Preserving & Storage Guide
Canning, freezing, drying, fermenting and curing — plus what to actually do when the harvest arrives all at once.
The one rule that matters: high-acid foods (fruit, jam, pickles, tomatoes with added lemon juice) can be water-bath canned. Low-acid foods — green beans, corn, carrots, potatoes, squash, soups, meat — must be pressure canned. Nothing else is safe, and botulism has no smell or taste.
Core; peel by dipping in boiling water 45 seconds then ice.
- Fresh life
- 5–7 days on the counter, never the fridge
- Storage
- 55–70°F, stem side down, out of sun
- • Freeze whole in bags — skins slip off under warm water later
- • Slow-roast trays at 300°F and freeze as sauce base
- • Dry Roma halves into 'tomato candy'
- • Cook down to passata and can with added lemon juice
Every canned tomato recipe needs added acid: 1 Tbsp bottled lemon juice per pint, 2 per quart.
No blanching needed. Dice or strip and freeze loose on a tray.
- Fresh life
- 1–2 weeks in the crisper
- Storage
- 45–50°F, 90% humidity
- • Roast, peel and freeze in oil
- • Dice a whole tray for winter soffritto
- • Dry and grind into sweet paprika
Wear gloves. Halve thick-walled types before drying.
- Fresh life
- 2–3 weeks refrigerated
- Storage
- 45–50°F
- • Ferment a mash into hot sauce
- • String a ristra and air dry
- • Grind dried pods into chili powder
- • Freeze whole — they chop fine straight from frozen
Trim 1/16 inch off the blossom end — its enzymes soften pickles.
- Fresh life
- 1 week refrigerated
- Storage
- 50–55°F; they chill-injure below 50°F
- • Full sour ferment in a crock
- • Bread and butter chips for the canner
- • Quick fridge pickles with dill and garlic
- • Cucumber-lime agua fresca
Cucumbers do not freeze or dry well. Pickling is the answer.
Shred, salt lightly, squeeze out water, freeze in 2-cup portions.
- Fresh life
- 1–2 weeks refrigerated
- Storage
- 45–50°F
- • Shred and freeze for bread and fritters all winter
- • Dry chips or 'zucchini noodles'
- • Relish for the water bath canner
- • Grill and freeze planks in oil
Never pressure-can plain summer squash — no tested process exists. Freeze or pickle it.
Snap ends, blanch 3 minutes, ice, dry, freeze.
- Fresh life
- 1 week refrigerated
- Storage
- 40–45°F, high humidity
- • Dilly beans in the water bath
- • Pressure can quarts for winter
- • Blanch and freeze flat in bags
- • Let the last flush dry on the vine for soup beans
Plain green beans MUST be pressure canned. This is the classic botulism food.
Dry on the vine, shell, freeze 48 hours to kill weevils, then jar.
- Fresh life
- n/a
- Storage
- Cool, dark, airtight — 2–3 years
- • Pressure can cooked beans in pints for instant meals
- • Save the best pods as next year's seed
Wash, spin very dry, store with a paper towel in a sealed box.
- Fresh life
- 7–10 days refrigerated
- Storage
- 32–35°F, 95% humidity
- • Blend into pesto or soup and freeze
- • Braise and freeze in cubes
- • Succession-plant less next time
Lettuce cannot be preserved. Plan smaller, more frequent sowings instead.
Blanch 2 minutes, ice, squeeze into pucks, freeze.
- Fresh life
- 1 week refrigerated
- Storage
- 32–35°F, high humidity
- • Freeze squeezed pucks for soups and smoothies
- • Dry and blitz into green powder
- • Blanch-and-freeze whole leaves for wraps
Remove outer leaves; store whole heads with roots attached if possible.
- Fresh life
- 2–3 months in a cold cellar
- Storage
- 32–35°F, 90–95% humidity
- • Sauerkraut — 2% salt by weight, that's it
- • Kimchi
- • Blanch wedges and freeze for soups
Cabbage smells. Keep it out of the same room as apples and potatoes.
Cut tops to 1/2 inch, don't wash, pack in damp sand or sawdust.
