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homestead - Re: [Homestead] opinions wanted...salt or ascorbic acid

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  • From: Bill Jones <billj AT harborside.com>
  • To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] opinions wanted...salt or ascorbic acid
  • Date: Sat, 02 Sep 2006 16:05:44 -0700

SISU! wrote:

Okay canners of the world, which do you think works better to protect
fruits like pears from discoloration, a salt solution or an ascorbic
acid (like lemon juice) solution?

Bev

From the beginning, I've used salt and vinegar to soak apple slices for drying. I just add both to the water until it barely tastes salty and sour. The ingredients are certainly low-tech. I only did it because I read about it somewhere, but the apple slices come out delicious and light-colored. The store-bought ones are puke by comparison. I think any acid prevents discoloration by deactivating enzymes, but vinegar has the extra virtue of evaporating away completely. The purpose of the salt is different. It's like the saline solution in an IV drip. Pure water draws flavors and sugars out of a cell by osmosis, so providing some dissolved solutes in the soaking water equalizes things, and the juices stay put.

Bill
S. Oregon coast



  • Re: [Homestead] opinions wanted...salt or ascorbic acid, Bill Jones, 09/02/2006

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