.
I. Drying
Drying - this is the oldest and easiest way to preserve vegetables and fruits. When dried, vegetables and fruits lose a large amount of moisture, therefore, microorganisms lose their nutrient medium and therefore die.
It is best to dry vegetables and fruits at home in the sun or in the oven, on the bottom of the Russian stove.
For drying, you should take ripe and completely healthy fruits and vegetables. In cases where fruits with damaged areas come across, the damage should be carefully cut out.
For drying, it is better to take large fruits and vegetables that contain a large amount of sugar.
Before drying, fruits and vegetables should be sorted and rinsed well. Place prepared fruits and vegetables on trellised trays, plywood sheets, on a tarp, level them so that fruits or vegetables are in one row, place them on the roof, balcony or other unshaded places so that fruits and vegetables are always in the sun.
During drying, fruits and vegetables should be looked after: they must be turned over so that they dry out equally on all sides. The drying times are not the same for different fruits and vegetables, namely:
Apricots 7-8 days
Eggplant 5-7
Cherries 7-8
Pears 7-8
Plums 8-10
Apples 5-6
Melons 8-10
Carrots 3-4 days
Pepper 4-6 days
Dill and parsley greens 3-4
It is better to take fleshy and large apricots for drying. The fruit should be divided into two halves, the pit removed and placed on a tray with the cuts facing up.
Cherries for drying should be taken large. Before drying, they must be rinsed, and then put in a colander and immersed in boiling water for 3-4 seconds. Cool the cherries under running cold water, drain off the water, pour onto the vine and dry in the sun.
Before drying, rinse pears in cold water, let the water drain, cut each pear into 2 or 4 parts, transfer to a tray or tray and dry in the sun.
Plums for drying are better to take the Vengerka variety. Before drying, plums must be rinsed in water, then transferred to a colander and lowered for 5-7 seconds into a boiling vein. Remove the plums from the water, let the water drain, place them on a shed or plywood tray and put them in the sun (veranda or roof).
Apples are best dried summer varieties. Before drying, rinse the apple tree, cut it across into 0.5 cm thick slices, place on a trellis tray, tray or just a tarp, put on a crumb and turn over every 1-2 days to dry evenly.
Peel carrots, parsley, celery, cut into noodles, put on trays. Then take out into the sun. Carrots, before chopping, you need to boil them for 2-3 minutes.
Sweet and bitter peppers, as well as dill and parsley greens are dried on a string in shaded places so that the greens do not turn yellow. Before drying, wash them well, remove roots, rotten leaves, thick stems.
Melons for drying should be taken those that contain a lot of sugar and have a dense pulp (variety "Dubovka"). Before drying, the melon should be cut lengthwise into two parts, remove the seeds, then cut each half into two more parts, cut the skin off, cut into thin slices (no thicker than 2 cm), the melons should be placed on the box and taken out in the sun. Turn the plates over every day to dry evenly.
Ready-made dried fruits and vegetables should be individually folded into a clean "linen bag or sealed jars and stored in a clean and dry place, periodically checking their condition.
If the fruits or vegetables become moldy during storage, they must be put on a baking sheet and dried in the oven, and then, when cooled down, put into a clean, dry jar or bag.
Sometimes dried fruits and vegetables infect pests (tick, beetle, etc.). In this case, dried fruits or vegetables should be placed in an oven with a temperature of 60-70 ° for 25-30 minutes. At this temperature, the pests die.
II. Salting
Salting is the same as fermentation and drying is the most common way to preserve vegetables. Salt and lactic acid are a preservative, they prevent the development of harmful microorganisms and thereby protect vegetables and fruits from spoilage. Salted most often cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, watermelons, mushrooms, herbs and other vegetables, as well as fruits.
The mentioned vegetables and fruits are salted mainly in wooden barrels. Before salting, barrels should be steamed with hot water, rinsed with hot water and soda, and then rinsed well with cold water. All this is done in order to remove extraneous odor, disinfect the barrel so that the finished pickles do not have an unpleasant barrel odor and are not subject to rapid spoilage.
III. Pickling
Vegetables such as cabbage and eggplant... Pickling vegetables differs from pickling in that they take less for pickling salt than for pickling.
IV. Urinating
Most often apples, pears and plums are exposed to urination. Before wetting, wash the barrels well and scald with hot water. Sort the apples, pears or plums so that the fruits are the same size, without dents or other damage, rinse well. Then rinse the leaves of the cherry or black currant, and if they are not there, then scald the wheat or rye straw with boiling water, line the bottom and sides of the barrel with these leaves or straw and lay the apples or pears or plums in dense rows. Laying 2-3 layers of apples, shift them with leaves or steamed straw. Cover the barrel filled to the top with straw, put a wooden lid on the straw, put a load on the lid, and then pour sweet water, which is prepared like this: pour 5 liters of water into the bowl, add 1 glass of sugar and 17 g of a tablespoon of salt, boil over, and then cool ... After that, leave the apples for 8 days for fermentation. Skim off the foam and add sweet water during the fermentation period. On the ninth day, transfer apples or pears to the basement and let the fermentation finish.
Taking care of pickled apples or pears is the same as for pickles.
V. Canning
Vegetables and fruits can be preserved with salt, sugar and acetic acid, usually in glass jars. The best cans are liter or 3 liter cylinders.
Before canning, it is necessary to rinse the jars well with cold and hot water, then put in a bowl of water and boil. Corking cans can be done with tin lids with a rubber gasket, wooden corks with subsequent tarring, glass lids with a rubber ring and a clamp, and cellophane just dipped in vodka.
Vi. Natural fruit and berry purees and juices
Vii. Compotes, jam, jam
V. M. Melnik, "Moldavian cuisine", 1961
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