# 2020 Garden Produce Storage Thread



## Meadowlark

It's that time of year in Texas to harvest and store the spring crops. From now until August, we will be harvesting and storing our food for the year. 

I'm hopeful we have enough interest in this thread to get some new ideas, recipes, and techniques for storing our garden produce and prolonging our enjoyment of it. Post 'em up please. 

I'll start with what we are doing right now....onion relish. Great on hot dogs, steaks, baked potatoes, whatever you would use on a relish. 

Ingredients
â€¢	10 cups chopped sweet onions (about 7-8 medium-sized onions; red and yellow shown)
â€¢	2 1/4 cups white vinegar
â€¢	1/2 cup sugar
â€¢	2 tablespoons celery seed
â€¢	2 tablespoons kosher salt
â€¢	1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Directions
1.	Combine all ingredients in a non-reactive pan and bring to a boil.
2.	Reduce heat and simmer for 10 min.
3.	Ladle the relish into clean hot half-pint jars with 1/2 in head-space.
4.	Wipe the rims, cap the jars, and loosely seal.
5.	Process sweet and spicy onion relish in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.

Let the jars sit for two weeks before using; this gives the onion time to age and mellow....its surprisingly good.


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## Meadowlark

*Freezing onions*

Another way we prolong our enjoyment of garden onions is to clean, chop, and freeze in small bags sized to how much you will use.

Very easy, no blanching, no pressure can, etc. and last about a year although we always use ours before then.

I found this very effective chopper which really makes it simple to process 'em.


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## Meadowlark

*Primary Onion storage method*

Our primary method of long term storage of onions is shown below...store them in a dry location with excellent air circulation and they will last several months. My goal is always to have fresh garden onions in the Thanksgiving dressing...and usually succeed .

Never let a stored onion touch another and always dry before storing are two tips that help immensely in storage.

Looking to process about two hundred pounds of yellow and red 1015s.


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## WildThings

That's some great info. Thanks for taking the time to post and share!


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## jm423

Good looking row of onions, Lark. For reasons known only to themselves, mine have decided not to bulb this year. Look like overgrown shallots. Curious how they will store, if at all.


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## Meadowlark

jm423 said:


> Good looking row of onions, Lark. For reasons known only to themselves, mine have decided not to bulb this year. Look like overgrown shallots. Curious how they will store, if at all.


Any idea what happened? Did you do anything different? Did you happen to see a lot of bolting? That's very strange and surprising.


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## Meadowlark

*Onion Harvest*

We've had a couple dry days here and it looks like we may have a few more coming...time to start the onion harvest.

Pictured are the red onions pulled and drying...about 110 onions. After the reds dry another day, I'll begin pulling the yellows...another 150 or so and slightly larger.

These onions could possibly grow some more. However, I learned a hard lesson last year that it is more important that the onions are well dried prior to storage than it is to try to get the last additional weeks of growth. Gotta take 'em when you can.

In our East Texas climate, dry days are hard to come by in early May and we can get caught in prolonged wet spells of many days caused by stalled cold fronts. That is what happened last year and as a result I had to put the water logged onions into storage without adequate drying which in turn caused the loss of many onions in storage before we could eat them....as a side note, one onion swelled to well over 4 pounds last year.


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## karstopo

Beautiful, good information! I Didnâ€™t realize the onions could be pulled before the tops flopped over.


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## Meadowlark

Yes, those were within days of falling over and not worth the risk of waiting to me given the probability of a repeat of last year's stalled cold front.


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## jm423

Lark, thanks for the response--I really don't know what did (or didn't) get done this year--Mrs. Joe's health situation sorta kept me hopping pillar to post but I did try to keep them adequately watered, weeded, and fed (fish emulsion, mostly) May have been just one of those @#&** things that go haywire on every now and then. Your stuff looks great!


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## Meadowlark

I'd love to send you some samples...check your pm


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## Meadowlark

*Onion Harvest Complete*

Harvest complete: 104 pounds of reds and 140 pounds of yellows, total of 244 pounds. Dried and clipped and ready for storage. (first photo)

I found some handy little storage bags that hold three or four of the smaller onions and will make great presents and barter prospects and now have them hanging everywhere: (second photo)

The bulk of them including all the larger ones go into my often used storage rack of wire and scrap lumber...but effective. These onions were very dry and very firm and I'm really expecting they will fulfill my goal of Thanksgiving dinner with onions from the garden in the dressing. (third photo)

Next up about 200 pounds of red potatoes await harvesting.


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## karstopo

Looking great. Nice set up!


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## 98aggie77566

First batch of pickles...bread and butter...dill up next.


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## Meadowlark

We always put a lot of onion "rings" in our bread and butters. Those look good. 

Wife says she lost her dill recipe and will have to find a new one. The cukes are really taking off now.


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## Sugars Pop

Wow my onions just started bulbing about 3 -4 weeks ago.


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## Meadowlark

Mine could have stayed in the ground probably another couple of weeks...but I'm after long term storage and the threat of an extended rainy period from a stalled out cold front is very high the next two or three weeks so I took them out maybe sacrificing some size for storage. Time will tell.


