 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
A New Love: Jacques Pépin's Fast Food
Talking Him Into It - Feeding The Guy
Another Change, and Two Summer Shortcakes
« More March Reviews | Main | Faux Windows »
Last week I received this email from Jenny A: "I love to make Potato/cheese/broccoli/ham soup, but when I make it I make a ton! What is the safest way to can it, so I can have it when I want it?"
Though I'm not exactly a canning expert, I'm really interested in this question because it touches on the storage issues mentioned here a couple weeks ago, and on the themes in the NY Times article this week about the health department cracking down on sous vide cooking (not that we're trying anything that complicated in any of our kitchens). So, Jenny, to answer your question:
Canning requires a balance of acid and/or sugars that home cooks can easily achieve with jams or pickles. The sugars in pomagranate jelly and the vinegar in pickled green tomatoes keep the foods from going bad for a few months because they create extreme environments that are inhospitable to bacteria. Soups, on the other hand, and most of the foods we make at home, are going to be full of bacteria, and much more difficult to store and much less stable. This is why all the soups you find on market shelves have preservatives. There are some sites that give advice on canning soup, like this one, but they require a pressure cooker, and I can imagine that not all your results will be spectacular. The recipes also seem to require a certain balance of solids to liquids, so you'd have to modify your recipe.
The best way that I can think of to store soup, and the one recommended by almost all the websites I've read, is to do it the old-fashioned way and freeze it. I would recommend freezing it in single serving containers so that you can thaw only the amount you want to eat (it's not safe to reheat and freeze food a second time) and keeping it in small batches also helps it cook faster, which better prevents bacteria growth (the health department requires restaurants to store things in small batches for this reason). If you're worried about freezer burn, smooth some plastic wrap over the top of the soup, and don't forget, liquid expands when you freeze it, so don't fill your containers all the way or freeze soups in glass containers.
Posted by georgia to Kitchen and Cooking , Tips on March 13, 2006 11:34 PM | permalink | Email this post
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://notadomesticdiva.com/mt-tb.cgi/182