- Fresh life
- 4–6 months in damp sand
- Storage
- 32–35°F, 95% humidity
- Curing
- None — go straight to cold storage
- • Pack in damp sand in a tote in the garage
- • Blanch coins and freeze
- • Pressure can
- • Ferment carrot sticks with dill
Keep away from apples — ethylene makes carrots bitter.
Twist tops off 1 inch above the crown so they don't bleed.
- Fresh life
- 3–5 months
- Storage
- 32–40°F, 95% humidity
- • Pickled beets in the water bath
- • Roast and freeze wedges
- • Pressure can cubes
- • Ferment beet kvass
Brush off dirt, never wash. Discard anything nicked.
- Fresh life
- 3–6 months cured
- Storage
- 38–45°F, 90% humidity, total darkness
- Curing
- 7–14 days at 50–60°F with high humidity to heal the skins
- • Cure well and cellar in crates
- • Pressure can cubes for quick hash
- • Dehydrate shredded hash browns
Below 38°F, starches turn to sugar and they fry dark and sweet.
Handle like eggs — the skins tear easily when fresh.
- Fresh life
- 6–10 months cured
- Storage
- 55–60°F, 80% humidity — warmer than other roots
- Curing
- 7–10 days at 80–85°F and 90% humidity; this is what makes them sweet
- • Cure properly and they last until spring
- • Bake and freeze puree
- • Pressure can chunks
Never refrigerate — cold gives them a hard core and off flavor.
Pull when half the tops flop; leave the necks on to cure.
- Fresh life
- 3–8 months depending on variety
- Storage
- 32–40°F, 65–70% humidity — dry, not damp
- Curing
- 2–3 weeks in a warm airy shady spot until necks are papery
- • Dice and freeze raw — no blanching needed
- • Caramelize a huge batch and freeze in cubes
- • Dehydrate rings into onion powder
Sweet onions store poorly. Eat those first and cellar the pungent storage types.
Cure whole plants hanging in bundles, then trim.
- Fresh life
- 6–10 months (hardneck 4–6)
- Storage
- 60–65°F, 60% humidity, dark and airy
- Curing
- 3–4 weeks hanging out of direct sun
- • Honey-fermented garlic
- • Peel and freeze cloves whole
- • Black garlic in a rice cooker on warm for 3 weeks
Never store garlic in oil at room temperature — that is a real botulism risk. Refrigerate and use within 4 days.
Leave 2 inches of stem, harvest before frost, don't carry by the stem.
- Fresh life
- 2–6 months by type (butternut longest, acorn shortest)
- Storage
- 50–55°F, 50–70% humidity — dry and cool, not cold
- Curing
- 10–14 days at 80–85°F (acorn squash does not need curing)
- • Cure and shelve them like decorations
- • Roast and freeze puree in 2-cup bags
- • Pressure can cubes — never puree, it's too dense
Squash puree cannot be safely canned at home. Freeze it.
Process within hours — sugars turn to starch fast.
- Fresh life
- 1–2 days
- Storage
- 32°F, high humidity
- • Blanch 4 minutes, cut off the cob, freeze flat
- • Pressure can whole kernel
- • Freeze whole cobs in husk for quick roasting
Don't wash until use; freeze loose on a tray first.
- Fresh life
- 3–7 days refrigerated
- Storage
- 32–35°F
- • Tray-freeze, then bag
- • Freezer jam keeps the fresh flavor
- • Cook into syrup for pancakes and soda
- • Dry into snack bits
Store only unbruised fruit, wrapped individually in newspaper.
- Fresh life
- 2–6 months by variety
- Storage
- 32–35°F, 90% humidity, away from vegetables
- • Applesauce in the water bath
- • Dried rings
- • Apple cider vinegar from scraps
- • Freeze pie filling in a pie-plate-shaped bag
Apples give off ethylene — store them alone or everything else ripens and sprouts.
Harvest in the morning after dew dries, before flowering.
- Fresh life
- 1–2 weeks in water on the counter
- Storage
- Dry, dark, airtight once dried
- • Blitz with olive oil and freeze in ice cube trays
- • Air-dry bundles for hardy herbs (thyme, oregano, rosemary)
- • Herb salt: 4 parts salt to 1 part chopped herb
- • Pesto — freeze without cheese, add it later
Basil, cilantro and parsley lose almost everything when air-dried. Freeze those in oil instead.