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## karstopo

Doing lacto-fermented cucumbers, a.k.a. half sour pickles. First ferment. 5% brine by weight. Super chili from the garden for some heat(those are around a cayenne level). A clove of garlic, some fresh dill and dill seed, and a little crushed mustard seed. Should take 5-7 days at room temperature. Muscadine grape leaves on top, should help cucumbers maintain crispness or so I read.

Once they get acidic from the fermentation, I could add vinegar to go full sour or not. I have a ph meter, but just plan on keeping these in the fridge, if they are any good, they wonâ€™t last long anyway.


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## Meadowlark

"lacto-fermented cucumbers"....interesting...let us know how they taste.

We did a batch of plain old bread and butter today...always popular and requested.


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## Meadowlark

*Annual Supply of Carrots*

In less than 20 ft of row, we grow enough carrots to last a year. These will be for soups, stews, and occasional side dishes. Here in East Texas, I like to plant the seeds in November and harvest late April to early May. Very easy to grow in our sandy loam soil. No pests, no artificial fertilizers, no problems...about 8 gallons of carrots.

We prefer to can them raw using a pressure cooker. Just clean, scrape, slice and pack in jars. No salt or seasoning which will be added later when used. Seems like they are much more crisp and tasty that way when opened. These will make about 20 jars of delicious eating for the next year for our family.


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## WildThings

Awesome looking carrots!


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## Meadowlark

Thanks Wild Things!


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## karstopo

Nice carrots, indeed! 

My half sour pickles are fermenting nicely. Smell great, ph is dropping, might try one Saturday. People go 3-4 days at room temperature on out to weeks. 7-8 days might be a sweet spot from what Iâ€™ve read. By Putting them in the fridge, the fermentation still continues, but very slowly. Or, they can be canned and stored for a long time at room temperature. Ph needs to be 4.6 or less to be shelf stable as I understand it. I probably will just keep them in the fridge since i donâ€™t foresee so many as to need additional storage. Next year, I might grow a true pickling cucumber and then can a bunch. 

Lacto-fermentation is as old as it comes and is responsible for great traditional food preservation like true sauerkraut, kimchi, yogurt, sourdough, all the hot sauces like tabasco and Louisiana style. Sometimes, vinegar gets added to the mix along the way, but lactobacillus produce acid themselves, lactic acid, and that along with the salt in the brine preserve the food. In olden times, those folks didnâ€™t have mason jars to keep food nice and sealed, but the lactic acid created by the lactobacillus kept out the nasties for months or longer, long enough to get to the next harvest.


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## Meadowlark

karstopo said:


> â€¦.long enough to get to the next harvest.


Very interesting...never tried it except for a failed attempt at sauerkraut.

I'm always looking for good ways that work "long enough to get to the next harvest".


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## Meadowlark

Sir Crunch A Lot cucumbers are producing good now....more pickles on the way....may try some of those 1/2 sour. Also need to pickle some sliced jalapenos for Nachos. Any recipes?


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## WildThings

Meadowlark said:


> Any recipes?


Well don't have any recipes. BUT if you are looking for a taste tester...â€¦.just sayin' LOL


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## karstopo

Tried my half sour pickles, not all that great, something is off, back to the drawing board.


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## Humectation

I also have been thinking of creating my own small garden at my backyard but I'm too lazy to get up on bed.


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## Meadowlark

*Nachos anyone?*

From a highly recommended recipe for pickled jalapenos from the garden.

Also first batch of green beans....


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## Meadowlark

Just had to try them....delicious!


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## karstopo

I love nachos and have some jalapeÃ±os ripening in the garden. What, if you donâ€™t mind sharing, is the recipe?


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## Meadowlark

I'm happy to share. This is a good one but the length of time (12 minutes) should be shortened IMO to avoid some getting mushy and the pickle crisp should be considered mandatory. 

Ingredients 
â€¢ 2 lbs. jalapenos 
â€¢ 2-1/4 cups vinegar (white distilled, apple cider, or a combination of the two) 
â€¢ 2-1/4 cups water 
â€¢ 2 tablespoons sugar or honey (optional)
â€¢ ADD TO EACH PINT JAR:
â€¢ 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 
â€¢ 1/2 teaspoon whole black pepper corns
â€¢ 1/4 teaspoon whole cumin seeds 
â€¢ 1/4 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
â€¢ 1 bay leaf 
â€¢ 1 whole garlic clove, 
â€¢ 1/8 teaspoon Pickle Crisp granules (this is needed)
Directions Thinly slice jalapenos in 1/8" rounds, discarding stem ends.
Wash 4 pint jars & lids in hot sudsy water according to standard canning procedures. Keep jars warm until it's time to fill them.
In 2 quart pan, combine vinegar, water, & sugar (or honey); heat until just before it starts to boil. Add salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, bay leaf, garlic, (and Pickle Crisp, if using) to each jar. 
Add jalapeno slices to jars, pressing down and packing them in compactly until jars are filled. Pour hot vinegar mixture into each jar, leaving 1/2" head space. 

