The Beginner's Guide to Preserving Food at Home - Janet Chadwick [4]
Never use the microwave to sterilize jars for canning — it just doesn’t do the job.
Dehydrators
Do you really need this extra piece of equipment? Well, no. But after a few seasons of drying food in your oven or air-drying above your woodstove or outside in the sun — if you live in a hot, dry, sunny climate — you may find that the ease of drying and the convenience of dried foods make drying your favorite method of preservation. Then it will be time to invest in this handy appliance. Dehydrators range in price from about $30 to more than $100.
Like other kitchen appliances, home food dehydrators come in an array of sizes, shapes, and colors, with a wide assortment of features. The basic components of an effective dehydrator include a heat source, a fan to circulate the heat and remove moist air, and trays for the food. Other desirable features include a thermostat to regulate the temperature from a low of about 100°F (for herbs) to a high of about 140°F (for meats) and a timer that will turn off the dehydrator.
When choosing a size, consider how much counter space you can allow for it during use and how much storage space you have when it is not in use. Also, consider how much drying space you want. As a rule of thumb, 12 square feet of drying area is sufficient for a half-bushel of vegetables.
Food Processors
Food processors work so fast that washing the vegetables, cutting them to size, and placing them in the feed tube takes more time than the actual processing. This versatile appliance combines many of the functions of the blender, grinder, and slicer. While processors do not purée as efficiently as blenders, they do a creditable job. They will also grind coffee and meat, and slice, julienne, shred, and grate. Many have accessories that will allow you to cut and ripple cut French fries. They make breads, piecrusts, and sauces with just a flick of the wrist. They can be taken apart easily for cleaning, and most parts are dishwasher safe.
Which Food Processor to Buy.
You can choose between two basic types of processors: direct-drive, which means that the bowl and blades sit directly on top of the motor’s shaft; and belt-driven, where the bowl mounts to one side of the motor. The belt-driven types take up more counter space than the direct-drive processors, and the belt-driven machines that I have tested seem to overheat faster than those with direct-drive.
side-chute food processor
Most food processors feed the chopped, diced, or sliced vegetables into a bowl. The larger the bowl, the fewer times you will have to empty the vegetables into a larger bowl, and the less time your work will take.
Blenders, Strainers, Food Mills, and Other Useful (and Useless) Tools
Before the electric food processor, many electric and manual appliances made food processing easy. I still use my hand-cranked Squeezo strainer and wouldn’t be without it. You may want to use a few of these appliances during the harvest season.
Blenders have become almost a standard appliance in most kitchens. They can be used to mince, chop, grate, purée, or just blend. They are not as efficient as food processors for coarsely chopping or grating vegetables, since they tend to chop too finely; however, they do a better job of puréeing than the food processor. Blenders often are easier to clean than food processors.
If you make your own tomato juice, sauce, or purée; make soup purées; freeze winter squash or pumpkins; or make your own applesauce, you will not want to be without a good strainer or food mill during the harvest season. Unlike blenders, they will minimize the amount of air incorporated into sauces and purées during processing.
blender
Three basic types of strainers and mills are available, but if you preserve large quantities of food, the best is the type that uses hand-cranked augers to crush the food and force it through perforated, cone-shaped strainers or screens. Large hoppers direct the purées into bowls, while augers move the skins, seeds, and cores into waste bowls at the other end. When using these strainers to process apples,