Welcome to Jartisanal – a website all about preserving food! We’re just getting up and running so please do check back with us! Here’s what to expect in the future:
Here you can learn about all sorts of preservation techniques and create delicious recipes at home. Maybe you grow your own food and want to preserve it for later in the year. Or you picked up a bargain packet of vegetables at the supermarket and want to know what to do with them. Conserving food for yourself is a fantastic way of avoiding food waste, can be much cheaper than buying the same product in the shops and it’s a lot more satisfying. So whether you are crazy for kombucha, joyful about jam or just want to make something to pickle your fancy, dive right in.
Why Jartisanal? Well, the word is a combination of ‘jar’, which is the traditional storage vessel for preserved food, and ‘artisanal’, a food and drink product that is made in a traditional way. This website offers recipes for all sorts of preserves but also encourages you to experiment – to play with your food.
Why Preserve Food?
There are so many great reasons to preserve food. Here are some of the best:
Preserving provides a greater variety of food out of season. Although we are used to eating fresh fruit and vegetables all year, a strawberry grown in January is not a delicious thing. However, if we can pick fruit and vegetables in season and preserve them properly, we can capture the flavour and enjoy the produce all year round.
Preserving avoids food waste – if you have a glut of food, you can preserve some to enjoy at another time. Any gardener will know about seasonal produce where all the fruit and vegetables they have grown are available for just a couple of weeks. Of course, many gardeners give away their excess crops and you may be lucky to receive some delicious home-grown fruit or veg. Sometimes supermarkets will sell off stock that is going out of date soon at greatly reduced prices. The produce is usually absolutely fine to eat in the short term but if you have methods to preserve food, it can last a lot longer.
You can save money. If you’ve ever bought kombucha or kimchi from a shop you’ll know how expensive these products can be. It is much cheaper to buy the ingredients and ferment them yourself.
You have full control over ingredients. Many foods are hyper-processed these days and contain preservatives and flavour enhancers. If you preserve the food yourself you know exactly what has gone into the finished product.
Nutritional retention – many fermented foods have probiotic qualities which are great for your gut health. If you buy fermented food in the shops it may have been pasteurised or treated to ensure a long shelf life, and the nutritional benefits may be lost.
It’s fun! Preserving food can get quite addictive. Once you know the basic principles the sky’s the limit in terms of developing recipes. Think of your kombucha or sourdough as a delicious living tamagotchi.
Latest Recipes
- How To Preserve Vine Leaves
Vine leaves are a fantastic ingredient that have many uses. If you can get fresh leaves you can brine them. Here’s our guide for how to preserve vine leaves. - How To Freeze Chives
Chives are a great versatile ingredient used in many dishes all over the world. They are easy to grow and preserve. Here’s our guide for how to freeze chives. - A Zingy Preserved Moroccan Lemons Recipe
Preserved Moroccan lemons are a deliciously versatile ingredient and can be use in many dishes. They are also very easy to make – here’s our recipe. - How To Make White Radish Kimchi
Although kimchi is normally made using cabbage, white radish is a great kimchi ingredient. This recipe is quick and easy to make. Read on for how to make white radish kimchi. - White Currant Recipe – A Delicious Jelly
This white currant recipe is the perfect way to preserve summer fruit. White currant jelly is a fantastic accompaniment for meats and cheeses.