Process using standard USDA water process canning procedures. --Fill water process canner or large pot with enough water to cover jars with 1" of water. Bring water to boil. --Place hot, filled jars inside pot, return water to a boil, and process 12 minutes. --Turn off heat, remove cover, and leave jars in water for 5 minutes. --Remove jars and cool, undisturbed for at least 12 hours.


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## karstopo

Thank you!


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## 98aggie77566

Pulled out my squash and cucumbers yesterday.

They were slowing down...and we already put up 52 bags of squash and 45 quarts of pickles.

Tomatoes are finally taking off and salsa production begins this week.


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## karstopo

Which cucumber or cucumbers do you grow, 98aggie77566? Iâ€™m looking to do pickling cucumbers in the future, only did garden sweet burpless and some smaller, smooth skin slicing variety that must have been mixed in with the garden sweet seed. 

I keep reading about Kirby pickling cucumbers as being some sort of gold standard among the pickling types, but this is in recipes posted by famous east and west coasts foodies. 

My cucumbers seem to be doing pretty well still, especially the smaller, smoother mystery type. They get some afternoon shade. I planted the seed in Early March.


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## Meadowlark

*Speaking of pickles...*

Sir Crunch A Lot pickles in waiting.

It's looking like a banner year for the cucumbers.


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## karstopo

I made the sliced jalapeÃ±os per Meadowlarkâ€™s recipe shared above. I was well short of the two pounds on the jalapeÃ±os, so I made up the difference with Santa Fe Grande, Fresno, and Cowhorn peppers. All have a similar scoville score to jalapeÃ±os.

Being my first canning operation, I found out there are a number of moving parts and a decent amount of counter space was needed. But, it all seem to come together. I wonder when I should taste the results? I was going to wait until at least tomorrow.


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## Meadowlark

Outstanding!! I've heard that one should wait 4-6 weeks before tasting to get the benefit of the full flavor. I can never wait that long myself...but tomorrow really wouldn't be long enough to wait as you will likely get a very strong vinegar taste which will moderate significantly in favor of pepper flavor in a few days. 

Those look great...and I bet will make some terrific Nachos!


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## habanerojooz

Mmmmmmmm. Peppers. Following to see the great bounty of this and other garden stuff. 

Out of curiosity, are any of you â€˜chiliheadsâ€™ growing the napalm level hot peppers? Carolina Reapers, Bhut Jolokias (aka Ghost pepper), Trinidad Scorpion, etc? 


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## karstopo

My two hottest peppers are a red habanero and a Jamaican Scotch Bonnet. I know those are pretty tame these days. I almost picked up a Carolina Reaper. 

The older I get, the more I like heat, but more like 10,000-50,000 scoville level heat. If I like the habanero, Iâ€™ll try some of the super hots.


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## Meadowlark

habanerojooz said:


> ...
> Out of curiosity, are any of you â€˜chiliheadsâ€™ growing the napalm level hot peppers? Carolina Reapers....


Carolina Reapers are tooo hot for me. Habeneros are as hot as I go.

Salsa/Pico de Gallo/Picante sause time is coming...and its about my favorite time of year...but one needs some nice tomatoes to go with the peppers...my first of 2020 today.


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## karstopo

Nice tomato! What variety of tomato do you like? Is that 1 pound, 13 ounces? Thatâ€™s a big tomato.


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## Meadowlark

Yes, that's a "Whopper" (Parks Whopper Improved version).

I've been raising three types now for several years after weeding out many others including all the "better" , "boys", "girls" , celebrity, etc.. 

My three go to:
1) the Whopper for fresh eating right off the vine, I can't find anything better tasting or higher producing

2) Cherry tomatoes which give some variety in taste

3) romas for canning.

Sometimes I go with a heat resistant variety planted in June but haven't gotten around to that yet...several good ones of these but not nearly the production/taste of the big three, especially the Whopper which will produce 60 to 80 fruits per plant..and that's a lot of tomatoes. 

This year I failed to get my romas going early so I will be canning only the Whoppers. Looking to can at least 30 quarts. 

I have about 25 plants ready to ripen in the next three or four weeks...going to be fun.


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## Meadowlark

*The Potato Bucket*

One effective way to store new potatoes long term (6 -9 months) is the potato bucket.

First dig the spuds and let them air dry for several hours. Never wash potatoes meant for storage.

Next, drill holes in a 5 gallon bucket and place some dry hay in the bottom.

Follow that with a layer of potatoes none touching the other...social distancing.

Repeat layering to fill the bucket.

Then place the bucket is a cool, dark, dry location. We have a pumphouse that is ideal storage for this with a pressure tank that refills with well water often to keep it cool. Stores 25 to 30 pounds per bucket.


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## karstopo

Very interesting. Red Potatoes are definitely on my list of things to grow.


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## karstopo

I was busy picking peppers again today. I have Super chilis, which were a mislabeled mistake as I wanted a different pepper plant, but when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

Super chilis have a heat similar to thai hot peppers so I went thai on this sauce. Made up the slight shortage of Super chilis with cayenne and Serrano peppers.








