How to store cut pumpkin at home: the best ways and shelf life for a fresh vegetable

Pumpkin is a storehouse of useful trace elements and vitamins. The vegetable is suitable for baby food and is considered dietary. But its large size often poses a problem: how to store a cut pumpkin so as not to lose its valuable properties? Let's consider the best ways.

Long-term storage varieties

Late-ripening varieties are most suitable for long-term storage at home. The thick and elastic peel allows you to maintain the integrity of the vegetable without the loss of trace elements, fiber and vitamins for a long time.

In addition, pumpkin is divided into small and large-fruited varieties. The latter have a longer shelf life - up to 8 months. Small-fruited are not so persistent (only 3-4 months), but they have a more pronounced and pleasant taste.

The following varieties are best preserved:

1. Kherson - large fruit weighing 3–6 kg. Has a sweet taste.
2. Slavuta Is a large-fruited variety that ripens towards the end of the season. Pumpkin up to 3.5 kg has a sweet taste, loose structure and rich orange flesh.
3. Zhdana... Reaches 6-8 kg. Sweet, with rich pulp.
4. Arbatskaya - a nutmeg variety with a dense, sweet pulp. The peel has a light gray coating. Stored until next harvest.
5. Donskaya - a juicy pumpkin with a gray skin with shades of green. If the storage temperature does not exceed 15 ° C, it can lie up to 70 weeks.
6. Gilea - a large vegetable (at least 9 kg) of nutmeg variety with crispy and firm flesh of a bright shade. Lies in the refrigerator for 12 months.
7. Polyanin - an oblong fruit weighing up to 4 kg with firm and juicy pulp. Stored at 18 ° C for a year.
8. Ioannina - mid-season fruit weighing 6.5 kg. The juicy pulp is able to retain its beneficial properties until the next harvest.

Preliminary preparation and storage conditions

Collect the vegetable from the beds only after it is fully ripe. It is impossible to overexpose the pumpkin until frost, since the frozen fruits will quickly rot at home. A late-ripening vegetable with a strong crust without visible damage is ideal for storage.

Council. It is recommended to pick pumpkins on a sunny day. The fruit is separated from the lashes with a knife, while leaving the stalk (without it, the pumpkin will begin to rot).

In order for the pumpkin to lie all winter, it is left under a canopy in the sun for a week, allowing the skin to harden and dry.

Damaged fruits (with dents, scratches, traces of rot) are set aside for short-term storage and use in the first place. The rest are transferred to a prepared place - a dry and cool room with a storage temperature of 10 ° C (but not lower than 1 ° C) and a humidity of 60–70%.

For the successful storage of vegetables, three important conditions must be observed:

• maintain a stable temperature;
• exclude direct sunlight;
• avoid touching vegetables with each other.

The cut, peeled pumpkin should only be kept in the refrigerator. Pieces wrapped in foil or foil will last from two weeks to a month. Frozen slices can be stored for up to a year. Outside the freezer, sliced ​​pumpkin has a shelf life of 2-3 days.

How to store pumpkin properly - whole, peeled or cut

The storage method depends on the amount of the crop and the place. For home owners, a basement or cellar is preferable.In the apartment, a refrigerator, a glazed balcony and a cool storage room are suitable for wintering vegetables. Some particularly resistant varieties can survive at room temperature.

On the balcony

To keep the pumpkin on the balcony, you need to choose only a glazed and insulated room. The temperature should remain in the range + 2 ... + 15 ° С, and the humidity should not exceed 75%.

The fruits are placed on wooden shelves, after having laid on them thick paper or thick fabric. Vegetables are placed in one layer with the stalks up. A place must be left between them so that the fruits do not touch. The pumpkin crop is covered with a cloth from above, protecting from sunlight.

Sliced ​​pumpkin is stored in such conditions for 2-3 days.

Council. In winter, the fruit should be covered with a warm blanket to keep the pumpkin from freezing. If there is not enough space on the balcony and vegetables need to be placed denser, it is necessary to separate them with cardboard or thick paper.

In the cellar

Cellar room or basement must meet the following conditions: dryness, good ventilation and temperature conditions + 2 ... + 10 ° С.

You can cover the racks with straw, sawdust or pine needles, and then put the fruits on them in one row with the stalks up and at a distance from each other. Or hang pumpkins in nets from the ceiling.

In a refrigerator

The refrigerator is the best place to store cut vegetables at home. Procedure:

1. Wash the pumpkin, remove the seeds and core, and let it dry.
2. Cut into pieces in any convenient way.
3. Cover the fruit with cling film or pack in a bag or container and refrigerate.

The shelf life of pumpkin in this form is 10-15 days.

In the freezer

The freezer will help to stock up on cut pumpkin for the winter, in which the vegetable will retain its valuable properties and brightness of taste. The size of the pieces is determined independently. After cutting the fruit, the pieces are placed in containers or bags for freezing.

Shelf life - more than half a year... If the temperature is below 18 ° C, the pumpkin can lie for a whole year.

In the apartment

In the absence of a balcony for storing pumpkin crops, a pantry or living room is suitable. The main condition: the place should be dark, dry, not too warm or cold (away from batteries).

Temperature and shelf life

The optimum temperature for storing pumpkin is + 5… + 15 ° С. With her, vegetables remain juicy until spring - early summer.

The longest shelf life - 12 months - is provided by the freezer. This applies to both the whole fruit and the chopped one.

The second important indicator is humidity (60–70%) and room shade (no direct sunlight).

Alternative ways

If all of the above methods are not suitable, you can turn to alternative ones.

Drying

If the apartment does not have a place to store fresh fruits, pumpkin is recommended dry out:

1. Wash and chop the vegetable.
2. Peel and discard seeds.
3. Cut the flesh into slices 0.5–1 cm thick.
4. Place them in a colander and dip them in boiling water for 1-2 seconds. Then transfer immediately to ice water.
5. Drain the colander, put the plates on the table and let them dry.
6. Put on a baking sheet and send to a preheated oven (50-60 ° C) for 5-6 hours.
7. Put the dried pumpkin in a container with a tight lid. Store in a dark and dry place (e.g. closet).

Salting

Convenient and easy way to store pumpkin - salting:

1. First, remove the skin and get rid of the seeds.
2. Cut into small pieces and place in a sterilized jar.
3. Pour cool water to the brim.
4. Season with salt and cover tightly. Store in a dark place.

Conclusion

Only a refrigerator (10-15 days) and a freezer (more than half a year) are suitable for storing sliced ​​peeled pumpkin. The best solution would be to store the whole pumpkin on the balcony or in the cellar.

In order for the vegetable to retain its taste and useful properties, one should strictly observe the temperature regime, humidity level and avoid direct sunlight.