Does anyone freeze their rice or beans for a while before storing?

[Britesea]

Yes I usually freeze mine.

I read an article in the latest addition of Countryside Magazine recently about a lady who "Oven Cans" dry goods. It is worth a read.

She simply puts her dry goods, like flour, rice, beans etc ... into jars and into the oven at a low temp (I think she said 200?) for a while. This will destroy any mold spores or insect eggs or larva that are already present. She claims the products keep freshly for YEARS when jarred this way.

My MIL did that with walnuts as well. I remember opening a jar of walnuts that was 10 years old, and they were crisp and delicious and not at all rancid. In fact, they tasted better than the "fresh" ones from the grocery store.

The only problem I see, is where am I gonna get enough canning jars for 100 lbs or so of rice, beans, flour and wheat berries???

 

[sunsaver]

I microwave my dry goods before storing them in moth proof glass containers like mason jars or old wine bottles with metal caps. I also like to toss in those silica gel packs when i have them.

 

[Veggie PAK]

Yes we always freeze beans, rice, and any other grain in bulk. We try to keep it frozen for 48 hours but I always forget it and it usually stays frozen for a week or more.

Do you suspect that the moths came from one of the two packages? Or do you think the moths may have been in the room before the packages came into the house?

No, the moths were not in the room before those two packages came into the house. I believe they were in one of the packages as they were next to each other. It is in a temperature controlled room where I store my canned goods and canning supplies, and the door stays locked. Windows are shut as are storm windows. I use venetian blinds in there, so there is no cloth in the room (curtains), and no paper except the plastic wrapped 12 pack of toilet paper. I returned both items today for replacements without issue. The new bag of rice went right into the freezer along with three others and several bags of beans.

Thanks to all for your input on this matter.

 

[Farmfresh]

Yes I usually freeze mine.

I read an article in the latest addition of Countryside Magazine recently about a lady who "Oven Cans" dry goods. It is worth a read.

She simply puts her dry goods, like flour, rice, beans etc ... into jars and into the oven at a low temp (I think she said 200?) for a while. This will destroy any mold spores or insect eggs or larva that are already present. She claims the products keep freshly for YEARS when jarred this way.

My MIL did that with walnuts as well. I remember opening a jar of walnuts that was 10 years old, and they were crisp and delicious and not at all rancid. In fact, they tasted better than the "fresh" ones from the grocery store.

The only problem I see, is where am I gonna get enough canning jars for 100 lbs or so of rice, beans, flour and wheat berries???

I saw that problem as well, but in the article she did not use standard canning jars, she re-used store type jars. My mind went on from there to ziplock freezer bags inside of a 5 gallon bucket with a gamma seal lid.

I would probably heat it in a big roaster and the quickly bag it while it is hot. It is at a low enough temp that it shouldn't melt the bags. The bags would let you take out a small portion without contaminating the rest. After all the heat treat is just to kill spores and eggs. I doubt there would be much re-contamination while I was bagging.

 

[i_am2bz]

I find this turn of the thread interesting. My freezer is so packed now that I can only rotate 1 10lb bag of flour in & out before sealing. Now, if I can use heat instead...hmmm. sunsaver says he "nukes"; FF suggests heating in an oven. Any rules of thumb? 200 degrees for how long? How many minutes in the microwave?

 

[valmom]

Good ideas! We store our flour (store bought) in the refrigerator because of moth issues a while back. Nothing is going into our freezer that isn't already there- it isn't possible. I like the idea of oven baking stuff before storing. I may need some more gallon mason jars.

 

[Farmfresh]

The article to which I am referring, "Oven canning preserves dry goods for years" was in the Country Conversations section of Countryside Magazine Vol 95 #5 page 8. It was written by Lil Roberts, Manteca CA. She suggests 200 degrees F for 1 hour for most items.

 

[CrimsonRose]

I do the oven method and it works great... I typically leave them in there at 170 for about 20-30 mins... 20 for small jars 30 for larger ones... I make sure the jars are already warm and the oven is preheated... (I have a convection oven so it circulates the heat pretty well around the jars... if using a regular oven I would probably leave them in a tad longer just to be sure...

I tried the microwave once and Burnt the food I was trying to heat and seal in the jar.... it was dried pumpkin and after a brief 2 mins (with a LOW powered 600watt microwave) the center was BLACK and my whole house stunk!!! so do I don't recommend the microwave...

also keep in mind if baking the grains it may kill them so later they won't sprout... while freezing won't kill them... so if you are wanting to use the wheat berries for wheat grass don't bake or nuke them....

 

[k15n1]

Heating dry goods in the oven at low heat might help a little, but it won't treat the interior of the jars, so you might still have problems. Of course, it will help. Conduction of heat through solids and powders is very slow, which is why most canning recipes call for loose packing and a thin liquid. Under these conditions, it is the boiling/circulation of liquid INSIDE the jar that heats the interior.

The freezer method is a good one. Some people use it when they save seeds from the garden. I can't even get a 10# sack into my freezer, though, so I'll going to have to fire up the grill a few more times before it's an option for me.

I was reading about storing dry goods in metal cans. The current practice seems to be the addition of an oxygen-absorption material. It lowers the oxygen content below 0.1%, which is apparently enough to prevent the wildlife from proliferating. The disadvantage here is that the seamer is hella expensive---500 or more.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

FF -- You might consider letting the dry goods cool completely before packing them in ziplock bags. Just to lower the chances of plastic chemicals leaching into the food. If you turned the oven off and let the food cool in the oven then it should still be very sterile until you open the oven, and as long as you are careful in how you transfer the food to plastic bags then I wouldn't worry about contamination.

We don't have our chest freezer hooked up yet, so I only have the freezer on our fridge to contend with. I appreciate hearing about the oven method. Thanks for sharing, FarmFresh!