Squash is one of those annual fruits that provides year after year in multiple seasons. Some are overwhelmed by the amount of squash they produce and find different ways to store them. So, here, we’ll discuss how to store squash!.
You might wonder how summer squash compares to winter squash in this regard. You might already know the best way to grow one type of kabocha, pumpkin, or butternut, or you might be trying to grow them for the first time.
One thing is sure: if you successfully harvest, cure, and store your squash, you can enjoy it year-round. You can eat spaghetti squash in the summer or zucchini all winter long! It’s easy to pick these fruits before and after the first and last frosts, and they’re also easy to cure. Storing options abound, as well.
You should remain vigilant when it comes to safety, especially in canning, preserving, or fermenting foods. Improper storage can cause disease. The CDC has a guide on Home Canning and Botulism. Consult this guide first if any of these methods are unfamiliar to you.
Another excellent resource for storing food long-term is the National Center for Home Food Preservation. Their guide for storing long-term is great. Consult this to learn ways to add shelf life to your efforts in the garden. Follow guidelines properly before you embark on this endeavor.
Summer squash is a delicious vegetable that only lasts a short time when fresh. However, with the right storage methods, you can enjoy summer squash all year long. This guide will teach you how to store summer squash so you can keep eating it even when it’s out of season.
Why Store Summer Squash?
Summer squash like zucchini, yellow squash, and patty pan have a short harvest window. They only last about 5-7 days when refrigerated. But when stored properly, summer squash can last for months. Here are some key reasons to store summer squash:
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Enjoy the taste year-round. Summer squash has a light, fresh flavor that’s hard to replicate any other time of year. Storing it lets you keep enjoying it when it’s no longer in season.
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Reduce food waste Growing and buying extra summer squash allows you to preserve the surplus instead of letting it go bad Proper storage prevents waste.
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Save money. Storing summer squash is an economical way to keep eating it without buying expensive imported squash in the off-season.
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Gain food security Having a supply of stored squash provides food security so your family won’t go hungry if fresh produce is unavailable,
Freezing Summer Squash
Freezing is one of the easiest ways to store summer squash long term. With proper freezing methods, summer squash can last about 10 months in the freezer. Follow these steps:
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Choose fresh squash that is young and tender without blemishes. Older squash is prone to being woody and bitter.
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Wash the squash and slice into 1/2-inch pieces or grate the flesh if making baked goods.
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Blanch the slices or gratings for 3 minutes in boiling water, then plunge into an ice bath. This stops the enzymes that cause loss of flavor, color, and texture.
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Drain well and pack into freezer bags or containers, removing excess air. Flatten bags to freeze flat for efficient storage.
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Seal, label, and freeze at 0°F or below. Frozen squash will maintain high quality for about 10 months.
Pickling Summer Squash
Pickling summer squash in vinegar brine is a tasty way to preserve it. Refrigerated pickled squash keeps for up to 7 days. Follow this easy squash pickling recipe:
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Slice or dice 4 cups fresh summer squash.
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Mix with 1 cup chopped onions, 2 chopped bell peppers, and 1⁄4 cup pickling salt.
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Refrigerate 1 hour, then rinse and drain well.
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Boil 1 cup vinegar, 1 1⁄2 cups sugar, and spices (mustard seed, celery seed, etc).
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Pour hot mixture over drained vegetables.
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Refrigerate in a sealed container. Enjoy pickled squash within 7 days.
Canning Summer Squash
While some winter squash varieties can be canned, summer squash generally cannot be safely canned. The dense flesh turns mushy and won’t heat evenly. Stick to pickling, freezing, or drying summer squash instead of canning it.
Drying Summer Squash
Dehydrating is an excellent way to store summer squash long term while preserving the sweet flavor. Dried summer squash can last 1-12 months stored properly. Follow these tips:
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Slice squash 1⁄2-inch thick after blanching and treat with citric acid to prevent browning.
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Arrange slices in a single layer on dehydrator trays.
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Dehydrate at 140-145°F for 8-10 hours until crisp and brittle.
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Cool completely and pack in airtight bags or jars. Store in a cool, dark place.
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Rehydrate dried squash in soups, stews, and baked goods.
Storing Fresh Summer Squash
You can extend the shelf life of fresh summer squash by a week or more with proper refrigeration storage:
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Choose young, unblemished squash and use within 2 days for best flavor.
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Wash and dry squash, then store loose in plastic bags in the refrigerator crisper drawer.
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Keep between 45-55°F with high humidity.
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Use within 5-7 days for optimal quality and taste.
Storing Frozen Summer Squash
For long term frozen storage:
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Label freezer bags with contents and date.
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Freeze at 0°F or below.
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Avoid temperature fluctuations that cause loss of quality.
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Properly stored frozen squash maintains high quality for about 10 months.
Storing Pickled Summer Squash
For best quality refrigerated pickled squash:
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Use sterile jars and utensils when pickling.
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Seal containers tightly and label with date.
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Refrigerate pickled squash.
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Use within 7 days and don’t let containers sit at room temperature.
Storing Dried Summer Squash
To extend shelf life of dried summer squash:
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Completely cool dried squash before packing into airtight containers.
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Store in a cool, dark place or refrigerate.
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Dried summer squash keeps for 1-12 months stored properly.
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For longest shelf life, vacuum seal dried squash.
The Benefits of Storing Summer Squash
Storing summer squash by pickling, freezing, drying, and proper refrigeration allows you to enjoy the following benefits:
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Convenience– Stored squash is ready to use in recipes all year.
