The 11 Most Common Preservation Methods and Techniques
00:00 - Intro
00:42 - Pickling
03:13 - Drying
04:42 - Salting
06:03 - Fermentation
09:02 - Canning
10:22 - Smoking
13:01 - Sugar Preservation
15:17 - Freezing
16:49 - Alchohol Preservation
17:41 - Oil Preservation
18:33 - Root Cellaring
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Video Credits
Creator, Host - Mike G
Editor- Hayden Hoyle
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Dang... can we all just take a moment t to appreciate the ridiculous amount of time and effort it would have taken him to research, plan, pick, pack, wait, test, film, edit and post this under twenty minute rundown on food preservation? Bc, wow, nicely done, bud, that was great info. Now we take that and go forth and investigate more recipes that strike our interest in all the different canaries. Awesome. Thanks for that. 👏 👏 👏
.... might add cloves to those red onions 💡
My nanny (grandmother). Had a root cellar, canned, dehydrated, salt preserved absolutely everything. She really didn’t buy very much from any grocery stores. Her chickens where her most loved and her garden fed her chickens or they pecked the yard for additional food. ❤. She could have easily lived off the grid easily. She was a depression and 2 war survivor so she had to do anything and everything to survive. Summer was tomato season so making sauce for the entire year was happening.
I would love a cellar or basement
@@lillypatience There are ways to diy a root cellar without a basement. Look it up, I found an article by "The Provident Prepper" that may give you some ideas. If you google search it, he actually has a video too.
My mum still does that, she has juices and compots, pickles, salads, jams and all sorts of inventions like homemade ketchups.
@@hermiona1147 bless her that is a lot of work but worth all the beautiful things she can provide nourishment for her family. We never had bread from a market either my nanny made bread daily
I do the same! Love it
Awesome job! Just a note; don't ever put jars on their side when water-bathing them (as with the strawberry jam). They have to remain upright during the boil and for at least 12-24 hrs after, otherwise the seal can be compromised!
thank you! plus it wasn't sealed properly...
Lol, I was thinking that someone would point this out. 🤔 and head space is important to release all air. I just did a video on strawberry lemon lime jam! 😋 ❤ it's one of my favorites 😍
@@jenn6838he didn't can it for storage. Just to show an example. He opened it right away. As you can see in the video.
@@silviamagda and it did actually seal, it popped when he opened it. But I did cringe when he tilted it on its side. But nothing blew up, and he stated each time, these were not going to be long storage, but gave the example and inspiration of what you can do with it. I really enjoyed it
Is it only Americans who waterbath jam and hot-bottled chutneys?
When I was about 8 years old, my mom, along with her sisters, picked a huge amount of beats, cucumbers and strawberries. She made a huge stock of jam, pickled beats, and beard & butter pickles. There must have been almost two hundreds jars total. And she did some more over the years but that is when it started. And my dad made a storage shelves under the basement staircase. And she labeled every jam. So for years she would tell my brother and I every once an awhile to go downstairs and bring up a jar. before 2002 they sold decided to downsized and sell the house. when we where packing up the basement, there was about 5-8 jars. I looked at the label and found a what was left were all dated 1975-76. End of a era.
Wow. I love this, thank you for sharing. I wish I had someone in my life with these skills, what a legacy your mum passed on!
* Pickled beets (not beats) - unless your pickles played music? Just kidding. 😜
raw garlic stored in oil creates an environment for botulism to grow. only good for about 4 days in the fridge, can be stored longer if frozen.
Sugar crystallization of fruit is very popular in the Mediterranean. Citrus is the most obvious but they also do many other fruits which are very yummy.
Couple of comments. It’s critically important to make sure that you have the proper headspace between the top of the jam and the rim of the jar. The Ball Blue Book or other canning books will tell you. Also, once you put the product in the jar, stir it to make sure there aren’t any air bubbles that will mess up your canning. Take a paper towel that is wet from a vinegar/water solution to wipe the rim of the jar to make sure that there aren’t any food particles that will interfere with a good seal. Finally, you need to have at least 2” of water over the top of the jar. The Ball Blue Book or other book will tell you how long to process the food. Headspace and processing time are different for every food. Once the food has processed, wait another 10 -15 minutes before you move it and then sit it on a cooling rack for 24 hours with room for air to circulate. You can test to see if you got a good seal by taking the outer ring off of the jar and try to lift the jar by the lid. If you have a good seal, the jar will lift. If not, reprocess the jar or put it in the refrigerator and use right away. Canning is a super fun and effective way to preserve food.
