How to Store Dried Food
Never waste food again by discarding improperly stored dried foods. Though the drying process helps to preserve the food for long term storage, the wrong conditions can quickly turn your dried grains into food for vermin or a sprouting site for mold. Dried grains, beans, fruit, vegetables, nuts, herbs and yeast
all remain fresh for up to one year in the correct storage environment. Buy your food in bulk to pay a lower cost per pound over smaller packages, and keep the dried food until you need it. Whether for emergency storage or just so you never run out of something, dried foods will stay edible until you need them.
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Things You'll Need
- Glass jars with screw-on lids or resealable plastic containers
- Dried foods
- Permanent marker
- Labels
- Thermometer/hygrometer (humidity reader)
Instructions
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1
Fill glass jars with your dried foods from their original packaging, especially if you bought the dried food in boxes or bags. Place any sulfur-treated dried foods in resealable plastic containers to prevent a reaction between the sulfur in the food with a jar's metal lid.
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2
Label all of the glass jars with the name of the food and the date you packaged it.
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3
Use a thermometer to find a cool place where the temperature remains between 50 and 60 degrees F.
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4
Set the hygrometer in the storage area to determine the level of humidity. Use the storage area only if the humidity stays below 50 percent continually. For wetter climates, use the freezer for storage of dried foods.
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5
Keep the jars, unopened for up to one year at or below 60 degrees F or six months between 60 and 80 degrees F.
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6
Rotate your jars of stored food by placing newly packaged jars at the back of your storage area and moving the older jars to the front to use first.
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7
Examine all jars for signs of mold or moisture and discard any showing these signs.
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8
Let frozen dried foods return to room temperature in the jar before opening to prevent moisture contamination of the food inside.
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