Information for Consumers
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FAQ:
Food Preservation and Storage
- How long can frozen meats, poultry, and fish be stored?
- Are cans of mushrooms and tomatoes that were inadvertently frozen safe?
- Is it safe to can homemade tomato soup?
- Is it possible to use pressure cookers to preserve or "can" foods?
- How can I avoid tomatoes floating to the top of the jars while canning?
- Can plum tomatoes be dried? If so, what procedure should be used?
- What food preservation resources does MSU Extension possess?
- What are approved sources of home canning recipes?
- What is the best way to freeze meatballs?
QUESTION:
How long can frozen meats, poultry, and fish be stored?
ANSWER: Check the "Frequently Asked Questions About Food Safety from the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline."
Source: Karen S. Regan, M.S., R.D., Food and Nutrition Information Center, National Agricultural Library.
See also "The Food Keeper" food storage guideline brochure put together by the Food Marketing Institute and the food safety team at Cornell University. The Web address is: http://www.fmi.org/consumer/foodkeeper/brochure.cfm .
Source: Lillian Occeña-Po, Dept. of Food Science & Human Nutrition, Michigan State University
The
Food Keeper (second edition) was produced in a cooperative project involving
the Department of Food Science Food Safety Extension group at Cornell
University; the Food Marketing Institute (FMI), a trade organization for
the supermarket industry; and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Meat
and Poultry Hotline. People can order single or multiple copies of The
Food Keeper from the Food Marketing Institute by contacting: Publication
Sales at FMI , 655 15th Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20005;
telephone 202-452-8444; fax 202-429-4550.
Source:
Donna Scott.
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QUESTION: Are cans of mushrooms and tomatoes that were inadvertently frozen safe?
ANSWER: These canned products are safe to eat, provided the can is not swollen or bulging, and provided the seams are still intact. Canned foods have at least 2 seams: one is the welded side seam vertically along the can body, which requires removing the paper label to see; the other seam goes around the entire top lid, where the top lid is attached to the can body. Some cans have a third seam, which is all the way around the bottom lid and can body, identical to the top lid seam. All two (or three) seams must be intact, without any bulging. The reason an occasional can might bulge after freezing is that the water volume expands 9 percent on freezing, and if the empty space at the top of the can is too small, the ice will bulge the can, possibly opening a seam slightly. If that happens, a spore of C. botulinum could enter the slightly opened seam, grow, and produce toxin. You should visually inspect every can before use, to make sure all seams are unaffected by the freezing. If you see a bulge, throw the can out. Otherwise, the canned food should be safe to eat.
The food inside the can usually will be of lower quality than before freezing, but this is not a safety issue.
Source:
Kirk Dolan, Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Human
Nutrition, Agricultural Engineering Department, Michigan State University.
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QUESTION: Is it safe to can homemade tomato soup?
ANSWER: Soups containing vegetables (and meat) are low-acid products. They must be processed in a pressure canner to assure their safety. The problem with tomato soup is that most recipes call for a thickening agent such as flour or milk/cream. The USDA does not recommend adding noodles, milk, or thickening agents to home canned soups. If the recipe contains only tomatoes, small amounts of onions, mushrooms and garlic for seasoning, and water, then you could process it using the instructions for standard tomato sauce found in the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning. If it contains other ingredients, such as milk/cream or a thickening agent, then it should not be home canned.
Source:
Angela Fraser, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Food Safety Specialist, North
Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, North Carolina State University.
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QUESTION:
Is it possible to use pressure cookers to preserve “can" foods?
ANSWER: Pressure saucepans and pressure
cookers, that do not hold 7 quarts, have less metal, and if smaller in
diameter, likely will use less water than pressure canners. The result
is that the come-up and come-down times will be less than for the standard
pressure canner. The come-up and come-down times are part of the total
process that was used to establish a reasonable margin of safety, which
is 12D (the amount of heat required to cause a 12 log reduction in bacteria.)
for low-acid foods.
At one time pressure saucepans were considered an alternative for home canning and 10 minutes were added to the process. The problem is that there are several sizes of pressure saucepans, and the one recommendation had not been adequately tested. Hence, in the late 1980s the recommendation was not to use them for home canning. Unfortunately, that option sometimes is included in current literature by individuals not qualified to discuss safety considerations. But we should not endorse use of this non-canning equipment for canning.
Source:
Adapted from a email communication from Kenneth N. Hall, Ph. D., professor
emeritus, Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut.