Love the Ball Blue book, I also have a book from a cooperative extension that I have to use if I can to show at a fair.
Attention people from outside of the US. Your white vinegar may have almost double the acetic acid content so a 50/50 mixture will end up inedible - US vinegar 5%, Serbian vinegar 9%. In my country of Serbia, a 30% vinegar + 70% water combo will get you a similar acidity.
Thanks a lot for this comment. Mine is actually 4.2% so very similar but if needed now I know how to adjust recipe measures.
Hey, I really want to thank you. Seeing your garden play such a huge roll in your cooking/videos inspired me to build my own. I constructed a greenhouse in spring, and now I have fresh veggies and herbs all the time. I've become more creative with vegetable uses (like WOW, green beans are good in every stir fry!) and have a healthier diet. Not going to lie, I smoked a little last night, got the munchies, and instead of candy or chips, I went out to the greenhouse and CHOMPED DOWN on cherry tomatoes, kale leaves, peas, and strawberries like some sort of stoned animal. LOL! It started as envy... "Damn, I wish that I could go out back and pick MY OWN thyme and basil, instead of spending $5 for a few leaves." Now its, gratitude... "Thank you so much for showing me that I can." ❤👊😄
Hahaha! Love it!
Tsk tsk!
Method #12 is water-glassing. Used to preserve whole eggs for up to a year at room temperature. I did this one year and had 100% success. Took me ten months to use all the eggs and every one was safe to cook with and eat.
One of the things I've started to do on my lacto fermented veg is using distilled water. The lack of chlorine that's often in tap water, makes a big difference in the speed of fermentation - as there's nothing to kill off the bacteria. And it even makes a difference in my pizza dough!
If you're ever overwhelmed with radish or other greens turn them into "saag". The process efficiently integrates the harvesting, washing, and sterilizing (for lack of a better word). It freezes well. Eat with makki roti.
A lot of the homestead channels I watch have freeze dryers. I want one so much but I just have a small garden and it is a huge expense. Becky from Acre Homestead makes her own freeze dried garlic powder. She also says that freeze dried cilantro is a billion times better than dried cilantro.
When lacto-fermenting, I like to reserve some of the prior years' brine and use it as a kick starter for my current year counter top pickles. Just add generous splash to new brine.
I love this topic because it is at the peak of harvest season. I'm bringing in potatoes, onions, garlic. A few tomatoes and peppers here and there. Celery. Tons of herbs. Currently fermenting cabbage on the counter. Making Sauerkraut.
I have made sauerkraut twice but there isn't enough brine after a few days to cover the cabbage. Can you add any liquid? My understanding was, it needs to sit in it's own naturally drawn out liquid. Hope you don't mind me asking!
@@leanneg4040 Yes you can make a brine to add to cover the cabbage.
Thank you for stating garlic in oil needs to be kept in the fridge
I made preserved egg yolks which were used, in Italy, as an alternative to parmesan cheese. Awesome experiment! Part of cucina povera or the poverty kitchen. Oh that's awesome you did salted egg yolks! I posted my comment before watching that part! WOW! I hate when spinach bolts! I had good success with Swiss Chard. It kept growing and growing and is really quick to cook and add to pasta or with meat as a side dish. 3 minutes to saute chard with garlic and mushrooms for a fast side. I bought organic vanilla beans from Beanilla and made my own vanilla with Tito's in ceramic-capped jars. It takes a while but Ina Garten makes vanilla with vodka, too! My dream is to buy a house that has an old root cellar!
