September 2012

Vinegar in Food Storage

Info taken from: http://www.versatilevinegar.org/index.html

Vinegar - why should I store it?

From the kitchen to the bathroom and beyond, vinegar is the most flexible of products sure to have a daily use in your home and life. Vinegar is commonly used in food preparation, particularly in pickling processes, vinaigrettes, and other salad dressings. It is an ingredient in sauces such as mustard, ketchup, and mayonnaise. Vinegar is sometimes used while making chutneys. It is often used as a condiment. Marinades often contain vinegar. Many remedies and treatments have been ascribed to vinegar over millennia and in many different cultures, however, few have been verifiable using controlled medical trials and many that are effective to some degree have significant side effects and carry the possibility of serious health risks.

Kinds of Vinegar:

Specialty vinegars make up a category of vinegar products that are formulated or flavored to provide a special or unusual taste when added to foods. Specialty vinegars are favorites in the gourmet market.

• Herbal vinegars: Wine or white distilled vinegars are sometimes flavored with the addition of herbs, spices or other seasonings. Popular flavorings are garlic, basil and tarragon - but cinnamon, clove and nutmeg flavored vinegars can be a tasty and aromatic addition to dressings.
• Fruit vinegars: Fruit or fruit juice can also be infused with wine or white vinegar. Raspberry flavored vinegars, for example, create a sweetened vinegar with a sweet-sour taste.

Storage:

The Vinegar Institute conducted studies to find out and confirmed that vinegar’s shelf life is almost indefinite. Because of its acid nature, vinegar is self-preserving and does not need refrigeration. White distilled vinegar will remain virtually unchanged over an extended period of time. And, while some changes can be observed in other types of vinegars, such as color changes or the development of a haze or sediment, this is only an aesthetic change. The product can still be used and enjoyed with confidence.

 Vinegar Hints in Food Preparation

Getting the last drops:
When you can’t get the last bit of mayonnaise or salad dressing out of the jar, try dribbling a little of your favorite vinegar into it, put the cap on tightly and shake well. You’ll be amazed at how much you’ve been wasting.

Cooking fish:
Try soaking fish in vinegar and water before cooking it. It will be sweeter, more tender and hold its shape better. When boiling or poaching fish, a tablespoon of vinegar added to the water will keep it from crumbling so easily.

Cake icing:
Cake icing can be prevented from becoming sugary if a little vinegar is added to the ingredients before cooking. The same is true when making homemade candy.

Boiling eggs:
When boiling an egg and it’s cracked, a little vinegar in the water will keep the white from running out.

Keeping potatoes white:
A teaspoon of white distilled or cider vinegar added to the water in which you boil potatoes will keep them nice and white. You can keep peeled potatoes from turning dark by covering them with water and adding 2 teaspoons of vinegar.

Freshen vegetables:
Freshen up slightly wilted vegetables by soaking them in cold water and vinegar.

Fruit and vegetable wash:
Add 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar to 1 pint water and use to wash fresh fruits and vegetables, then rinse thoroughly.  Research has shown that vinegar helps kill bacteria on fruits and vegetables.

Frying doughnuts:
Before frying doughnuts, add ½ teaspoon of vinegar to hot oil to prevent doughnuts soaking up extra grease.  Use caution when adding the vinegar to the hot oil. 

Flavor booster:
Perk up a can of soup, gravy or sauce with a teaspoon of your favorite specialty vinegar. It adds flavor and taster fresher.

Meat tenderizer:
As a tenderizer for tough meat or game, make a marinade in the proportion of half a cup of your favorite vinegar to a cup of heated liquid, such as bouillon; or for steak, you may prefer to a mix of vinegar and oil, rubbed in well and allowed to stand for two hours.

Fruit stains:
Remove fruit or berry stains from your hands by cleaning them with vinegar.

Fresh lunch box:
It is easy to take out the heavy stale smell often found in lunch boxes. Dampen a piece of fresh bread with white distilled vinegar and leave it in the lunch box overnight.

Get rid of cooking smells:
Let simmer a small pot of vinegar and water solution.

Fluffy Egg Whites
Soak a paper towel with 1-2 Tablespoons of white distilled vinegar.  Wipe mixing bowl and beaters or whisk with the vinegar-soaked paper towel, then dry with a cloth or paper towel prior to whipping egg whites. 