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QUESTION:
How can I avoid tomatoes floating to the top of the jars while canning?
ANSWER: First
of all, dip whole tomatoes in boiling water for 30 to 60 seconds or until
skins split. Then dip in cold water, slip off skins and remove cores.
For pints, add 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of vinegar,
or 1/4 teaspoon citric acid. Double these amounts for quart jars. Leave
at least ½ inch headspace in each jar -- too little head space
could cause boiling out of liquid -- and process for 85 minutes. The jars
must be submerged in the boiling water during processing.
Source:
Angela Fraser, North Carolina State University, Food Safety Specialist.
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QUESTION:
How can I get rid of small beetles destroying flour,
cornmeal, noodles and other dried goods?
ANSWER: Clean
out the cabinets thoroughly and check any other stored food items to see
if they are infested. Don't assume that a sealed box means protected from
insects. These insects can eat almost any dried plant material, including
dry pet food, potpourri, spices and dried flowers. Spray the cabinets
with a pesticide, using any common household insecticide that you can
buy at retail stores (read the label to see if they're intended for use
in food storage areas). The shelves must be completely empty before spraying
and then completely dry before restocking.
Storing susceptible items in glass or sealable plastic or in the refrigerator
can reduce the chance of these items becoming infested.
Source: Mike Waldvogel, Department of Entomology, North Carolina State
University. Provided by Angela Fraser, Food Safety Specialist, North Carolina
State.
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QUESTION:
Can plum tomatoes be dried? If so what are the procedures?
ANSWER: Yes,
following directions for any whole, quartered tomato.
Source: Angela Fraser, Food Safety Specialist, North Carolina State University.
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QUESTION: What food preservation resources
does MSU Extension possess?
ANSWER: All county offices are referred to the following resources: the "So Easy to Preserve" Book, 2006 version, from the University of Georgia; The "So Easy to Preserve" video series DVD and the MSUE Home Preservation Bulletins
Source: Dr. Les Bourquin, MSU Extension, Food Safety Specialist, and Lillian Occeña-Po, Dept. of Food Science & Human Nutrition, Michigan State University. Reviewed by Elizabeth L. Andress, Ph.D., associate professor and Extension Food Safety Specialist, the University of Georgia.
QUESTION: What are approved sources of home
canning recipes?
ANSWER: The following sources are approved because they contain canning recipes that have been tested for safety:
1)
Recipes found in the National Center for Home Food Preservation Website
2) Canning recipes presented in the MSU Extension Food Preservation Series
(E1873 - E1887,
E2134, E2135, E2626 through 2665) conform to recipes in the National
Center for Home Food Preservation Website.
3). "So Easy to Preserve Book"
2006 version , from the University of Georgia. This book also contains
drying and freezing guidelines. It is available from the University of
Georgia (phone: 706-542-8575 for ordering information).
4) "So Easy to Preserve"
2005 video series. DVD contains 8 shows (20 to 35 minutes each) of the
most up-to-date recommendations for preserving fresh foods and great taste
in your home.
Many
other sources of home canning recipes are available, but the recipe testing
results are not available for review. These include popular books
such as the "Ball Blue Book" and the "Kerr Kitchen Cookbook."
This does NOT mean that the recipes in these books are unsafe. If questions
arise about recipes from the Ball or Kerr sources, refer to each company
for the answers to specific questions.
It
is important to remember that the potential risks from improper canning
of low-acid foods are greater than the risks from acid foods. Therefore,
it isrecommended to only to use recipes that have been safety tested and
to follow the directions closely to ensure a safe product.
Source:
Dr. Les Bourquin, MSU Extension, Food Safety Specialist, and Lillian Occeña-Po,
Dept. of Food Science & Human Nutrition, Michigan State University.
Reviewed by Elizabeth L. Andress, Ph.D., associate professor and Extension
Food Safety Specialist, the University of Georgia.
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QUESTION: What is the best way to freeze meatballs?
ANSWER: You can freeze meatballs either cooked or uncooked. The uncooked meatballs have a longer frozen shelf life (four months) than the cooked meatballs (two to three months). One can freeze whole eggs and egg whites without quality problems; egg yolks alone turn gummy. There is no problem freezing the uncooked meatballs with the eggs. I would recommend freezing the uncooked meatballs because I think that this provides a moister, better tasting product upon thawing.
Source: Angela Fraser, Ph.D., Assistant Professor and Food Safety Specialist, North Carolina State University.