Have you tried making confits? Of course there is the classic duck confit (duck legs preserved in duck fat, but garlic confit is incredible. Skin the garlic cloves like you did to go in the oil but put them and the oil in a pan and set it over a very low burner, where it is just barely even bubbling for a few hours until the cloves are soft and just getting pale golden brown. The cool, put in an airtight jar and store in the refrigerator. The oil will solidify. I try to keep the cloves covered in oil, so I add a bit if it seems to be getting low. It will keep almost indefinitely and it's a whole new dimension to garlic. Among other things, just spread some on bread with a little sprinkle of salt and toast it in the oven for incredible garlic bread. The original Potted Meat was literally cooked meat placed in small pots and covered in meat fat to preserve it.
You can use alcohol and make tinctures without drying the herbs. After rinsing the herbs, you want them dry on the outside. 10 minutes in the dehydrator, or toweled dry. Pack a jar as full as possible with the herbs and use at least 100 proof/50% alcohol (usually vodka) to fill the jar. This way you don't lose any volatile alcohol-soluble oils.
Great video as usual! I believe there is one method that you missed; it is called liming. A lime solution is used to preserve things like eggs with its shell on. That could be another method for extra eggs you may have with your chickens, when you have shortages.
That would be cool to see a video on liming
The amount of knowledge, perseverance, space and stuff required to make this video alone is mind boggling! Great job.
These are my favorite videos! Thank you so much for showing us you gardening preservation videos! I love what you did with the onion tops!
I am so envious of you having that beautiful garden, and that beautiful kitchen and all of the means to preserve food for your family. Thank you for the video. It was really great.
Lactic acid fermentation is the best technique and the simplest. Put any vegetables in a jar. Boil water in electric kettle. Add salt to the jar. Pour hot water tothe jar. Close the lid. Thats all. Wait 3 days in room temp. You have great tasting veggies. Cucumbers, paprika, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, garlic. Its so tasty :)
Love this video and how you’ve been leaning into more of the homestead style cooking :) I’m in California with a few acres and a garden, a 4 year old, chickens and a few goats. I’ve always loved your cooking videos but I’ve been pressure canning quick “meals in a jar” just to have home cooked meals that I can serve up in a pinch and they are so handy! Thank you for posting! I love the garden to table inspiration
This was the best! I have been wanting to try out all those old time preservation techniques. So far I have root cellared, fermented, dried, and canned. But what I want is to get in the regular habit of doing this with everything from garden or farmers market.
Hey Mike! Thanks for showing us all the ways to preserve food! Your videos always inspire me. What do you think of making a homesteading video for ppl like me looking to create a better/more well-rounded garden to eat off of?
You are amazing, entertaining, informative, and hilarious.! I am learning tons from you. Thank you for sharing your expertise that inspires so many!! I appreciate all your information!
I really enjoy your channel and have for eight years now. But I will be honest. I miss the early days so much. The cheap meals with Josh felt so much more accessible and "doable." They also just had this humorous "bro" "dude" friendship quality that was irreplaceable. And the recipes were so simple yet revolutionary. Man. No fault on you sir. Times change. Things move on. I was a 20 year old kid when I began watching those, staying afloat in junior college. Now I'm finishing up grad school. I guess I just miss the past.
I agree though. Also been watching his gardening content. It's really great stuff, but it doesn't really feel approachable anymore if you see all the investments he made and all the equipment and time involved
Be sure to check acidity on vinegar now. You need 5% for safety in canning but folks have been finding it's 4% many times lately.
Came her to mention this add this comment to try and make it more visible
Like it's advertised as 5% but when you test it it's 4%?
@@uhtred7108no, I think they lowered it to 4%.
@@uhtred7108 No it's now lowered to 4% on some. Just make sure you check that it says that it is 5% instead of 4% as most people would just assume it is 5% as it has always been 5%
@@uhtred7108 I've seen bottles shown with 4% on the bottle. Cleaning one is usually 6% so hopefully they're accurate, but who knows anymore.
I remember all the way back when you an Josh made a video called "Tricks chefs don't want you to know", and you salted egg yolks, I've been doing it ever since. It's something that always takes people by surprise. Usually I put it on pasta, but on toast it's awesome too.
But what does it taste like? It looks cool.
Love this overview so much! Please do more videos on food preservation. Thank you!
Perfect timing, have been contemplating what to do with all the extra food from my garden!
