Putting Food By - Janet Greene [183]
Dry test for flint corn: brittle—it cracks when you whack it. Store in sound air- and moisture-proof barrels; but if you must hold it in large cloth bags, invert the bags every few weeks: this prevents any moisture from collecting on the bag where it touches the floor.
Corn, Parched
Correctly dried sweet corn is more than a stop-gap for the many people who consider it superior in flavor to canned corn. Any variety of sweet corn will do. Gather in the milk stage as if it were going straight to the table. Husk. Steam it on the cob for 15 minutes for more mature ears, 20 minutes for quite immature ears (the younger it is, the longer it takes to set the milk). It’s a good idea to separate the corn into lots with older/larger and younger/smaller kernels so you can handle them uniformly. When cool enough to handle, cut it from the cob as for canning or freezing whole-kernel corn. Don’t worry about the glumes and bits of silk: these are easily sifted out after the kernels are dry.
Indoor dryer. Spread shallow on the trays. If using a dehydrator, start at 140 F/60 C; raise to 165 F/74 C gradually after the first hour; reduce to 140 F/ 60 C when nearly dry, or for the last hour. In a stove oven or handmade indoor dryer, aim to maintain a temperature of 140 F/60 C throughout. Stir frequently to keep it from lumping together as it dries. Test dry. Condition. (Pasteurizing is not necessary following processing in a dryer if the temperature has been held as high as 165 F/74 C for an hour.) The silk and glumes will separate to the bottom of the conditioning container; but if you don’t condition, shake several cupfuls at a time in a colander whose holes are large enough to let glumes and silk through. Best stored in moisture/ vapor-proof containers in small amounts.
Open-air/sun. Prepare exactly as for the dryer. Stir frequently to avoid lumping. Pasteurize certainly. Shake free of glumes and silk. Package and store. Solar dryer: about 70 percent of open-air/sun time.
To cook. Rinse in cold water, drain; cover with fresh cold water and let stand overnight. Add water to cover, salt to taste, and boil gently until kernels are tender—about 30 minutes—stirring often and adding a bit more water as needed to keep from scorching. Drain off excess water, season with cream, butter, pepper.
Dry test. Brittle, glassy, and semi-transparent; a piece cracks clean when broken.
Garlic
Treat it like Onions if you must dry it.
Herbs
This category includes celery leaves as well as the greenery from all aromatic herbs—basil, parsley, sage, tarragon: whatever you like.
All such seasonings are air-dried at temperatures never more than 100 F/ 38 C (higher, and they lose the oils we value for flavor); and as much light as possible should be excluded during the process. Also, see your microwave manual.
Cut with plenty of stem, strip tough leaves from lower 6 inches. Wash stalks with leaves in clear water, let drain on paper towels.
Bag-drying. Collect 6 to 12 stems loosely together, and over the bunched leaves put a commodius brown-paper bag—one large enough so the herbs will not touch the sides. Tie the mouth of the bag loosely around the stems 2 inches from their ends, and hang the whole business high up in a warm, dry, airy room. When the leaves have become brittle, knock them from the stems and package in airtight containers and store away from light.
Dry test. Readily crumbled. Rub to pulverize.
Mixed Vegetables
These are never dried in combination: drying times and temperatures vary too much among types of vegetables. Dry vegetables and seasoning separately, then combine them in small packets to suit your taste and future use.
Mushrooms
Only young, unbruised, absolutely fresh mushrooms should be dried. Preferably wipe clean with damp cloth. Remove stems, slice caps in ⅛-inch strips—cut stems across in ⅛-inch rings—and treat them with ascorbic-acid coating as you work. Steam for 12 to 15 minutes.
Indoor dryer. If using a dehydrator, start at 130 F/54 C, increase gradually to 150 F/66