permaculture

[Harold Waldock <hwaldock@telus.net>]

Ok,  I left a little hint in an earlier email that claims potatoes can be 
civilization makers, and kept for longer term storage (so you don't live 
harvest to harvest (pay check to pay check) but have reserves for the bad 
year.)

Let us celebrate Bill Mollison and quote from Page 81 of Ferment and Human 
Nutrition Tagari 1993

"The dried potato is pre- Columbian in origin, and originated on the 
altiplano (high plains,) of the Andes where conditions are ideal for natural 
freeze-drying.  On mid-winter nights frosts are severe, with minimum at -2 to 
-14C (28 to -6F) and the sunny days 26-35C(78-95F)  humidity is 15 to 39% at 
dawn, and 12-18% at midday.  Papa seca dried whole potato is made by boiling, 
the skins rubbed off cut up and again boiled to a thin gruel, which is then 
sun-dried to a crisp brown sheet, ground or milled into flour.  It is stored 
for months."

Bill mentions that Vitamin C is reduced by this processing.

Also 

"Potato Cheese   In Saxony, potatoes boiled and beaten with sour milk are 
made into a sort of cheese, which packed in well-sealed vessels is kept many 
years (from an old book the title page missing; it might be worth a try)  I 
imagine 6-15% salt would be essential." 

Bill leaves us the detective work to get good at it by trial and error or to 
hunt down recipes and instructions that work.

In modern times there are freeze-dry-vacuum machines that can reduce a runny 
mash potatoes into cream white dried flakes or fine powders.  This is what 
was stored in such large quantities in the 1970's.  I remember my mother 
making mash potatoes from powders then.  Potato flours or mash potato mix 
vary in quality. These may be able to retain more Vit C on a single cook 
cycle basis.  Vacuum packs of the stuff is available in O2 barrier bags, 
packed with O2 absorbers.

I will write about long term rice storage another time.