How to Make Vegetables Last Longer

Peppers

Wash and wipe dry whole peppers. Then chop them into strips or squares and store in freezer. The peppers stored thus will stay fresh for a month (or two even). And can be used for stir fry recipes, as pizza toppings, in risotto, fried rice,etc.

Onions

Chop fine. Heat oil and fry onions to golden brown. Cool and freeze. Making portions and storing in separate packets or containers will provide you easy access to use as much as you need rather than having to defrost all of the frozen onion. Fried onions are an important ingredient for most Indian curries. 

Carrots

Dilute one portion of spirit vinegar with 3 portions of water. Boil and reduce to 3 quarters of liquid content before boiling.Peel and cut carrots lengthwise into four parts and then divide each part into approximately one inch long peices. Add carrots to boiling liquid. Let the carrots cook for a couple of minutes. Turn off the flame. Add salt as per taste. Cool and store in glass containers. Lasts for 15-20 days. Can be enjoyed as a pickle or added to stews and curries.

Tomatoes

Wash and chop tomatoes into quaters. Remove seeds, apply salt, and dry in sun till the tomatoes lose all moisture content. Takes 4 days of sun, in hot tropical climates. Heat vegetable oil and add the dried tomatoes to it. Stir well and turn off the flame immediately. Cool and store in glass containers. The oil should be enough to cover the tomatoes completely, when stored in the container. Can last upto six months.

Green Peas

Shell peas. Boil water in a pot(should be large enough to contain the peas). When the water is boiling, put peas into it(not more than 2 seconds). Drain quickly and put peas into ice-cold water. Drain, and when peas are completely cool put into freezer bags and freeze.

Lemons

Squeeze lemons to obtain juice. Add two tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt for each lemon. Pour lemon juice, sugar, and salt into a container and bring  boil. Stirring continuously. When the liquid becomes clear(like in readymade cordial), turn off the flame. Cool and store in glass bottles. You can then use the concentrate to prepare lemonade, salad sauces,as a base for mocktail/cocktail, and also for fish and chicken marinades. The concentrate will last for more than 30 days if kept in the refridgerator.