"Bruce" > wrote in message
...
> On Wed, 19 Apr 2017 09:08:07 -0600, U.S. Janet B. >
> wrote:
>
>>On Wed, 19 Apr 2017 08:10:02 -0400, Dave Smith
> wrote:
>>
>>>On 2017-04-18 9:52 PM, U.S. Janet B. wrote:
>>>> On Tue, 18 Apr 2017 17:52:37 -0400, Dave Smith
>>>> > wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> On 2017-04-18 4:35 PM, U.S. Janet B. wrote:
>>>>>> On Tue, 18 Apr 2017 10:12:23 -0700 (PDT), "The Greatest!"
>>>>>> > wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Sheldon wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Ophelia wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Since I have been out of action, I was thinking of buying a large
>>>>>>>>> freezer to
>>>>>>>>> fill with my cooked foods, because D was no cook and was
>>>>>>>>> struggling. I
>>>>>>>>> thought it would make life much easier if I was off my feet again.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I'm sorry to hear you are out of action... get well soon!
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I don't know your idea of a "large" freezer but I would suggest one
>>>>>>>> more on the smaller size. When freezing a lot of food a good
>>>>>>>> amount
>>>>>>>> ends up never eaten, especially when it's just two people. I turn
>>>>>>>> a
>>>>>>>> lot of what I grow into soups and stews but only up to a point, I'd
>>>>>>>> rather give the overage away instead of saving more than we can
>>>>>>>> consume before it spoils, and I'll be harvesting again in a year.
>>>>>>>> Home
>>>>>>>> freezers don't get cold enough to keep food well long term. I've
>>>>>>>> long
>>>>>>>> ago discovered it's more advantageous to have a second refrigerator
>>>>>>>> freezer. The two smaller freezers are more than adequate and the
>>>>>>>> extra fridge space comes in handy, especially for my crops when
>>>>>>>> they
>>>>>>>> come in before I have time to cook them. also good for storing
>>>>>>>> those
>>>>>>>> canned and jared foods we like to eat cold. My second fridge lives
>>>>>>>> in
>>>>>>>> my basement, a no frills model I purchased reconditioned from a
>>>>>>>> small
>>>>>>>> local appliance store for $100, I've been using it 15 years now
>>>>>>>> with
>>>>>>>> no problems.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Your situation would be a perfect set - up if you were into home
>>>>>>> canning, but that is a lot of work. I remember back in the day when
>>>>>>> peeps on the farm started to get home freezers, the farm wives could
>>>>>>> now freeze produce that they had formerly canned, this freed
>>>>>>> housewives from all of that canning drudgery...a farm wife of that
>>>>>>> time would much prefer a big new home freezer to a mink coat. Root
>>>>>>> cellars, along with hot summer days spent toiling over huge
>>>>>>> cauldrons of boiling water, lifting dozens of hot 'n heavy jars,
>>>>>>> etc., were suddenly a thing of the past. Those post-war Home
>>>>>>> freezers were really a miracle come true when introduced...just like
>>>>>>> washers and dryers (and the new synthetic detergents: "TIDE - the
>>>>>>> wash day MIRACLE...!!!").
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Yea, right. Preparing stuff for the freezer is "so" much less work
>>>>>> than canning. You just proved that you stood around with your hands
>>>>>> in your pocket down at the pool hall
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> What???? Preparing stuff for the freezer is a lot more work than
>>>>> canning. I remember how thrilled my mother was to get a chest freezer
>>>>> and to be able to preserve most foods with so much less work and
>>>>> effort.
>>>>> I remember her canning peaches, pears, and vegetables. The jars and
>>>>> tops had to be sterilized. Things had to be cooked and packed hot.
>>>>> Freezing was so much easier. My brothers and I would pick beans and
>>>>> she
>>>>> would snip off then ends, put them in plastic bags and toss them into
>>>>> the freezer. Peaches were simply peeled, sliced and then put into
>>>>> bags
>>>>> with a bit of sugar. Strawberries and raspberries were just put into
>>>>> bags with some sugar. Having experienced canning and freezing, I have
>>>>> to agree with Sheldon that it is much less work.
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> done properly -- depending upon item -- requires washing,
>>>> draining/drying, peeling, slicing, (holding in acid water to prevent
>>>> browning), blanching, draining again, perhaps sugaring,packing,
>>>> wrapping, labeling and then to the freezer. These steps were meant to
>>>> preserve the quality and longevity of the produce. Your mother
>>>> skipped a bunch of steps.
>>>
>>>
>>>I stand corrected about the beans. They were blanched before freezing.
>>>That was almost no work at all. Berries and peaches were almost no work
>>>to freeze.
>>>
>>>> Having done both properly, I can tell you that either involves
>>>> standing all day in a hot kitchen to preserve food for the family.
>>>
>>>
>>From what I am reading here, I would guess that no one has ever really
>>"put up" produce in a serious way if none of you can tell the
>>difference between how to handle berries (soft fruit) and green beans.
>>Janet US
>
> We are so lucky to have U.S. Janet B. to tell us "how it's done". We'd
> have been up the proverbial creek without a peddle otherwise.

Heh. Yeah. We never had enough beans to have to put them up. And normally we
didn't have a big freezer. A family friend was out of the country for about
a year and loaned us one. We had the berries and half a side of beef. Also
some applesauce.