Fluffier Rice
For fluffier and great tasting rice, add a teaspoon of white distilled vinegar to the boiling water before adding rice.  Rice will be easier to spoon and less sticky. 

The Vinegar Institute has many recipes to use vinegar. Check them out at:   http://www.versatilevinegar.org/recipes.html . Other helpful uses of Vinegar are also found at http://www.versatilevinegar.org/index.html.  You'll be surprised at what vinegar can do for you!

August 2012

Power Outage Safety

Last month, in July, portions of the eastern part of the US had lost its power for over a week with record high temperatures. The following is a list of safety tips combined from Rocky Mountain Power and Red Cross concerning power outages.

Keep food as safe as possible.

• Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible. First use perishable food from the refrigerator. An unopened refrigerator will keep foods cold for about 4 hours.
• Then use food from the freezer. A full freezer will keep the temperature for about 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full) if the door remains closed.
• Use your non­perishable foods and staples after using food from the refrigerator and freezer.
• If it looks like the power outage will continue beyond a day, prepare a cooler with ice for your freezer items.
• Keep food in a dry, cool spot and keep it covered at all times.

 Electrical equipment

• Turn off and unplug all unnecessary electrical equipment, including sensitive electronics.
• Turn off or disconnect any appliances (like stoves), equipment or electronics you were using when the power went out. When power comes back on, surges or spikes can damage equipment.
• Leave one light turned on so you’ll know when the power comes back on.
• Eliminate unnecessary travel, especially by car. Traffic lights will be out and roads will be congested.

 Downed lines

• Call 911 immediately and then call Rocky Mountain Power, 1-877-508-5088 (toll free) if you see a downed power line. Don't touch it!
• Keep everyone, including pets, out of the area. You cannot look at a downed line and determine if it's "live."
• Do not touch a person if a power line is touching them. Immediately call 911.
• If a power line falls across your vehicle, stay in the car and wait for emergency personnel to cut the power. If your vehicle is on fire and you are in imminent danger and you must get out of the vehicle, JUMP – with both feet together—as far from the car as possible. If a part of your body touches the car and the ground at the same time, you could be electrocuted.

 Generator safety

·         If you use a portable electric generator, please do so with caution since generators can pose serious safety hazards when improperly used or installed. Remember to follow the manufacturer's instructions.

• Never plug your generator into an outlet and don't connect a generator directly to your home's main fuse box or circuit panel.
• If you must provide temporary power to your home's wiring system, the generator must be connected through an approved transfer switch that will isolate your house from our system. The switch must comply with the National Electric Code and local building codes. These include permits, inspection and installation by a licensed electrician.
• To temporarily power an appliance, plug it directly into the generator.
• Use properly sized and grounded extension cords and keep cords hidden so they don't present a tripping hazard.
• Always properly ventilate a portable generator. Gasoline-powered generators produce carbon monoxide and the fumes can be deadly.
• Make sure that the total electric load on your generator won't exceed the generator's rating.

In the house

• Never use a generator, grill, camp stove or other gasoline, propane, natural gas or charcoal ­burning devices inside a home or garage. Never use kerosene or propane heaters or stoves inside without proper ventilation. They create dangerous fumes. Also, don't use charcoal in your house or garage. If you have them outdoors, locate them away from doors, windows and vents that could allow carbon monoxide to come indoors.
• Install carbon monoxide alarms in central locations on every level of your home and outside sleeping areas to provide early warning of accumulating carbon monoxide.
• If the carbon monoxide alarm sounds, move quickly to a fresh air location outdoors or by an open window or door.
• In the winter, preserve body heat by wearing multiple layers of clothing. Add a hat and blankets to stay warm. Blankets and towels around your windows and doors help keep the heat in. Also protect your pipes during freezing weather by wrapping them with insulation. Also, leave faucets dripping so water won't freeze and crack the pipes.
• If someone in your home is on life support, be sure to have a back-up system and a plan of action for an outage.

It's best to be prepared

·         Keep your cars always full of gas.

·         Keep a non-cordless phone in your home. They can work with the power out.

·         Have at least 2 coolers in your home. Styrofoam ones can work well.

·         Assemble an outage kit, including:

a)      A flashlight with extra batteries

b)      Battery-operated alarm clock and radio

c)      Ready-to-eat foods and manual can opener

d)      Bottled water

e)      Blankets

f)       First aid kit