Making homemade preserves was once just another piece of the daily routine, and a useful method to store the harvest of the season for the long, dark winter. These abilities were passed down from generation to generation alongside other skills. Unfortunately, with the clamour and commercialism of today’s world, making preserves fell out of favour, and everyone turned to mass-produced and imported “fresh” items from supermarkets. And so the list of obstacles to preserving at home took hold.
Slowly but surely, make-your-own is on the rise as a result of environmental, financial, health, and agricultural constraints, along with a resurgence in interest in growing your own produce. Not many of us have real-life instructors to walk us through the process and so the whole concept may appear daunting and complicated!
This blog will list some of the common obstacles and worries that prevent people from trying to make their own preserves. I hope to provide beginners with the confidence they need to try preserving. It’s really easy!
“Preserving is too much hassle.”
This is one of the most common obsatcles to preserving. Making preserves does take some time and effort, but it’s not as difficult as you might think. And once you get the hang of it, it’ll become easier and faster. Plus, the rewards are worth it! Not only will you have delicious preserves to enjoy, but you’ll also have the satisfaction of knowing that you made them yourself.
“I don’t have enough space for preserving”
You don’t need a big kitchen or a lot of equipment to make preserves. A small countertop, a stove, and some basic supplies are all you need. If you’re short on space, you can even make preserves in a microwave.
“I don’t have the proper equipment” and/or “It’s too expensive for me to make preserves.”
Again, you don’t need much to get started. Most of the supplies you need, you probably already have in your kitchen. And if you don’t, they’re easy to find and do not have to be very expensive.
It’s not necessary to have a lot of special equipment to start preserving. All you need is a big pot, some canning tongs (which are inexpensive), good-quality jars, and lids. Even if you bought all of the essential items new, a basic canning kit should not cost an arm and a leg.
Making your preserves may help you save money. You can regulate the quality of the ingredients and customize the recipe when you prepare them yourself. Furthermore, you may reuse jars and lids, and make your labels, saving on packaging expenses. This worry then becomes one of the easiest obstacles to preserving to overcome, and set you free to create some tasty preserves.
“I don’t have time to make preserves.”
It does not take all day to preserve food. At the very least, it doesn’t have to. Of course, some people set aside a specific day (or days) each year to preserve their crop or garden produce, but this is because they have a lot of extra food to store. Once you have some of the general skills this no longer has to feature on your list of obstacles to preserving.
If you do not have a garden or only a small garden you will not have a lot to preserve, as has been the case for me. I buy produce from local farms or farmers’ markets, and also from supermarkets. As a result, for me – and, most likely for many people, – small batch preserving is a more practical alternative and you also don’t have to spend hours in the kitchen.
In practice, one jar of preserved jam (or pickles, peaches, or whatever) on average takes about an hour to complete. That is from washing the produce and getting to sealing the gleaming jars. People who do this for an entire day – or longer – are simply repeating this process over and over.
Start with a simple small batch. One hour at a time, one batch at a time is an excellent approach to try it out.
Also, once you’ve made a batch, it’ll last for months (or even years), so you won’t have to make them as often as you think.
“I’m not sure how to do it.”
This is probably the biggest obstacle to making preserves, but it’s also the easiest to overcome. It is not difficult in the sense that you must have a special set of talents.
Follow the basic food hygiene and safety rules , follow the recipe, and surprise yourself! You can begin with basic recipes using simple ingredients and only make small batches to give yourself a gradual introduction to this magical process.
“Is it safe?”
A common worry is the risk of harm and this can easily be one of the major obstacles to preserving. The fact is that all you have to do is follow basic hygiene and safety precautions and then this fear can be conquered by knowledge.
So there you have it – six assumptions challenged – hopefully, this will encourage you to give making your preserves a try. Making preserves is a rewarding experience that anyone can enjoy. It can be simple, enjoyable, creative and fun.
Follow the steps of a recipe, and before you know it, you’ll be enjoying the delicious fruits of your labour. Surprise yourself with what you are capable of!