Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
• Test to see if the jerky is done by taking a piece off the
dehydrator, letting it cool to room temperature, then bending
it. If it cracks but doesn't break, it is done.
Root Cellaring
Root cellaring is one of the best methods of preserving certain
foods, including onions, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, parsnips,
and apples, among others. The key to success at cold storage
is establishing conditions conducive to long storage life, and
these conditions include darkness, certain temperatures, and
particular ranges of humidity.
Many things can be preserved via root cellaring for some
small period of time ranging from days to a couple of weeks,
while others can be preserved for times ranging from several
weeks to several months. Invariably, food that can be stored
only for a short time is better preserved via some other
method. This includes all brassicas except late cabbage,
asparagus, beans, sweet corn, cucumbers, summer squash,
lettuce, tomatoes, eggplant, spinach, melons, and peas.
Other foods, though, can be preserved in a root cellar for
extended periods assuming proper temperatures and humidity
are maintained. Unfortunately, these aren't the same for all
crops, but thankfully we don't have to be too fine-grained in
our specification because, in general, crops that do well in a
root cellar fall into broad categories.
Everything but onions and garlic will do well with humidity
ranging from 85% to 95%. Onions and garlic require
humidity ranging from 50% to 75%. All fruits store best at
temperatures as close to 32 degrees F as possible, and almost
