Preserving Rhubarb

Photo: flickr user Thoth, God of Knowledge

Ingredients

Preparation

Also, it is not necessary to can the rhubarb in order to preserve it. It can be frozen. Wash it, trim off the bottom and top of the stalks, and cut it into 1-inch pieces. Put about 4 or 5 cups of it into a plastic bag and freeze. (If you wish to use th frozen rhubarb in the following jam recipe, freeze it in packages containing only 2 cups of rhubarb, and you will probably want to cut it into smaller pieces too.) To defrost, microwave it at 70%% power for 3 to 5 minutes. Use

Freezing it removes the concerns about safety and proper canning techniques. If you want some rhubarb/strawberry jam this winter, defrost your frozen rhubarb, buy a pint of frozen strawberries (or use some you have frozen yourself), toss them into the following recipe, and 30 minutes later you have jam. And it is probably better than canned jam that you make this spring.

Also, for the benefit of novice cooks out there, only the stalk of the rhubarb plant can be eaten. The roots and leaves are highly poisonous. To prepare fresh rhubarb: rinse well, remove the leaves and roots, and trim off the tops and bottoms of the stal s. Then use as the recipe directs.

BTW, fresh rhubarb is bitter and tough. It is almost always cooked. In fact, I don't recall ever seeing a recipe that uses raw rhubarb.

/FRUIT