Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation

by Deborah Madison (Foreword), Centre Terre Vivante

Typical books about preserving garden produce nearly always assume that modern "kitchen gardeners" will boil or freeze their vegetables and fruits. Yet here is a book that goes back to the future--celebrating traditional but little-known French techniques for storing and preserving edibles in ways that maximize flavor and nutrition.Translated into English, and with a new foreword by Deborah Madison, this book deliberately ignores freezing and high-temperature canning in favor of methods that are superior because they are less costly and more energy-efficient.As Eliot Coleman says in his foreword to the first edition, "Food preservation techniques can be divided into two categories: the modern scientific methods that remove the life from food, and the natural 'poetic' methods that maintain or enhance the life in food. The poetic techniques produce... foods that have been celebrated for centuries and are considered gourmet delights today.""Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning" offers more than 250 easy and enjoyable recipes featuring locally grown and minimally refined ingredients. It is an essential guide for those who seek healthy food for a healthy world.

Genres: Food, Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Gardening, Food Preservation, Survival

224 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1999

About the author

Deborah Madison is an American chef, writer and cooking teacher. She has been called an expert on vegetarian cooking and her gourmet repertoire showcases fresh garden produce. Her work also highlights Slow Food, local foods and farmers' markets.

Reviews

[Doris Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It reviews some of the old traditional techniques for saving food which have been passed down for generations–until now, when this knowledge has been recently fading from our food culture. Big Food corporations have gradually usurped and replaced these methods with factory manufacturing and harsh laboratory chemicals at the expense of nutrients.

I liked the root cellar instructions for trench silos, steamer silos, hanging, drying, and barrel storage. This is done in tune with the seasons at harvest time and gently preserves food until plants can begin to grown again in the spring. I saved the easy Provence olive storage method for the next time I have access to fresh olives. I have already used the the sun-drying and string-drying methods for vegetables and herbs and fruits successfully.

There are salting, brining, pureeing, powdering, fermenting methods for various fruits, vegetables and meats which I use regularly. I adopted the oil preservation lessons I learned in this book and I now have many jars of food preserved in oil alone or vinegar alone or in both oil and vinegar. Vinegar pickling is not live fermentation since fermenting bacteria cannot reproduce in vinegar. I especially like to live-ferment vegetables using only brine (which is lacto-fermentation) and these lacto-bacilli support intestinal health. There are NO live probiotic bacilli in the vinegar pickles now sold to us in our grocery stores by Big Food manufacturers.

I intend to try some of the recipes such as "Carob Honey" which is a way to make a sweet syrup from carob beans without adding sugar, and this natural sweetener was a favorite of biblical times and is still appreciated today as part of the food culture of Galilee, Israel. (The "St. John's Bread" of the bible was made with the carob bean.)

I plan also to try several of the "no-added-sugar" simple recipes for jams and jellies which I saved. These recipes are simple and easy ways to preserve fresh fruit. One such was Pear Puree - made only with fresh pears; and there was an Apple-Quince Jelly recipe - made only with apples and quinces and one teaspoon of cinnamon.

Food preservation traditions were developed long, long ago, long before machines and refrigerators and dehydrators and the like. Survivalists should enjoy this book tremendously, as well as anyone who wants to preserve nutrients in unprocessed food. I enjoy the simple, gentle and easy old-fashioned spirit of traditional food preservation.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, this book is soooo fun! I now have raw lemons on my shelf in my cold food storage! Should be good for a "VERY LONG TIME" according to the book. No cooking, no juicing, no peeling! Oh my goodness it was so easy, it was a little scary! OK maybe I'm being a giddy little school girl, but I can't help but be excited by the prospect of a fresh lemons for cooking or just for eating when the famine comes!!!!!
This book teaches about Lactic Fermentation which is preserving foods with their own juices and a little bit of salt, you need a ceramin (stoneware) crock and you are on your way to preserving food without freezing or canning. WOW! I love discovering new secrets!

