Preservative for pickles
What preservative should be used for pickling vegetables like carrot, cauliflower and green chillies which are parboiled and could be used without refrigeration?
Best Answer
Pickling is in itself a preservation method, based on the acidity of the pickle.
There are two ways to achieve this:
- Packing the vegetables with acid, such as vinegar
- Fermenting the vegetables such that the culture produces acid
If you want to keep pickled vegetables without refrigeration, you should use only trusted recipes and methods which are from highly respectable sources, as improperly pickled and preserved foods can be dangerous.
Note that there are many recipes for "refrigerator pickles" which have a shelf life of several weeks, but are not intended for long term preservation. Make sure that the recipe you choose is intended for long term storage. These almost always involve either true fermentation, or boiling water or pressure canning.
See also: Pickling page from National Center for Home Food Preservation
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The salt form of Benzoic acid i.e. Sodium benzoate is one of the most common chemical food preservativesFood Preservation Part II. Preservation by Chemical preservatives. By Shubhangi Agarwal
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