As The Workhouse Approaches....How To Do Everything To Avoid It, the Old Style Way

smileyt_2

silvasava wrote: »

Smileyt - shame you ar'n't near me, we didn't get round to pruning our greengage last year & its loaded this year.

Thank you for the offer, anyway I bought a little gage tree at the end of the spring this year, so I will look forward to it fruiting next year - hopefully!

ETA for those interested in growing peanuts/monkeynuts - aldi have some kits for 99p at the moment. No idea how many nuts you get in there, though. They also have an orange and a lemon tree growing kit. I'm going to pop in and see if they have any left this morning.

GreyQueen

Jolaaled wrote: »

THANKS! Sounds a great way to preserve. I thought I'd have to add water/liquid, but I spose the beans sort of make their own.
I'm in for a busy day!

Uh-oh, just read further and what I described is SALTING and obviously a bit different to BRINING. Or am I hopelessly confused? Kittie HEEELLLLLPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!

It further says that salting is the commonest way of preserving beans and that you should use young tender beans, washed and tried thoroughly and that you do it initially, cover and leave in a cool dark place for 4 days (the veggie shrink) and then go back and add more layers of veg and salt, always ending with salt.

As the salt draws the liquid from the veg it makes a strong brine and the brine has to be kept intact otherwise air pockets will form and the veg will deteriorate rapidly and bacteria and mould will develop.

Jars should be tightly sealed and stored for up to 6 months in a cupboard but don't place the jars on stone or brick as the moisture will be drawn out.

It says not much can go wrong with salted veggies but that you do need to rinse them very thoroughly before cooking or they'll be overpoweringly salty.

Ummm. Will need to do something with those French beans.......

Jolaaled

GreyQueen wrote: »

Uh-oh, just read further and what I described is SALTING and obviously a bit different to BRINING. Or am I hopelessly confused? Kittie HEEELLLLLPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!

Thanks...ok...SALTING vs BRINING....which way to go??!!
Has anyone got a clear step-by-step method for French bean brining??

THANKS ALL

ceridwen

If I recall aright - Kittie is working from the book "Preserving food without freezing or canning" by the gardeners and farmers of Terre Vivante.

In which case:

"Green beans in a salt pot"

- using only young/tender green beans and table salt
- put some salt in the bottom of a clean container.
- wash and dry the beans
- remove stems and strings
- then its a layer of beans packed down firmly with a wooden spoon.

Thereafter, as one harvests additional beans continue alternating layers of salt and beans until the container is full.
- Cover container and store in cool place.
- Eventually a brine will form covering the beans.

(Keep the brine - its the preserver ingredient - but just remove any film that appears on the surface).

The type of container they use is an earthenware or stoneware pot or wooden barrel. Well - we probably dont have access to wooden barrels - but maybe a large, tall earthenware casserole with lid would do the trick?????

GreyQueen

Thanks for that, Ceridwen.

Is there any reason that one uses table salt as opposed to cooking salt btw? Only I have a lot of the latter and a little of the former.

Anyone know what the difference between the two kinds of salt is?

Thanking you ahead of time.

ceridwen

Dunnoe the answer to that one GreyQueen - and I only ever use seasalt anyway.

I'll hazard a guess that its because what I think you mean by "cooking salt" has got some sorta chemical in it to help it run more freely as I recall - and presumably this chemical isnt "wanted on board" because of some effect it would have on the food.

Anyways - on a slightly different tack - whilst I was checking to see how many copies of the Terre Vivante book Amazon currently has.......errrrr....errrr....I found one of a similar ilk:

"Root cellaring: natural cold storage of fruits and vegetables" by Mike Bubel for about a fiver....

...and you know the rest of that sentence by now dont you?:rotfl:...the one that goes "Dear Reader - I just bought it....".

boultdj

GreyQueen wrote: »

Thanks for that, Ceridwen.

Is there any reason that one uses table salt as opposed to cooking salt btw? Only I have a lot of the latter and a little of the former.

Anyone know what the difference between the two kinds of salt is?

Thanking you ahead of time.

No idea about the diffrence between them, but my mum use to salt bean's, use to use the sweet jar's the corner shop was throwing out and normal table salt, when she wanted to use 'em just took them out the night before, rinse them, then leave them to soak overnight in fresh water, then rinse again before cooking, and they alway's tasted nicer than the frozen one's.hth

Frugalista

HariboJunkie wrote: »

today we had a lovely visit from a client who was so pleased with OH's work that he brought us a hamper including 1 whole side of smoked salmon, 1 side of hot smoked salmon, 6 packs of peppered hot smoked, 6 packs of cold smoked wild salmon, 3 pots of mackerel pate, 6 pots of salmon pate, 4 rounds of arran cheese, and 8 kippers. :j It's well over £150 of food (and a fab basket) and I was so delighted and touched. Alot of it is in the freezer for Christmas but we ate well tonight. :rotfl:

:T What a lovely surprise - my mouth is watering at the list of goodies :drool:. Well done .

Softstuff wrote: »

Kittie - pop to your local pizza takeaway. Many of them use a little plastic disc with a spike in the middle of the pizza to keep it from moving around in the box. These would be fine to use for preserving too, and I'm sure a few pence would buy you some.

Absolutely brilliant idea Softstuff :T:T. I particularly like the fact that it is re-purposing something which would normally go in the bin/landfill - and, presumably, they can be used over and over. Great tip!

kidcat

Its party day here today and have prepared a beef bourginon and softstuffs chick pea curry in the slow cookers. Desserts all made and am very proud that all the ingredients were reduced or special offers . Used up whoopsie raspberries in a raspberry and peach tiramasu, and reduced blackberries n the blackberry meringue chill.

House now being cleaned and tidied, and garden ready for tables and chairs to go up. Have found all the candles and holders from our wedding so am putting them onto the outside tables.

Finally slept last night after three weeks of not being able to sleep - no idea why but hopefully everything has all set itself back and I will be able to sleep properly now.

Was absolutely horrified to catch a few minutes of news before and see whats happening in NOrway - it never ceases to amaze me how evil rises to new levels.
Worried by the reports of Americas default talks breaking down too - from what I can see the sides are chasms apart.

GreyQueen

Oh wow, kidkat, what a menu, can I come to your party?! Sounds absolutely delicious and so clever to have done it all from whoopsies, too.

I'm bent in half like a safety pin as have been weeding the lottie for a few hours. Goodness, the amount of strawberries that had taken root in my fat hen bed.......oh, that's not the right way around, is it? Well, it looked like I was growing the weeds purposefully, the strawbs were nigh invisible. Will have to check with Mum that I did leave that bed flawlessly weedfree the weekend before-last, as memory serves. It seems incredible that it could get so out-of-hand in 13 days.

Horrific about Norway, I heard the news at silly o'clock and it was much worse that I'd heard the previous night. I cannot comprehend what can motivate a person to be so wicked.:(

It's decidely chilly here, more like late September and I've been working outside with a light jacket on and feeling like I needed it.

I'm pleased to report that whilst I was weeding the Triffids, I found that the Turk's Turban squash have started to produce little turbanettes, about the size of an apple. The plants are taking over. No sign of baby butternuts on those but given that the leaves are the size of hubcaps, they could be lurking somewhere. Are these things collectively called "squash" because they take over so much ground and get "squashed" together?:rotfl:

Hope everyone is having a good day and whomever has the yellow ball, please kick it back over to me, it's grey and chilly here.