Peppers and garlic get roasted in the oven, blistering the peppers and softening up the garlic. That gets blended with hoisin, vinegar and brown sugar. I followed the recipe in the link to a T.

https://www.foxvalleyfoodie.com/homemade-asian-hot-sauce-with-thai-peppers/


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## Meadowlark

Where do you like to get your seeds for the chilis?


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## Meadowlark

*Potato Bags*

Another handy potato storage method are these potato bags. They hold about 7-8 pounds which is a good barter/gift size. They have a wide opening at the bottom for easy removal and strap at the top for hanging.

I loaded up 6 bags so far to hang next to my pressure tank in the pumphouse where it is always dark and somewhat cool with well water refreshing the tank.

Only thing is the big "bakers" won't fit it the bag.


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## karstopo

Meadowlark said:


> Where do you like to get your seeds for the chilis?


Well, I bought these as 4â€ sets from Reifelâ€™s feed store. I did just a few weeks ago buy some pepper seeds from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange.

Reifels sold 4â€ sets for $1.65/per plant.


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## karstopo

I opened the peppers I made to Meadowlarkâ€™s recipe, amazingly good!

Definitely better than any store bought version by a long shot.


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## Meadowlark

Those look yummy. Gonna have to fix me some now. 

How long did you boil in the water bath? Less than 12 minutes?


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## karstopo

I did about 13-14 minutes, not so intentionally, but more about getting my canning act together being new to this. 

The peppers arenâ€™t soft or mushy at all, though, they have a great texture. Very pleased with the flavor and texture. My wife likes them very much and sheâ€™d let me know if they werenâ€™t any good, thatâ€™s a certainty.


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## Meadowlark

They will get better tasting also for the next 4 weeks as those spices all get absorbed in the peppers. Glad you all liked them...we never buy the store ones anymore.


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## Meadowlark

*Final potato dig*

With the forecast calling for big rains in my area, it was time to get the new potatoes out of the ground. Hot weather + heavy rains = rotten potatoes.

The final tally came in at a whopping 228 pounds as measured on certified scales. That came from 20 pounds of non chited seed potatoes planted Feb. 14.
That is a production ratio of about 11.4 which is outstanding in my book....and a real challenge at food storage.

The row has already been disked up and planted in purple hulls which will be there the rest of the summer acting as a cover crop and soil builder.

Next years' potatoes and onion rows are already a "work in progress" as shown in the last photo...covered in N2 fixing legumes until fall and then covered again until the next onion and potato planting.


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## Meadowlark

*Dill Pickles*



karstopo said:


> Tried my half sour pickles, not all that great, something is off, back to the drawing board.


This looked like a good recipe to try for dill pickles: "Grandmas Dill Pickles". Recommended by a friend and available onine.

It will take a few weeks to find out the true taste but they look ok going in.

My goodness but this must be the year of cucumber. They are producing like crazy.


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## Meadowlark

*Bingo Beans*

After experimenting last year with these big, creamy, red streaked beans, they graduated past experimental to production this year. So easy to pick since its a climber and also easy to shell with the large sized pods.

The taste is delicious as a main dish or in soups and Italian recipes. Rather than let them completely dry for storage , pick them while still streaked with color and freeze them. This way the tremendous flavor is retained and the cooking time cut in about half from a dried bean. I get my seeds from Territorial Seeds and the Bingo is now a regular in my garden.


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## karstopo

Those beans look good. Iâ€™ve frozen about a pound of Christmas Lima beans. Havenâ€™t eaten any yet, want to get some more then cook them. Still a ton out in the garden. I want them just like the bingo beans above, not all the way dry, but colored up, mostly mature. A lot are in the filling out the pods stage, others still in the pod growing stage. Some flowering continues to happen as well.










Decided to pickle some green tomatoes. My dad remembers getting pickled green tomatoes as a teenager when he deckhand on the Weingarten family yacht. Knocked off a couple of large green tomatoes by accident so I went ahead and got a couple more to make 2 different recipes. One spicy, the other garlicky dill. Recipes on gardenbetty.com. Used the grape and cherry types to fill in the voids.


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## Meadowlark

Interesting...did you put any peppers in with the greenies?


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## karstopo

Meadowlark said:


> Interesting...did you put any peppers in with the greenies?


I started to, but the recipe called for red pepper flakes along with mustard seed so I used those.

Gardenbetty has 4 recipes, a â€œstandardâ€ pickling brine, a Curry type, and the two I used. I had the ingredients for the two.


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## karstopo

Last Sunday, I started these peppers in a ferment. Today, they smelled so very good I decided to make the sauce.










Those two jars of peppers end up making about 15 ounces of sauce. Hit 4.0 on the Ph meter, lactic acid created from the lactobacillus activity acidifies the 5% brine, so I didnâ€™t have to add any vinegar or heat it up to kill the good bacteria, just bottled and put in fridge. Should continue to develop flavor in the fridge, albeit a lot slower.