I have to say…I’ve been watching ur videos for years and love them all but this one has to be in my all time fav from ya! I’m addicted to preservation as well…this one is right down my lane! Thanks for sharing!
I love this channel ,thank you man! 😊
Awesome! Nice garden!
wow, Mike, this is crazy good! Like a folk school
Thank sir for your free lessons.
Great job,TY
OMG. I absolutely LOVE your videos and this one is my fav. Thank you so much. 🌱🌿😀
Lots of preparation and work has been invested in the production of this video. The result? Informative and useful. Thank you.
Great video. I like that you included many methods to try. For pickling I use my mother's method where she used Japanese sushi seasoned vinegar for pickling cooked beets and raw onions.
I'm back after some(few years maybe) time and man I can say that the quality of your videos are so much better. The progress is visible. I need to watch all stuff that I missed. Cheers!
We never used any fancy canning equipment for canning. We did live through every winter with canned food we ourselves prepared during the summer. What we used is a good old big pot on the stove with hot boiling water. As you said - these are traditional preservation techniques, so all can be done with just the most basic utenciles. Just to encourage everyone to try canning. Canned apples and cherries might be my favorite. But you can cann like different vegetable salads and stuff.. will last you through the year :)
Love this! I started watching your videos for the food preservation content.
This was such a cool overview!! I understand preservation so much more!!
LOVE,LOVE,LOVE!
I love your kitchen, how blessed.
awesome video!! thanks, Mike!
I love to see the stuff that comes out of your garden. Awesome to me 😮
I am into fermentation. Great for the gut. I have new jars and I look forward to pickling. I am making Kimchi. This and ginger tea kept us from getting sick. My sister make Reaper hot sauce which is fermented. During the pandemic I made reaper tea with raw happy. Thank you for covering fermentation because our fore father existed because of this. What’s Old Is New! Thanks
This is such an inspiring video! Thank you so much for putting time and effort into making this.
Super informative video mate! Great channel
Love it! Let me know when we start our sauerkraut factory!
Thanks a lot, its helpful for my homesteading project... hope its all works for me
Glad I found you. That is a lot of work you did for us - thank you so much
Wow, this is a wonderful video and such great ideas. Thank you so so much.
I have never made jam and I have never seen jam made. But I'm going to try this. Thanks for the video and other videos! that I watch when I'm bored at work! wish me luck!
Nice job! Good to see it actually done. I freeze, can, dehydrate, but I have never salted. Might try that!
Perfect timing! This one is being saved in my personal library
I do not have a source for this, apologies, but I learned recently that there might be a change in the vinegar concentrations found in the stores soon or that it has already happened. Most pickling has you use a 10% vinegar from the store, but it may have been reduced to 5%. If so, you may want to fill up the mason jar 3/4 or 2/3 full instead of only 1/2 full. Check the bottle to see the concentration first.
I love all of your canning methods. I have actually only tried 4 of them. I am a HUGE pressure canning freak and water bath canning. I still like fermenting and dehydrating.
Good stuff! Thanks for sharing.
Keep the food preservation videos coming. Love to find ways to make it work in a small apartment kitchen.
Brilliant job on the video 😎
I love watching your videos & I'm so jealous of your garden! 😊
Wow, great video!
I see you man! Look at you!! LIVING the movement to be self sufficient! Taking back your freedom from the system! And in such an awesoemly elegant, entertaining, quality, funny, educational and honest way...hell yea man. Good for you! Keep up that good life!! Radish! 🤣🤣🤣
Interesting. I've been using the words pickling and fermenting interchangeably but I see the difference now. Awesome video.
The garlic/onion powder combo is a great idea! Thank you
One of the best tips I got from this video. Imagine how fresh and potent! Seasoning you can't find in stores as freshness goes.
I can see this being addicting for sure. Great video
Love this video. Thanks.
i swear i was here from the beginning of this channel... and i just looked over to see how many subscribers are here... 3.99 million?! welll doneeee!!! :')
Have you ever tried purslane? I harvested a bunch from my garden and I'm planning to dehydrate and grind like you did with the onions and garlic. It's supposed to be a good highly nutritious sub for cornstarch.
