Michigan Fresh: Using, Storing, and Preserving Carrots (HNI15)
DOWNLOADJuly 11, 2023 - Joyce McGarry and Laurie Messing, Michigan State University Extension
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EmailFood Safety and Storage
- Wash hands before and after handling fresh produce.
- Using a vegetable brush and cool running water, remove all soil from carrots. Peel if desired.
- Store carrots with the green tops trimmed.
- Carrots will keep for several weeks in crisper of refrigerator at 41 °F or lower in perforated plastic bags.
- Keep carrots away from raw meat and meat juices to prevent cross-contamination.
- For best quality and nutritive value, preserve only what your family can consume in 12 months.
Yield
|
5-7 medium, = 12-14 small |
2½ cups shredded or sliced |
|
24-36 baby = 1 pound |
2½ cups cooked |
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50 pounds = w/o tops |
17 to 25 quarts |
How to preserve
Canning
Pressure canning is the only safe method of canning carrots. Carrots must be pressure canned to avoid the potential of the foodborne illness botulism.
Select small carrots, preferably 1 to 1¼ inches in diameter. Larger carrots are often too tough. Wash, peel and rewash carrots. Slice or dice.
- Hot pack method: Cover with boiling water, bring to boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Fill hot jars, leaving 1 inch of headspace. Add ½ teaspoon salt to pints and 1 teaspoon to quarts, if desired. Fill jars to 1 inch from top with boiling Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rims. Adjust two-piece lid, tighten, and process.
- Raw pack method: Fill hot jars tightly with raw carrots, leaving 1-inch headspace. Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart, if desired. Add hot cooking liquid or water, leaving 1-inch headspace. Adjust two-piece lids, tighten, and process.
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Recommended process time (in minutes) for carrots in a dial-gauge pressure canner. |
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Style of pack |
Jar size |
Process time |
0-2,000 ft |
2,001-4,000 ft |
4,001-6,000 ft |
6,001-8,000 ft |
|
Hot and raw |
Pints |
25 min. |
11 lb. |
12 lb. |
13 lb. |
14 lb. |
|
|
Quarts |
30 min. |
11 lb. |
12 lb. |
13 lb. |
14 lb. |
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Recommended process time (in minutes) for carrots in a weighted-gauge pressure canner. |
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|
Style of pack |
Jar size |
Process time |
0-1,000 ft |
Above 1,000 ft |
|
Hot and raw |
Pints |
25 min. |
10 lb. |
15 lb. |
|
|
Quarts |
30 min. |
10 lb. |
15 lb. |
Let jars stand undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours, remove rings, wash jars, label, date and store. Food in jars that did not seal must be reprocessed within 24 hours in a clean jar with a new lid, refrigerated or frozen.
Freezing
Select young, tender, coreless, medium-length carrots. Remove tops, wash and peel. Leave small carrots whole. Cut others into thin slices, ¼-inch cubes or lengthwise strips.
Water blanch* small whole carrots for 5 minutes, diced or sliced for 2 minutes and lengthwise strips for 2 minutes.
*Water blanching: Use 1 gallon of water per pound of prepared carrots. Put carrots in blanching basket or colander and lower into boiling water. Place lid on blancher. Return water to boil and start counting blanching time as soon as water returns to a boil. If it takes longer than a minute to come back to a boil, too many carrots have been put in the boiling water.
After blanching, cool in ice water for same number of minutes as blanching, drain and package, leaving ½-inch headspace. Seal, label, date and freeze.
References
- Andress, E., & Harrison, J. A. (2014). So easy to preserve (Bulletin 989). (6th ed.). University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.
- National Center for Home Food Preservation. http://nchfp.uga.edu.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2015). Complete guide to home canning. (Rev. ed.). (Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 539). https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/ publications_usda.html#gsc.tab=0
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