Really loving the briny, yummy flavor. Fermented garlic along with coriander and cumin seed in with the peppers. Great heat and just a nice, rich funkiness from the fermentation. Would be great in a bloody mary or to spice up some mexican food. Blender broke down all the contents and then put that through a food mill to separate solids and seeds. Added enough brine back to make it liquid enough for the sauce bottle.

Good have a successful fermentation after the cucumber fermentation failed.


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## karstopo

Took a raw spaghetti squash and shredded the insides, minus the seeds. Mixed it with shredded carrot, grated garlic, curry powder, and raisins. Weighed it all and added about 3-3.5% salt by weight. Mix it all together, jar, seal and wait at least 7 days.

Supposed to make a great chutney.


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## Meadowlark

*Pepper Poppers*

The peppers just keep coming and coming...pickled 8 more jars of sliced jalapenos for Nachos and stuffed and froze a dozen bell peppers for future meals, but maybe found a new favorite in pepper poppers.

We liked the bacon wrapped, pepperjack cheese stuffed jalapenos the best. Man are those goood!...outstanding with iced cold Modello!!


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## livinadream

Marked for later

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## Meadowlark

*Florida Prince*

In addition to the daily picking of tomatoes, cucumbers, corn etc. , I noticed that the mockers had waged a war on the new peaches....so I did a preemptive strike and picked what we wanted.

These are the Florida Prince. They are clearly a very low chill variety to produce after the mild winter we had. These will go into the freezer, peach jam, and a fresh cobbler...very tasty.


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## karstopo

Love a good peach! Peaches are evidently tough to grow this close to the coast.









I made one more hot sauce. So thatâ€™s three total. One not a fermented sauce, the other two ferments. The latest, tomato, had about 12 ounces of green tomatoes in the 8 day ferment.

Iâ€™ve gotten 55 ounces between the three sauces. Two quart jars of fermented peppers and other vegetables yields around 20 ounces of finished ready to bottle sauce.

Lots of concentrated flavor in those sauces. All the Louisiana style sauces are fermented and aged in wood barrels. Crystal, Louisiana, Tabasco. They all add in vinegar after the ferment, prior to packaging. Lactic acid created in the fermentation has a different flavor than acetic acid, vinegar. Lactic acid is more mellow on the tongue, not as sharp.

The Thai sauce has vinegar added since it wasnâ€™t a fermented sauce. Ph ended up at 4.0. Rice vinegar isnâ€™t as acidic as distilled white vinegar. The Cowhorn also ended up at 4.0 pH. No vinegar got added, the lactic acid produced in the 6-7 day ferment supplied the necessary acidity. 4.6 pH or lower is considered shelf stable. 4.0 or lower is a good target for the home ferment or hot sauce maker, this Iâ€™ve read repeatedly, donâ€™t know the truth of it.

Several people have tasted the first two sauces. Stepdaughter nailed the flavor of the Cowhorn. She said it taste â€œmeatyâ€ and she loved it. She took a 5oz bottle. By meaty, we finally settled on it tasted almost identical to Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage. Must be the cumin and coriander seed I used in the fermentation.

My fishing buddy loves the thai sauce, he took a bottle. My dad has a bottle of that too. So does my stepson. Iâ€™m down to one.

The tomato sauce, really primarily hot peppers, is tangy and tart. PH finished at 3.4. I added a half a squeezed lime into the sauce before bottling and testing for pH.

Otherwise, I have been freezing whole tomatoes. On another mostly tomato growing forum, most everyone raves about freezing whole tomatoes and how to subsequently use them. Iâ€™ve frozen close to ten pounds now, letâ€™s hope they are good.

Oddly, I have a lot of tomatoes still on the vine, little just set ones on up to one pound types. Iâ€™m a little rural where I am and itâ€™s been cooler at night, many mid sixties nights, unusual this late in the year and thatâ€™s has kept the maters going strong. But, thereâ€™s always a dark cloud on the horizon for a garden. The squirrels have evidently run out of immature pine cones and other natural forage and have turn to my tomatoes. I gave one a dose of acute lead poisoning yesterday evening, left the carcass at the edge of the garden to remind his compadres and not 15 minutes later, thereâ€™s another one of those rats not ten feet away from his dead buddy eyeing my maters. That one too got a lethal dose of .22 caliber lead. Brazoria county is open year around on squirrels so donâ€™t bother with any moralizing any junior game wardens out there. Both squirrels remain out there, maybe the rest will get the message. Or I have plenty of .22 shells, your choice squirrels.


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## Meadowlark

Do you have the details on freezing whole tomatoes that you can post? Blanch? Skin? 

I'd like to try some. we have about 30 quarts canned but still getting lots of tomatoes. I'm going to start freezing corn soon and may as well try freezing tomatoes.


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## karstopo

https://www.tomatojunction.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=1168&p=20816&hilit=Freeze#p20816

The thread above has the options people that grow and freeze tomatoes season after season do.










In other news, this is how rioters are dealt with at my house. You loot my tomatoes, you pay the price.


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## WildThings

Where's the two thumbs up button!!


