Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation

PRESERVING WITH SUGAR

Rhubarb Syrup

Wash the rhubarb stalks without peeling them; cut into small pieces, and cover with water. Cook the stalks over medium heat for about thirty minutes.

Strain everything through a piece of cheesecloth, and weigh the juice collected. Use half as much sugar, by weight, as juice. Cook the sugar in a little water. When it reaches a boil, add the strained rhubarb juice, and cook the mixture over low heat for fifteen minutes.

Pour the syrup into bottles and close tightly. Wait at least two weeks before using (with water, as for any other syrup), so it is more flavorful. The pulp remaining in the cheesecloth can also be cooked with some sugar to make jam.

YOU'LL NEED:

PRESERVING WITH SALT

Green Beans in Brine

Make a brine using one-half cup of salt to one

quart of water. Boil and let it cool. String, wash, and blanch the beans in boiling water for five minutes, and let them cool. Put them in a stoneware pot, cover them with brine, and check now and then to see that they are always well covered in brine.

Soak the beans in water for a few minutes

just before cooking them.

YOU'LL NEED:

PRESERVING IN VINEGAR

Cherry Tomatoes

Wash the tomatoes, without removing the

stems, if possible. Dry them carefully with a

cloth, and pierce them in two or three spots

with a thin needle.

Wash and blot dry the tarragon leaves. Put the tomatoes in a large jar (or two small ones), along with the tarragon, cloves, peppercorns, and coriander seeds. Add the salt and pour in the vinegar. Seal the jars airtight and store them in a cool, dry, and dark place.

Wait approximately six weeks before eating. These tomatoes are excellent accompaniments to cold or hot poached fish, as well as a variety of terrines and grains dishes.

YOU'LL NEED: