The days are getting shorter and nighttime temperatures continue to drop, signaling that the late-summer and early-fall growing season is winding down. Green thumb gardeners with a surplus of produce are now wondering what to do with the 20 pounds of zucchini and bushels of green beans they harvested.
Most people are familiar with the canning method to preserve their produce, but nothing compares to fresh from the garden. Storing harvests properly can make this year’s crop last as long as possible without going to waste. According to data from the USDA, 30-40% of the food supply is never eaten, amounting to approximately 133 billion pounds of food.
Here are a few tips to extend how long garden harvests look and taste like they were freshly picked. And what to do if there is just too much food and it’s time to share the wealth.
Know how to store produce.
Produce can be fickle and it’s best to know how to properly store each type. For example, potatoes, some squash, citrus fruits, whole melons and sweet potatoes don’t need to be refrigerated.
It’s also best to let your produce become ripe on the counter before placing it the fridge to prolong its freshness. Placing produce in the fridge too early can change the texture and flavor.
Get a fridge purifier.
A device like Shelfy can help you get more out of your fruits and vegetables by eliminating bacteria, odors and pollutants that accelerate the ripening of fruits and vegetables. Shelfy is proven to help prolong produce up to 12 days longer, so you have more time to decide what you want to do with your harvest.
Share the wealth.
What better way to enjoy the fruits of your labor than with your friends and family. Make seasonal gift baskets with your extra produce and hand them out to your friends and family as “just because” gifts. They also make excellent teacher gifts.
You can also host a brunch or dinner that features the produce you grew. Create special dishes that emphasize your crop, like stuffed peppers or fresh green salads.
Switch up your recipes.
We all have classic dishes that we love to make and are our go-to. Switch up your ingredients in the dish for some of the produce that you have on hand. Swap out the rice in your chicken broccoli cheese dish for potatoes or use your lettuce as wraps for sandwiches or burger instead of traditional bread.
It also doesn’t hurt to try something new. Once a week, aim to make a new dish that calls for the produce you grew in your garden. Use the internet to find recipes that fit what you are looking for. There are also apps that allow you to input the ingredients you have on hand and will spit out a recipe for you to make.
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