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## Meadowlark

*Corn processing*

That squirrel picture is so timely, LOL.

First corn planting is ready and the squirrels knew it first.
We eat as much as we possibly can fresh picked and give away a lot and also freeze what we have room for....but the squirrels take a measure and the cows clean it all up.

My freezing method is simple...first put on a big pot of water to boil, harvest and clean the corn quickly bringing it in to the boiling water. Blanch for about 45 seconds, Then using the tool shown below strip the kernels from the cob and place them in serving size plastic bags for the freezer. Takes no more than 15 seconds per ear with this great tool. I only do about a dozen at a time to insure the fastest possible trip to the boiling water to preserve sweetness/freshness.

All told the first planting will have approximately 10-12 dozen ears, some of which will go to the squirrels and any bug eaten or past ripe will go straight to the cows...who line up in wait for the treat. The second and third plantings will be about the same and carry us well into August with fresh corn available on a daily basis.

I do believe garden corn may be the very top veggie to grow for taste over the commercial stuff. Fresh it is almost indescribably delicious.


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## Meadowlark

*Corn tips*

Here is a tip regarding the use of the corn prep tool in the freezing process...leave a portion of the main stalk attached to the corn ear for purposes of gripping it while stripping away the corn and then discard to the compost. 
:
Another tip for prospective corn growers: Corn is a heavy feeder. To help rebuild your soil, always rotate....and always return the corn stalks, corn shuckings, and corn cobs to the soil. I like to chop it up some to encourage composting. Then follow that up with a legume cover crop such as field peas and soil is better than before growing the corn, This works!

p.s. not a "cut and paste"


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## hk

Jalapeno jelly and first four quarts of pickled okra.Now off to the store for cream cheese and triscuits.









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## Meadowlark

Right behind you, HK.

5 pint jars of pickled okra with a jalapeno in each jar. Love that stuff!! More to come.


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## hk

Hard to beat pickled okra.I have several friends and family that I make it for every year.I will usually make 10 to 12 quarts.Really good in a bloody mary.Breaded and froze 3 gallon bags of okra so far.Nice to have fresh tasting fried okra year around.

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## Meadowlark

HK, Do you do any prep on the okra for freezing? Just bread it as you would for frying and then freeze it?


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## hk

Meadowlark said:


> HK, Do you do any prep on the okra for freezing? Just bread it as you would for frying and then freeze it?


After I cut the okra,I sprinkle just a touch of water off my fingers on the okra and lightly mix okra to barely moisten pieces.Then I bread with Louisiana blue bag fish fry or a 50/50 combination of blue bag fish fry and cornmeal.I use breader from academy and leave in freezer ,to be used several times.Use freezer bags and do not over stuff the bags.Real easy,freezes well and tastes fresh when cooked.I use very little oil,cast iron skillet and do not turn until browned well on first side. Good luck and enjoy.









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## karstopo

Great ideas on okra. My okra is still growing, but Iâ€™m paying attention to these methods.










I took some of the spaghetti squash I grew and made a chutney. Started the ferment two Fridays ago, it was ready today. 3.8 pH all from the ferment. Really great flavor. Should pair nicely with pork.

https://www.mountainfeed.com/blogs/learn/fermented-winter-squash-chutney

Link to recipe. Any winter squash works according to the link.


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## karstopo

This is a spicy pepper relish that varies a bit from region to region. Traditional adzhika is pickled with wine vinegar and usually canned, but it was easy to imagine a fermented version. This recipe is adapted from one in The Georgian Feast by Darra Goldstein. We were intrigued by the combination of cilantro, which feels like such an Asian herb, and dill, which seems quintessentially European. But the combination of dill with hot peppers â€"well, that rocked our world. It can be difficult to find fresh dill weed when the peppers are on. We have made this relish with fresh and dried dill, and either way the results are quite pleasing.

From the cookbook â€œFiery Fermentsâ€ 70 Stimulating Recipes For Hot Saucesâ€ by K. and C. Shockey.

Loving these fermented foods. This one I used Cayenne, Cowhorn, Serrano, Santa Fe, Fresno and the Bell. Followed the recipe otherwise.


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## Meadowlark

karstopo said:


> ...
> 
> It can be difficult to find fresh dill weed when the peppers are on. ...


Very interesting condiment!

I used to get frustrated by the lack of availability of fresh dill also but found it is easy to grow and so convenient to have it available when you need it.

Now, we always have dill, basil, and bay leaf just outside the back door and this year have been hitting them all hard especially the dill in canning.


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## Meadowlark

First picking of Lima beans today. I have found these difficult to grow here...maybe its just finding the right type for my soil/location. There will be at least one more picking to come on the Limas. The Christmas Lima seems to be the best producer so far out of the King Lima and CANNELLINI LINGOT bean. 

Tomatoes and cucumbers just keep coming and coming.


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## Meadowlark

*Melons for peppers*

We have a neighbor who grows very tasty, excellent melons...watermelons and cantaloupes...and I'd rather not grow them myself, for a number of reasons, but always have excesses of other veggies to trade.

