Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Eating and Drinking => Cooking, Storing and Preserving => Topic started by: sweet nasturtium on November 07, 2007, 17:50
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Now I've picked grandad's apples cos he's not well, I was wondering - do apples "ripen" after they've been picked - they seem so tart when first off the tree. :?:
Also any handy hints on storage also welcome - he has always put them in a damp dark shed and told me not to worry about dodgy ones, or wrapping them, put them all in on shelves on top of paper.
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thats a god way of storing them .i use straw on shelves as we used to when i wasa kid i go over them once a week looking for bruised or damaged ones ,use them up in baked apples or make sauce of them,you can freeze apple rings as well :wink:
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And do apples get sweeter after storing would you say?
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the sugars change the flavours so that would be right :wink: but they also get more mealy if kept to warm :)
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haha! Just as I thought absolute common sense of course :D
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haha! Just as I thought absolute common sense of course :D
always :wink:
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We have quite different varieties of apples here and none of them store well either. They're okay for a few months, but go mealy as well and less sweet. To solve the problem of regular checking and inevitable rotting, we simply peel all our apples, slice them into freezer bags and straight into the freezer. They're ready when needed and no waste. No need for sugar or ascorbic acid as they don't last much past May since we use so many. Guess it's a matter of another freezer, but at the electricity prices these days........ :x
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it doesw depend on the variety,we have a tree of unknown variety and will take the apples of this week.We store in a cool room on one of those bathroom rack with wire shelves.We loosly make paper nests for the apples so that if one spoils it doesn`t affect the rest and they store nicley untilfeb/march.In glut years we slice into rings,hang on strings and dry by the fire,these store in jars for years.
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I am down to my last 30 Cox's right now.
They were a bit tart when we picked them but the wind had started to knock them down.
I got 6 wooden wine crates from a wine shop nearby (mine asked for a donation for the local hospice, but I know others give them away), wrapped the apples in newspaper to stop any rotten ones cross infecting, and made a lid from MDF.
40 years ago in Somerset we used to wrap our Bramleys in newspaper and by Chritsmas they were so sweet you could eat them like a desert apples
After 6 weeks or so they have softened a little and sweetened, but not so much that they are horrible.
Seems to work well.
I also have my carrots, beetroots, turnips and mooli all dug up and nice and snug in wine boxes with lids. We're getting through them all except the mooli which seem to be taking forever to eat, and so far they all appear absolutely fine with no shrivelling at all.
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If you can't cope Ian, I'm a taker, I'm a monster on all radish sorts. :lol: