Reviving Root Cellar Produce

So, you go to retrieve potatoes from the root cellar, only to find wrinkled skins with soft flesh. What to do, throw them out? Not me! Into the kitchen sink they go, a handful more than what I'll need, to be soaked in cold water for an hour or so. After the soaking, I'll peel them and cut them up to whatever recipe I'm making. Once again, I'll soak the potato pieces in cold water for another hour. That's it! The potatoes will have rehydrated and the softness will have disappeared.

The above works with most other root cellar foods, too. The thing you'll want to watch out for is rotted spots. Cut those out prior to soaking and toss anything that is rotted in the middle (you can easily tell this by gently squeezing the produce).

A method for reviving root crops that are withered on the outside but still firm in the center is to bury them in wet sand for a couple of days. Carrots take quite well to this as do rutabagas, turnips and other such items.

Now, for cabbage Remove outside leaves and trim the stem a bit; float it in some water in a bowl in the refrigerator for a day or two, stem side down (in the water).

Lastly, apples are easily rehydrated by coring them (don't peel--just remove rotted spots) and soaking them in a bowl of water in the refrigerator. Allow them to soak for about a day or so prior to using. And add lemon juice (about a teaspoon per apple) if you'll be needing a bright flesh from your apples.

Now, mind you, these processes don't always render produce which will taste good eaten fresh. It's really best to be prepared to cook them once they've come back to life. And take care to use fresh, clear water for best results.

Here are some interesting recipe links to help you in using up your root cellar produce:

Culinary.net at "http://www.culinary.net/cgi-bin/iccentry..." Astray.com at "http://www.astray.com/recipes/?search=ro..." And Ichef.com at "http://www.ichef.com/ichef-recipes/index..."

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