Preserving for beginners

I love foraging, I love growing and I want to make the very most of what I find and what I grow.

Preserving for beginners offers all the skills needed to preserve the taste of summer, the cool of winter and the red of autumn.

This class is jam packed with information.

In many preserving classes you are taught one recipe and one way to preserve.

But in this class I am showing you many techniques: from fermenting, to dehydrating, to hot water bathing and the difference between the Fowlers method and the hot water bathing method.

I will teach you both slow and fast ferments, how to dehydrate, raw pack and hot pack preserving. How to make jams and jellies and fruit leathers. It is effectively five classes in one.

It will also be a small group of us (6), hence the price, small class, packed with information, lots of opportunities to ask questions and to delve into your favourite preserving method.

The wonderful thing about a class like this is that it can help people understand differences that often cause confusion: for example why do fowlers have a set 60min heating setting on their recipes while many recipes require far less time to preserve foods.

Why is fermenting the exact opposite of preserving: fermentation extends the shelf life of food, but why does it not last as long as preserved foods and why would you want to encourage bacterial growth in a ferment when you want the exact opposite in a preserve…and which method would you choose: ferment, dehydrate, preserve, jam jelly or leather? By having many tools at your fingertips the world of food preserving becomes ever more liberating because you can choose to change and swap according to what is happening in the kitchen, and what you are in the mood for.

From preserving wild fungi, to bottling vibrant red tomatoes. Drying cherries and strawberries and tomatoes to making jam and fruit leathers.

You can ferment, or coat in honey or slow ferment black garlic.

I will introduce you to high pressure preserving too.

We will explore range of preserving tools and skills underpinned by the principles that ensure longevity, safety and deliciousness.

We will use pH strips to test acidity and learn why pH is an important indicator.

Heat and time, acidity, salt and sugar, these are your friends in the kitchen, and with them you can preserve to your hearts content.

This will be a demonstration class allowing me to take you through hot water bath preserving, dehydrating, fermenting, tips on jam making and high pressure cooking.

There will be opportunities for some hands on work and lots of opportunities for discussion and questions.

I will show you a range of digital resources and books that will help you find recipes or allow you to create your own recipes.

I look forward to meeting you very much! Arrivederci, mara