Purslane is also great fresh in a salad. I believe higher in omega 3's and other nutrients than many veg. Also check out lambs quarters, aka wild spinach. Just as beneficial, but thought of as a weed.
I would recommend lambsquarters too, treat it as you would spinach.
Awesome video!
I've preserved peeled garlic in raw honey. Amazing mellow taste!
Outstanding Thank You!
Great video. Thank you!!
I had an insect pest hit one of my garlic patches this year. It didn't bury into the cloves, but it made for an unsightly process of breaking the bulb apart. What I did was get all the cloves and then lactoferment them (brushing the insects away of course). Delicious way to make use of a bad situation! If you blend/mince garlic and salt ferment it, I find it takes a nutty taste after a couple weeks. Great in a red sauce
This is my favorite video. Of all time.
I have a cold room in my basement (still eating from last year's veggies), we store yellow and russet potatoes, sweet potatoes, golden and red beets , red and green cabbage, red and yellow onions, garlic ,leeks, turnips, carrots, parsnips, celeriac, kohlrabi, 4 types of winter squash and apples for fresh eating. I keep my canning , dehydrated goods ,smoked meats and salted fish in there too. I also have two deep freezers bc we try to buy most of our meat in bulk from local farmers.
You mentioned beer making, but did you know that cheese making is lacto-fermentation of milk? Between the lactic acid and salt, we get the wonderful alchemy that is cheese
The most organized and well done video. You must be or should be a teacher. Better than A+
Hi Thank you for all your great advice and creativity on your cooking journey. I do have a question. Now that I've been fermenting for a bit, I'm wondering do you have a video showing how to use fermented fruit (mostly) and all the other foods you taught us to ferment. Thank you!!
BEFORE YOU STARTED I SAVED THIS VIDEO. I LEARN SO MUCH. CANT WAIT UNTIL I MOVE SO I CAN DO THESE THINGS
Fantastic, thank you so much 😊
totally recommend freeze dryer, we've been doing it for the past 3/4 of a year and it's epic if you have enough food to do it! Unsolicited advice but I'm also seconding what everyone said about canning, I'd say as someone as influential as you and popular as you should maybe disclaimer your canning a bit more since you'll have newbies who might pick up wrong practices :)
This channel is amazing
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
One thing I've learned the hard way, though grandma tried to tell me decades ago (I was a kid. I didn't get it.) Don't dig into your ferments; any ferment; with your fingers. I can still hear her voice yelling 'Get your hand out of that crock'😊 You can possibly introduce organisms that compete with or actually kill the good bugs in the perfect ferment that could have lasted for months. Use a clean utensil; no forking out one piece, sticking that fork full in your mouth and going back in for a second bite.
Great vid, thanks. I will make pickling tomorrow!
Love the zeilling products
Great ideas
Great video, thank you 💚🌱🙌
pretty sure you know this already considering how much research you've already done on fermented foods around the world, but one of the most popular pickles/preserved food in India are done by Oil preservation. We preserve raw mango, gooseberries, lemons, garlic etc with oil and lots of spices for an amazing tangy, sour and spicy flavor. Do try it once if you haven't 😄 (I just found your channel so idk if you've already tried it😁)
+12. Freeze dried 😊👍🏻 Excellent compilation.
Best preservation completion guide on the internet
I was hoping you would have done freeze drying. I just bought one and it’s amazing so far! Your kids would probably love the crunchy snacks too. ❤😊
I'm considering a freeze dryer too! I wish he did that! Glad to know you enjoy yours.
When canning, you never want to place the jar on its side because it will be more likely to break and make sure that the product and canner are at the same temperature. As far as the garlic oil it is not required to blanch the cloves or have it in the fridge, if it is in a cool dark place they will infuse with the oil and ferment creating 2 products, Garlic oil which can be used in anything and fermented garlic which is similar to buying minced garlic from the store but a lot more flavourful. I did this method for garlic that was beginning to go sprout and I have had the jar in my Pantry for nearly 2 years and it will seal the jar on its own and is PACKED with flavor. Give it a try!
More fermentation vids they are great!