[Jen Hartley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great ideas for preserving food without electricity. This book is truly traditional, in that it doesn't cover canning or freezing, unlike most other books on the market about preserving food. Right now I am experimenting mostly with drying food and lactic fermentation (just bought a crock and lid and have the first batch of sauerkraut going). I love the format of this book, drawing upon traditional European "peasant" knowledge-- makes me feel in touch with my ancestors, who probably knew all about root cellaring and burying cabbages and carrots and preserving with oils and vinegars and whatnot. This is a very valuable resource for anyone interested in food preservation.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you made *nothing* from this collection of recipes, it would still be 100% worth a read. Fascinating recipes from organic gardeners all over France, many of which offer details that reveal the origin of the method, something about their family history, the taste of the gardener, etc. You gotta love the recipes that start off with "First get a clean, regular-sized barrel..." a BARREL! Many methods of preservation are introduced, included root cellars, lacto-fermentation, jams, fruit-in-booze, and many more. And the methods are sound; I've used many recipes and plan to try the rest.

[Harley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this out from our public library and I'll definitely be purchasing a copy of my own. It is filled with various preservation techniques and recipes(except for freezing and canning) that were submitted to a gardening publication in France. Initially,I was mainly interested in the (lactic acid) fermentation section, but after reading through some of the preservation recipes for vinegar,salt,sugar and drying,that have been included,I decided I needed to add the title to my personal collection.
Note:
This is the original title, the second edition was released under a different name:
Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation.

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must have in my reference library. I'm anxious to try a number of recipes and storage techniques that go way beyond canning and freezing. The book talks about storage methods using salt, oil, sugar, alcohol, vinegar, drying, cold storage and latic fermentation.

Looking forward to trying this one, for example:

"Nasturtium Seed Capers,
Toward the of summer collect the green seeds from nasturtiums that have lost their blossoms. Put these in a jar along with dill leaves and a good white wine vinegar. The taste and shape are somewhat reminiscent of capers."
Would have done it this year except our nasturtiums were invaded by aphids. Aphid capers doesn't sound as tasty.

[Brad Belschner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sample recipes: rosehip jam with honey, sauerkraut made from whole cabbages, goat cheese in olive oil, green beans in a salt pot, apples dried with elderflowers, etc.

This book wasn't what I expected, but it's really good nonetheless. It's not a systematic guide to food preservation; it's simply an organized collection of family recipes. The French organic gardening magazine, "Les Quatre Saisons du Jardinage", asked its readers to contribute their traditional recipes for preserving fruits and vegetables (without freezing or canning). This book is the result.

[Lydia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A useful reference for techniques and recipes.

[Christel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anything I was interested in trying, I found was either too general to figure it out or missing some steps that made it safe. I've dehydrated tomatoes and then put them in oil. You can't just put something in oil. The other people who gave this a 2 star rating on Amazon said a lot of what I was thinking. So I'll keep searching for ways to do things. NOTE: I have put fresh fruit in alcohol and let it sit with whatever herbs and spices I wanted to add, strained it out, and then added simple syrup. Once I put the fruit into an already sweetened flavored liquor thinking it would be interesting, and the whole thing molded. Not always can you tell something's gone bad, and food poisoning is no fun, nor do you want to waste food.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

These old-school, ancient recipes from the French gardeners and farmers of Terre Vivante are amazing. We've messed with canning and making preservers, but these recipes demonstrate the fundamentals of preserving in the ground, by drying, fermenting, with salt or with natural sugars. You can preserve food with very little energy input and also make something delicious that makes the time spent washing, peeling, straining whole fruits and veggies worthwhile. I borrowed this book, definitely will invest in my own copy.

[Kathy Kenney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't wait to own this book and to try some of the recipes. there are many wonderful techniques in this book for preserving food without freezing or canning. I will definitely be trying some of them with my tomatoes and peppers harvest this fall. I have yet to try any of the recipes, but, unlike other reviewers, I have no fears about preserving food with the methods described in this book as humans have been using these methods WAY longer than refrigerators have been in existence.

