# Carrots ...to can or to freeze



## Werforpsu (Aug 8, 2013)

I am wondering everyone's preference for carrots from the garden.

should I can? freeze?

is peeling them very important? I only ask because I hate to peal carrots AND I have these beautiful multi-colored carrots and some have really pretty skin.

I assume I would use them in soup, casseroles etc...


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## MoTightwad (Sep 6, 2011)

I see no reason to peel the carrots unless they are wormy. Scrub them with a stiff brush and slice them and do your thing. I have froze, canned and dehydrated carrots this summer. All are good. Dehydrated takes a bit longer to cook, but taste good. Works great in veggie soup.


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## Horseyrider (Aug 8, 2010)

I don't can, nor do I freeze. I pack them very carefully in layers of damp sand in buckets with lids, and store them in the root cellar. I've had carrots hold perfectly for a couple of years that way. 

It's important to make sure the sand doesn't have anything that can cause off flavors or odors. They'll stay perfectly crisp though.


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## 1shotwade (Jul 9, 2013)

I agree w/ Horseyrider-keeping them fresh is the easiest and best as for flavor/nutrition. They will easy stay in the crisper drawn 4-6 months,The rest go to the damp sand but I do not use a lid on the bucket and the remainder gets canned. They are good for those "rush" meals etc. Just open,heat and eat!We do not freeze or dehydrate.

Wade


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## Werforpsu (Aug 8, 2013)

Horseyrider said:


> I don't can, nor do I freeze. I pack them very carefully in layers of damp sand in buckets with lids, and store them in the root cellar. I've had carrots hold perfectly for a couple of years that way.
> 
> It's important to make sure the sand doesn't have anything that can cause off flavors or odors. They'll stay perfectly crisp though.


I am about 3-4 years away from having a root cellar. we really want to put one in, but with a Hubby who works away from home 12 hrs a day, the to do lists for big projects are YEARS long.

we actually don't have anywhere else to put them either. our basement is heated by a wood stove and we have no garage, barn or shed.

thanks for the advice.


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## Skamp (Apr 26, 2014)

Do not assume, have a game plan. 


Here, it is can the majority. Myself, my Wife, and my Grand Daughter will consume them warmed from a jar. Not MY favorite, but a consences. How will you use them?

It's been a wonderful trip to teach canning to another generation. Likewise, the few that get dehydrated for backpacking are another learning experience. 


On second thought, put them by any way you can. Just what you will learn will be priceless.


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## OH Boy (Dec 22, 2010)

leave them in the garden covered with straw until you need them. They will be really sweet.


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## Vosey (Dec 8, 2012)

Neither is ideal, canning they get a little soft, but are flavorful and overall better than freezing. I think freezing they get a weird texture and lose flavor! But we're in the same boat as you, no cellar and the garage is the wrong temp for storage. We leave ours in the garden well into the fall. They are sweeter after a frost. I do dehydrate which works great for soups.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

We don't freeze any, don't like the texture. We can a few to have just in case and to use for quick meals, if needed. We have a cellar, we store in place and we grow all winter. Overwintered carrots are very sweet. We let the ground dry up, water very little under the hoop and lay down a thin layer of chopped straw, letting the tops grow up through it. We store them in the cellar, in boxes with a plastic sheet over them. They keep hydrated this way. We also like dehydrated carrots, we make powder out of a lot for a homemade Mrs. Dash like mix for soups and to flavor, instead of using much salt....James


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## StickyFloors (Aug 4, 2014)

jwal10 said:


> We also like dehydrated carrots, we make powder out of a lot for a homemade Mrs. Dash like mix for soups and to flavor, instead of using much salt....James



We also dehydrate them. I blanch them quickly first - learned last year that not taking that step makes them brown. 

I use the dehydrated carrots in EVERYTHING in the winter - especially great in polenta, where they have time to plump up. 

I don't have a full garden at the moment, so I buy 30 lbs from an organic farmer during the summer just for the dehydrator.


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## used2bcool13 (Sep 24, 2007)

I prefer to freeze, I don't care for the mushiness of canned carrots. You don't have to peel, just scrub and cut out the bad parts (if you have any).

Sounds great!


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## deb_rn (Apr 16, 2010)

I'm in Wisconsin. We leave them in the garden all winter and dig a bag of them as needed. We cover with leaves approx. 2ft high. We don't eat them in the summer. We wait until it's cold... they are sooo much sweeter! It's nice not to take up space or time by leaving them in the garden! I've done cabbage that way for a while too. They do blanche and will get slimy after a while, but for a few weeks, it works fine! I've read you can dig a hole and bury a garbage can to store produce in as well. A cheap alternative to a root cellar!!
Good Luck!
Debbie


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

I can most of mine. The Ball guide has a recipe for Candied Carrots that I like. The first time I ate them, I didn't care for them. Then I found that if you pour off the syrup when you open a jar and cook it down till it's real thick, then heat the carrots in the syrup, they're much better.


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## Jeepgirl86 (May 18, 2012)

Since this is the first year my garden has actually produced any carrots, I am canning them. DH doesn't care for them any way I do them so it is for DS and myself that I can them...we didn't have a very good harvest (rot!!! and grubs) so what I did get went on the shelf.  Just love those pretty jars.


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## Janis R (Jun 27, 2013)

I would can some, freeze some, dehydrate some and leave some in the ground that wayl you have a little of each kind to use for different things. Never have to peel them just give them a good scrubbing. Good luck


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