Food Storage in Places with Humidity

Welcome to Kitchen Tip Tuesdays!

I must say up front that at present, I've only stored food for 3 to 6 months, with the exception of canned (both home-canned and store-bought)and frozen items. Canned and frozen items are usually very little trouble. Its the other foods that can cause the most trouble.

But---I'm learning and studying and I've found many ideas on how to make this work in places with yucky humidity.

Here's some ideas to help you have success:

-Consider a  FoodSaver V2244 Advanced Design Vacuum Sealer.
You can seal food airtight. No air = no humidity. This would be of benefit with pastas, cereals, grains, etc.

-Make sure to use air-tight containers! Some say they are air-tight and some really are so it helps to do your research. Emergency Essentials has food storage buckets, metalized liners to help with light and moisture, and they sell oxygen absorbers. Remember: no air = no humidity. those absorbers can probably be used in just about any container to assist in preserving your food longer.

-While you may store store-bought canned food just about anywhere, never store flours, sugars, grains, pastas, etc near concrete floors or outside walls, especially in your basement. That's where humidity lives! I would also be very careful about home-canned items. While they do need to be in a dark place, humidity can cause rusting. I've never had this cause a real problem, other than ruining my bands. Bands that are rusty won't screw on tight and can cause leaking in the canner!

-Consider the heating and cooling of the room that you use to store foods in. Keeping the room cool during the hot and humid season will also keep humidity at a low.

-If you must store your food in a basement area that is not heated/cooled, consider dehumidifiers. I don't think they can eliminate all humidity, but they can help.

-Keep check on your food storage. If any items look 'weird', get them away from the other foods. Mold and mildew spread.

-Front your items, keep them rotated, making sure to use your oldest items first.

Below is a link to EE, where you can find everything you need to help you with your food storage!
(Full Disclosure: it is an affiliate link)

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