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Food and nutrition

Freezing okra

How do I freeze okra?

Select young tender pods and separate into small pods (4-inches or under) and large pods. Wash well. Remove the stems at the end of the seed cells, being careful not to expose the seed cell. Water blanch small pods three minutes and large pods four minutes. Cool promptly and drain. Leave whole or slice crosswise. Package, leaving 1/2-inch head space. Seal and freeze.

Barbara J. Willenberg
Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition

Drying okra

How do I dry okra?

Wash, trim, slice crosswise in 1/8 to 1/4-inch disks. Blanching is not necessary. Dry 8 to 10 hours in a dehydrator or 4 to 6 hours in the oven until very brittle.

Barbara J. Willenberg
Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition

Drying corn

How do I dry corn?

Husk, trim and blanch ears as follows:

Steam blanch (steam until milk does not exude from kernel when cut) 2 to 2-1/2 minutes or water blanch 1-1/2 minutes.
Cut the kernels from the cob. Dry 6 to 10 hours in a dehydrator or 2 to 3 hours in an oven until dry and brittle

Barbara J. Willenberg
Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition

Boiling water canner on smooth top range

Can a boiling water canner be used on a smooth top range?

For a boiling water canner to work successfully on a smooth top range, the canner bottom must be flat and in contact with the cooktop. The best way to tell whether your canner will work is to fill it with water and try to bring it to a rolling boil. Because the heat beneath the canner is not uniform, smooth top ranges are not well suited to home canning.

Mary Schroepfer
Nutrition Specialist
Franklin County and East Central Region

Acid foods in steam canner

The instructions for my steam canner say it can be used to can acid foods like fruit and pickles. Is this safe?

The use of steam canners, not to be confused with steam pressure canners, is not recommended by MU Extension because there is not enough information available about safe processing times. Their use with boiling-water processing times may result in spoilage.

Mary Schroepfer
Nutrition Specialist
Franklin County and East Central Region

More food and nutrition questions and answers

Updated 8/4/05