If you find yourself with an overwhelming amount of fruits and vegetables, avoid waste and preserve them. There are many different methods: Freezing, dehydration, as well as fermenting or pickling. These methods are all both easy and budget friendly.

Freezing

Herbs are particularly suitable for freezing. Simply mince and pack into ice cube trays.  Fill with boiling water as this will blanch the herbs and help them maintain flavor and color. Once frozen, pop them out of their tray and store in a zip-lock bag. Use as needed.

There are many foods that preserve well when frozen, as well. Vegetables such as asparagus, green beans, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower, and peas freeze well when blanched first.

To blanch these vegetables, bring a pot of water to a boil. Place clean, cut up vegetables into the boiling water. Cook for the appropriate time, listed below. After they have been blanched for the specified period, remove from the boiling water and plunge into a bowl of ice water. After the vegetables have cooled, drain them well. Place blanched vegetables in freezer bags or containers that are durable and resist cracking.

Also, ensure you choose the right size container. Too much empty space can lead to freezer burn. Re-sealable bags or vacuum freezer bags are suitable for freezing as well.

• Broccoli: Cut into 1 inch pieces. Cook for 2 minutes.
• Brussel Sprouts: Approximately 3 to 5 minutes.
• Cauliflower: Cut into 1 inch pieces. Cook for 3 minutes.
• Peas in a Pod: 2 to 3 minutes.

Other vegetables, such as peppers and tomatoes, can be frozen without blanching. Simply chop into 1 inch slices, place on a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper, freeze and then pack into containers. Fruits, such as berries, do not need to be chopped before the freezing process.

When you’re ready to cook your vegetables, start from the frozen state rather than allowing them to thaw. To eat frozen fruits, allow them to thaw in a bowl of cool water or in the refrigerator.

Dehydration

Dehydrating fruit and vegetables is a great way to store food for an extended period of time, without filling up your freezer. They also make for great snacks while camping or hiking.

Dehydrating fruit in the oven is fuss-free! Start by washing the fruit. Core and slice fruits such as apples or strawberries. Slice fruit thinly. Dunk slices in a mixture of one tablespoon water and one tablespoon lemon juice.

Heat your oven to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Place cheesecloth over a metal drying rack and place the rack onto a large pan. Line fruit on the cheesecloth and bake for one hour. Flip over the fruit and bake for another hour. Flip again and bake for one more hour; three hours in total. If your fruit is still soft, bake for another thirty minutes with the oven door slightly open. Once baked to your liking, turn off the oven and allow fruit to cool in the oven.

Fermenting or Pickling

It can be difficult to determine the differences between fermenting and pickling. However, there is quite a difference in the shelf life between these two preserving methods.

There are numerous vegetables that are great when pickled! However, the most shocking vegetable, that you probably have plenty of in your garden, is zucchini. Pickled zucchini, recipe courtesy of Epicurious, pairs well with hamburgers and other sandwiches.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds zucchini, trimmed
• 4 tablespoons coarse sea salt or pickling salt
• 12 fresh dill sprigs
• 2 teaspoons yellow or brown mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon dill seeds
• ¼ teaspoon saffron threads
• 4 garlic cloves, halved
• 4 Fresno chiles, split lengthwise
• 2 ½ cups white wine vinegar
• ¼ cup sugar

Halve zucchini lengthwise. Place in a large bowl and add 2 tablespoons of salt and 4 cups of ice. Add cold water to cover. Top with a plate to keep zucchini submerged. Let sit for 2 hours. Drain and rinse. Divide dill sprigs, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, dill seeds, saffron threads, garlic cloves and chiles, between 2 clean 1 quart jars. Set these aside. Bring vinegar, sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons of salt and 1 ¼ cups of water to a boil in a saucepan. Working in batches, add zucchini and cook. Stir occasionally, until they are slightly pliable. This should take approximately 2 minutes. Transfer zucchini to jars. Divide hot syrup between jars to cover the zucchini. Allow a ½ inch space from the top of the jar. Clean the jar’s rim, seal and process in a boiling water bath for at least 10 minutes. Allow at least a week to pickle before eating.

A growing fermenting trend is the creation of kombucha. With four simple ingredients, this simple recipe, from Organic Authority, is much more affordable than store bought kombucha. The first ingredient is one kombucha SCOBY “mother”. SCOBYs, or symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, can be purchased online. Then sixteen cups of filtered water, eight to ten organic black tea bags with caffeine, and one cup of natural brown sugar is required.

Start by heating eight cups of water in a large pot over high heat. Add the tea bags and allow them to steep for at least half an hour. Once steeped, stir in the sugar until dissolved. Mix in the remaining water and remove from stove.

Once the tea reaches room temperature, pour into a glass jar along with the SCOBY.

Place fabric over the opening of the jar and seal with a rubber band. Place the jar in a dark room with no direct sunlight.

Allow the kombucha to ferment for seven days. Once it has fermented, remove the SCOBY and store with a bit of kombucha in a lightly sealed jar in the fridge to use for your next batch.

Once you have completed the first fermentation process of creating kombucha, preserve fruits, such as apples or blueberries, in this popular drink.

To add apples to your kombucha, stir in a ¼ of a granny smith apple, finely chopped, to a container. Add a ½ teaspoon of cinnamon. Fill with kombucha, leaving approximately 1 inch space from the top of the bottle. Allow to ferment for another 3 days. Filter the finished product to remove any apple bits before enjoying!

To add blueberries to your kombucha, start by slightly smashing 20 blueberries. Add these blueberries to a container and stir with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Fill with kombucha, leaving a 1 inch space from the top of the bottle. Allow to ferment for 5 to 10 days.