Storing Options

[White4Delta]

Hello everyone,

I have a question that might seem basic to most, but the wife and I are new to growing. We are pretty much learning as we go, but guess you have to start somewhere.
Any we build a raised bed and planted some different types of tomatoes, pepper, pickle cucumbers, beat, carrots, green beans.
We are hoping to produce some tomato juice, spaghetti sauce, salsa, pickles mostly this year.

So my question what is the best way to make all this? Should I freeze everything until the end of the growing season and make it all at one time or do you do it a little at a time during the growing season? Thanks for any knowledge you can provide.

[doublel]

I can all year long. As soon as I have enough extra produce to make a batch of salsa or whatever I do it! Saving all my canning until fall would make DAYS worth of work for me. Also, freezing cucumbers would likely not have good results...I imagine your canned pickles would end up a jar of mush.

[White4Delta]

Ok thank you. That is what makes the most sense the more I have been reading.

[tk]

http://www.amazon.com/Ball-Complete-Book-Home-Preserving/dp/0778801314/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1403111543&sr=8-1&keywords=ball+book+of+canning

It's not hard . Get a good instruction book there is many to choose from. We like to use a lot of refrigerator recipes for pickling and jellies. My wife will can just tomato's sometimes but usually makes her sauce's then cans it. With a little equipment you will be surprised how easy it is .

[White4Delta]

tfk,
yes, I bought this book for my wife a few months ago. There is a lot of stuff I would love to make in there. I do not think I could produce enough stuff to make everything, plus some good info to me. My main concern is how do I make the tomatoes, peppers last if another plant is not ready or have enough to make something.

For instance it looks like I will have tomatoes and way before my jalapeño and green peppers and onions. It seems to me there is a timing issue, but I guess this is normal? I just do not want to waste anything.

I really wish now I would of paid attention when my grandparents tried to pass this down and just thought it was a punishment when I was younger...

[doublel]

If you have a bucket of tomaotoes and want to make salsa, there is no shame in going to the store and buying the other ingredients. If we were in a shtf situation you would just can diced tomatoes. or you make juice first, since it might only have tomatoes.

[RD]

Doublel, has you pretty squared away, only thing I would add is with your tomatoes "depending what your are growing" Some are great for canning and others are only good for juicing when you are prepping them for storage.