[Emily Mellow · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the emphasis on preserving nutrition and vitality in foods. I am definitely making sun-dried tomatoes this summer, and I'm going to try more lacto-fermented veggies, including pickles. There were a lot of good ideas, but sadly no pictures. All the ideas were sent in by readers, and some may be questionable. Still, a great way to preserve family recipes and local preservation customs.

[Mrs. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very basic and simplistic. Recommend getting it from the library before you think about buying it.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay I feel really stupid but I didn't realize I guess that cookbooks counted...? I've read half a dozen canning and cooking etc preserving books this year, thumbing through recipes when I have time and never thought to put them down here.

Aside from that this book is amazing. The recipes and suggestions and preserving techniques are fascinating and I am excited to start using them. The Meyer lemons in salt is particularly interesting, especially as I've seen it show up in several canning books as well. It's apparently used quite extensively in Mediterranean cooking and while I'm not a fan of lemons necessarily, I'm actually wanting to do this not only for the flavor but also I'm wondering how this preserving technique will affect the lemons.

While I'm a firm believer in pH balanced water bath canning, I'm very excited to try these recipes and see how they work. The only reason this doesn't get five stars is because I am a little hesitant to stand by a lot of these recipes as it is incredibly dangerous to can food without thoroughly cooking the food and sterilizing the jars first. Other than that, great book I'd recommend it for canners and cooks alike!

[Jessa Fae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great info on food preservation

This book has some really good info on food preservation. Some of the instructions are confusing or unclear, however. Overall it's quite good for anyone looking to get into food storage without using freezing or canning.

[devlysh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful

Excellent book on alternate methods of food preservation. Expands alternatives to canning and freezing. Highly recommend for anyone who wishes to increase the nutritional value of preserved fruits and vegetables.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the ideas, but it left me wanting so much more information: how do you tell if something has spoiled? Have the authors verified that each tip actually works? How do you make sure you don’t accidentally kill yourself from food poisoning????? 🤣

[Janine · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a charming book! It describes practices from a simpler, much more labor intensive time. As the preface points out, some of the recipes are inexact. For me that was part of the charm. I’m looking forward to trying some of the methods.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm glad this book exists but won't be using any of the recipes.

[George Hohbach · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is easy to read, well organized and the instructions are clear and simple. If you are interested in this topic, I can highly recommend this precious book.

[Praachi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Generally a good read. Learnt some good tricks. Planning to apply it to gooseberry, cauliflower etc.

[louise-anne ledent · Rating 4 out of 5]

M

[LaDonna Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am learning and experimenting so much because of reading this book!

[Juli Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unusual but excellent guide.

[kingstut · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great overview, could have been shorter

[Shelly Nicholson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good information.

[A. Reiter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Will be referring to this often.

[ASMR Cortercat · Rating 3 out of 5]

very no nonsense instructional.

[Cristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible knowledge almost lost! Have to own this book.

[Cass · Rating 3 out of 5]

The year I grew 30 cabbages in my garden, I tried making sauerkraut. It was good but too salty for our palates. If I had tried one of the recipes in this book, we may have like it better.

This book is full of the 'old' ways of preserving food while retaining nutrients. Those of us who have been taught food preservation by canning and freezing might have a hard time eating green bean that are preserved by lactic fermination: String the beans, place them uncooked in jars and cover with cold water. Twenty-four hours later, discard this water and replace it with fresh water. Repeat 3 more times, every 24 hours. Move the jars to a cool, dark place. But the author does caution to be safe in the handling of the food and use the recipes as advised.

I like the statement that is made about how "the scientific techniques produce dead foods and literally seal them in coffins." That is something to think about and makes me want to go buy this book (checked out this copy from the library) and try some of the recipes this growing season.

I think one of the best things you could have to store garden produce would be a root cellar.