If you do not have time to use apple harvests in recipes - it does not matter, because we have prepared several ways of storing apples that will prolong the life of the fruit for the whole winter.
How to store fresh apples?
The possibility and shelf life of apples, in the first place, are determined by their variety. Thus, summer varieties are not at all suitable for storage because of too thin a skin, through which microorganisms easily penetrate. Winter varieties, which have dense skin, often covered with a wax coating, are suitable for storage most. The pulp of winter apples is less susceptible to decay or drying out.
Before harvesting apples, harvest should be properly harvested. In order to prolong the life of the fruits, they must be collected manually, without knocking down or shaking the fruits on the ground, and tearing them from the branches so that damage does not form, leading to decay.
Once the apples are collected, they should be sorted by size. The sorting will help you find out which fruits should be used first, because the fastest of all the large and small apples are damaged: the first ones are easily decayed, and the latter easily dry out. Next, apples should be sorted by removing the damaged or infected ones.
Now we turn to the question of how to store winter apples. Ideally, apples should be kept separately from each other, wrapping each with wrapping paper and pouring with sawdust, straw or husk. You can wrap fruits in dry or oiled vaseline paper. Also, apples are perfectly stored in the sand. Each layer of fruit is poured with fine calcined sand in the oven so that it is covered by 3 cm.
It is also acceptable to store apples in polyethylene. Before harvesting, apples are cooled, and then placed in a small individual sachet. In this form, apples can be stored in a box or box, and if you were interested in the question of how to store apples in an apartment, then this method is ideal for apartments that have balconies.
If you live in an apartment without a balcony, then before storing apples in the refrigerator, also do not forget to sort them out and sort by size. It is desirable to cool apples no more than a day after harvesting, this can prolong the storage time. Another secret of long-term storage of apples in the refrigerator is their rapid pre-cooling at more intense temperatures (4-6 ° C). Chilled fruits are stacked, paving each layer with parchment or oiled paper.
If you are a happy owner of a private house, then we will tell you how to store apples in the basement. For long-term storage of apples, the optimum room temperature should not be more than 20 ° C, and boxes or boxes with fruit should be at a distance of 20-25 cm from the floor and walls to avoid the influence of dampness.
How to store dried apples?
Despite the fact that there are many ways of harvesting products for the winter, it is also necessary to store these blanks. Following the apple jam, dried fruits are listed in the list of the most popular apple blanks. The main enemies of dried apples are mold, insects and, of course, moisture. Avoid spoiling the product in several ways.
How best to store dried apples? It's simple: you need to make sure of the tightness of the packaging used for storage, which will protect the workpiece not only from moisture, but also from unpleasant odors. Ideal repository will be sealed plastic containers, bottles or simple glass jars.
If your billets are stabbed by insects, go for apple slices and dry them in the oven for at least 30 minutes. Apples, affected by mold, can not be eaten.