This year its peppers...big and small jalapenos and bell peppers....in huge excess. The peppers are still producing but slowing down some but will explode again this fall.

Turning hot and spicy into sweet and crunchy:


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## karstopo

Yea, all that looks great. Trading and bartering with neighbors is good in my book.


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## Meadowlark

Finally getting some tomatillos fruits after a false start. Lots of blooms should mean a lot more to come....looking for a good recipe to use them.


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## karstopo

One way to store produce is to convert it into alcohol. Alcohol was a huge part and impetus of the success of the civilizated world. Made water safe and preserved food for the long haul. This is a Blackberry Melomel, honey, yeast, blackberries and water. The yeast do the heavy lifting. Roughly 14%ABV. Finished at 0.991 specific gravity, backsweetened to 1.000. Off dry, but definitely not sweet.


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## txdougman

Meadowlark said:


> Carolina Reapers are tooo hot for me. Habeneros are as hot as I go.
> 
> Salsa/Pico de Gallo/Picante sause time is coming...and its about my favorite time of year...but one needs some nice tomatoes to go with the peppers...my first of 2020 today.


You better believe it , those reapers will put a ghost pepper to shame! Made some salsaâ€™s and they are both very flavorful , but the reaper makes ya break into a good sweat! :rotfl:
Also made some hot sauce too! :dance:


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## txdougman

karstopo said:


> Love a good peach! Peaches are evidently tough to grow this close to the coast.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I made one more hot sauce. So thatâ€™s three total. One not a fermented sauce, the other two ferments. The latest, tomato, had about 12 ounces of green tomatoes in the 8 day ferment.
> 
> Iâ€™ve gotten 55 ounces between the three sauces. Two quart jars of fermented peppers and other vegetables yields around 20 ounces of finished ready to bottle sauce.
> 
> Lots of concentrated flavor in those sauces. All the Louisiana style sauces are fermented and aged in wood barrels. Crystal, Louisiana, Tabasco. They all add in vinegar after the ferment, prior to packaging. Lactic acid created in the fermentation has a different flavor than acetic acid, vinegar. Lactic acid is more mellow on the tongue, not as sharp.
> 
> The Thai sauce has vinegar added since it wasnâ€™t a fermented sauce. Ph ended up at 4.0. Rice vinegar isnâ€™t as acidic as distilled white vinegar. The Cowhorn also ended up at 4.0 pH. No vinegar got added, the lactic acid produced in the 6-7 day ferment supplied the necessary acidity. 4.6 pH or lower is considered shelf stable. 4.0 or lower is a good target for the home ferment or hot sauce maker, this Iâ€™ve read repeatedly, donâ€™t know the truth of it.
> 
> Several people have tasted the first two sauces. Stepdaughter nailed the flavor of the Cowhorn. She said it taste â€œmeatyâ€ and she loved it. She took a 5oz bottle. By meaty, we finally settled on it tasted almost identical to Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage. Must be the cumin and coriander seed I used in the fermentation.
> 
> My fishing buddy loves the thai sauce, he took a bottle. My dad has a bottle of that too. So does my stepson. Iâ€™m down to one.
> 
> The tomato sauce, really primarily hot peppers, is tangy and tart. PH finished at 3.4. I added a half a squeezed lime into the sauce before bottling and testing for pH.
> 
> Otherwise, I have been freezing whole tomatoes. On another mostly tomato growing forum, most everyone raves about freezing whole tomatoes and how to subsequently use them. Iâ€™ve frozen close to ten pounds now, letâ€™s hope they are good.
> 
> Oddly, I have a lot of tomatoes still on the vine, little just set ones on up to one pound types. Iâ€™m a little rural where I am and itâ€™s been cooler at night, many mid sixties nights, unusual this late in the year and thatâ€™s has kept the maters going strong. But, thereâ€™s always a dark cloud on the horizon for a garden. The squirrels have evidently run out of immature pine cones and other natural forage and have turn to my tomatoes. I gave one a dose of acute lead poisoning yesterday evening, left the carcass at the edge of the garden to remind his compadres and not 15 minutes later, thereâ€™s another one of those rats not ten feet away from his dead buddy eyeing my maters. That one too got a lethal dose of .22 caliber lead. Brazoria county is open year around on squirrels so donâ€™t bother with any moralizing any junior game wardens out there. Both squirrels remain out there, maybe the rest will get the message. Or I have plenty of .22 shells, your choice squirrels.


Looking good! I am way behind yâ€™all, but playing catch up!:bounce:
My 1st time fermenting peppers...gonna have to find a few new recipes and a lot more bottles & jars!!!:headknock


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## Meadowlark

Can we successfully store onions and potatoes on the Gulf Coast? Absolutely, yes. 

Moving into September, both crops harvested in May this year from my garden are still in excellent shape... great eating and no need to go shopping....just fill the bucket from storage.


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## hk

Longhorn okra still doing great.Eating all I can and giving away the rest to friends.Some plants close to ten feet tall.I enjoy seeing how tall I can get it to grow.












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## karstopo

American Beautyberry mead, day one. Not technically from my garden, but the bushes where I picked the about a pound and a half of the berries are just a few feet away.










First jar of pickled okra. Been eating plenty of it fresh, time to stash some away. Tabasco peppers from the garden to provide the punch.


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## hk

I have made10 quarts of pickled okra so far.Give a bunch of jars away to friends and family.I also had a pepper or two to most jars and some garlic.Really good to have one in a bloody mary.








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## Meadowlark

Just can't beat pickled okra! 

Like others have mentioned, we add peppers, jalapenos in my case...and of course garlic. Agree it is great in Bloody Mary's.

Also I try to cut the okra for pickling as small as I can but it grows so fast in this heat you have to pick it every day or it will outgrow the jars.


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## hk

I usually do jalapenos or serranos in mine also.They are about as hot as I can stand.I love hot stuff but it does not love me so much anymore.

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## hk

Volunteer Kentucky wonder harvest today.








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## Mattsfishin

Blanched some beans for the freezer. Will start digging red taters in a couple weeks. I don't know what is better okra or new taters. Doubled my space for okra and red taters for next year.


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## hk

Mattsfishin said:


> Blanched some beans for the freezer. Will start digging red taters in a couple weeks. I don't know what is better okra or new taters. Doubled my space for okra and red taters for next year.


Matt where do you get your seed potatos and when do you plant them?Might try my hand at some new potatos this year.They are my favorite potatoes hands down.

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## Mattsfishin

I get my spring taters from the local feed store in January. The taters I have growing now are from my spring crop. I saved a few in the shed. I had ask w r ranch the same thing about where to get fall seed taters. He said he saves some from his spring crop, so I saved a few. I plant for the spring crop the last week of january or the first week of february, depends on the weather. A lot of people wait a little later but I plant in raised beds. I can cover the plants if it is going to freeze. Usually cover the plants with garden soil. They grow up thru the soil. Planted my fall taters about the first week of august. Planted them in a bed that gets some shade.

Talked to the lady at the feed store and she said her supplier said about 2 weeks she would get onion sets. Her seed supplier said not to expect and collard green seeds next year. Don't remember why. I would think someone would have some collard seeds.


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## hk

I found collard seeds at Lowes and the local feedstore down here in Pearland.l might go back and get some extra for next year.Thanks for the potato info.

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## Meadowlark

*Wilted Lettuce*



hk said:


> Volunteer Kentucky wonder harvest today.
> ...


Nice! I rely on volunteers a lot, especially when it comes to beans and peas. Just turned under a large double row of beans/peas green manure which had provided 4 generations of cover plants since this spring. That space will soon be filled with 1015 onion sets.

There are only a few veggies which I haven't been able to produce at a level above 90% of our annual needs. Lettuce is one of them. The growing season here for Lettuce is very short. It needs prolonged cool weather without frosts to form those iceberg heads and we just don't get enough of those days....

However, leaf lettuce does very well in the fall growing season here. We will have it in abundance until the first frost. Preferred way of using it is "Wilted Lettuce" .

Very tasty, very nutritious just doesn't last long.


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## karstopo

Iâ€™m growing buttercrunch, red sails, another red lettuce, arugula, endive. Radicchio on the way. Spinach just coming up. Lettuce, et al. are fantastic in South Texas in the fall.


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## Meadowlark

Radishes are one of the easiest veggies to grow in temperate areas. I've had them survive at temps down to 20 deg. I like to stage them i.e. stagger the planting dates so that we can have a continuous supply all fall and winter. 

I particularly like the zesty taste of the white icicles but the cherry reds are great also. Have two plantings each of both types staged to produce radishes continuously now until hot weather returns. Just finished off harvesting a planting of reds and now picking whites. 

By the way, they make a great rotation/cover crop also.


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## karstopo

My cherry Belle radishes are just sprouting. Iâ€™ve got a white type to plant once some space becomes available.


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## Meadowlark

karstopo said:


> https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20201104/9e7a8cc7b1f8c669b0fa0e32b1f466b1.jpg
> 
> Iâ€™m growing buttercrunch, red sails, another red lettuce, arugula, endive. Radicchio on the way. ..[/quote]
> 
> Are you able to grow head lettuce along the coast?
> 
> You have much longer growing period than here inland.


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## karstopo

I pick my buttercrunch leaf by leaf as needed, from the bottom up, instead of waiting for it to form a head and harvesting it head by head. I have only planted that variety, plus red sails, another red arrow leaf type. I do have some other bibb type seeds that I still plan on planting when some space becomes available. Iâ€™ve got curly endive/escarole growing and radicchio just coming up. 

I have done romaine lettuce in past years and it will form a nice head, but I have to harvest before any spring heat arrives as it will bolt. Seems like I cannot eat enough of the heads before the window on bolting closes. So, I didnâ€™t do any romaine this year. Never tried iceberg. 

Most winters, we get a minimal frost that really doesnâ€™t even get to all but the most tender of plants. Lettuce is so close to the ground I think the residual ground heat protects it. I do also have enough freeze cloth to cover the tender veggies if need be for a few more degrees of protection.


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