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Nutrition– Squash provides vitamin C, potassium, and beta carotene from the skins.
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Economy– Storing surplus squash saves money compared to buying out of season.
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Versatility– Stored squash is great in baked goods, soups, stews, and more.
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Flavor– Stored properly, squash retains its fresh, sweet flavor.
Get Started Preserving Summer Squash
With the simple storage methods above, you can enjoy fresh-tasting summer squash for months past the growing season. Start freezing, pickling, and drying your squash today for longer enjoyment of this nutritious vegetable.
How to Store Winter Squash
Once the winter squash is ripe, pick out any that have soft spots or small dents on the outside. These should be removed from long storage and consumed immediately or composted. Some types, like your butternut squash harvest, should be at the right color for its variety.
Once you harvest winter squash, wipe it down with a dry cloth to remove dirt and debris. Winter squash should be cured in a place where it is 70 to 85 degrees and 80 to 85 percent humidity. Make sure the fruit is in a single layer. Some guides recommend curing squash in the sunlight out in the yard. While this is great for some regions, others may be too cold.
When these winter fruits are properly cured, they get a hard skin that keeps mold and rot away. It also promotes sweeter and more pleasing flavors by increasing the content of natural sugars in the flesh. Curing also reduces the fruit’s respiration rate, which makes long-term shelf life easier.
Harvest all the squash on the vine before the first frost of the growing season. Cure both fully-ripe and immature squash. This prevents the rot of fruits you grew and gives you more fodder for cooking experiments.
Use either a window screen or a chicken wire frame to keep air moving around the fruit. A root cellar is a great place to cure and store squash from your pre-winter harvest. Properly cured fully-matured squash is such a treat.
Different winter squashes require different curing times after harvesting. Some don’t require any curing time at all.
Some squashes, like spaghetti squash, acorn squash, delicata squash, and pumpkins or pie pumpkins, are ready to eat as soon as they are picked. When it comes to delicata squash, the skin is so thin that you can eat it with the flesh. Butternut squash, Hubbard, large kabocha squash, and Lakota squash have specific curing times. It’s essential to cure them for the skin to eventually coalesce for edible fruit.
Here is a list of the times needed for each winter variety that requires curing:
- Butternut: 2 to 6 weeks
- Hubbard: 4 weeks
- Large kabocha: 4 to 6 weeks, depending on the variety
- Lakota: 1 to 2 weeks
Winter squash can be stored in a dry place for up to 6 months depending on the variety. In a place with higher humidity than your average kitchen, or colder, they won’t last as long. This is how to store them if you don’t want to pay more to can, ferment, and store them again.
Whole squash should be kept in a place with good air flow at room temperature, so the fridge isn’t a good place to store it for a long time. Winter squash that has been cooked or pureed, on the other hand, can be kept in the fridge for 3 to 5 days in an airtight container or resealable plastic bags.
This isn’t a good way to store squash for a long time, but it’s a great way to eat it more than once in a week.
Winter squash freezes very well. Keep it in plastic bags or an airtight container in the freezer for up to three months. Butternut squash stored in the freezer can then be used in soups and bread recipes. Note that you must remove the skin before storing it in the freezer. Freezer containers are great for storing winter fruits.
To dehydrate winter gourds, peel the skin, cut it in half, and remove the seeds and stem. Save the seeds for next year’s garden, or enjoy them roasted and spiced. Cut the entire squash into ¼ inch strips and steam them until they are tender (about 3 minutes). Then dehydrate them at 140 degrees for 2 to 3 hours. Reduce the temperature to 130 degrees and let the squash dry until it’s brittle. Store it in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
Use this method if you have access to a dehydrator or low temp oven.
Winter squash can be freeze-dried. Before freeze-drying, it’s best to cook the squash in the way you like because the firm flesh comes back together better after being cooked. This can prolong other methods of storage, such as smoked squashes. Follow the manufacturer’s directions for your unit.
Winter squashes don’t keep at room temperature in cans because they are low-acid foods. It’s essential to refrain from pureeing winter squash for these storage methods. Pickled or canned winter squash should be kept in the fridge like fresh food; it should never be left out at room temperature because it’s too warm for foods that are low in acid.
The result of pickling and storing winter squash in a warm room is botulism.
Pumpkins, acorn squash, and butternut squash can be quick-pickled and stored in a refrigerator for about one week. Skin the squash, remove the stem, and seeds. Then slice them or cube them.
Equal parts vinegar and sugar can be used to make your favorite brine. Cook the squash in the brine before putting it in the jar. Let it cool and tightly seal it for the refrigerator.
Although this method requires access to a smoker, it’s the tastiest way to enjoy winter gourds. It will not, however, store for long. Smoked winter squash should be eaten immediately, or 1 to 2 days after it is prepared.
After curing your gourd, cut it in half and remove the seeds and stem. Season it, and wrap it lightly in foil, poking holes in the area where the seed cavity is. This provides ventilation and air circulation that allows the smoke to permeate the skin.
Smoke the squash at 225 to 230 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 ½ to 2 hours, or until it reaches the consistency you like. Serve it whole or sliced, and add butter and other spices.
Although it’s not necessary to ferment winter squash, it is possible to do so. To be safe, it’s best to treat all kinds of canned winter squash as fresh foods instead of foods that can be stored for a long time without going bad.
Use a gourd that is easy to cut into bite-sized pieces. Put it in brine and then move it to a can that has been pressure-sealed or has a fermentation lock. Allow it to ferment in the refrigerator.
Winter squash is great in chutneys, with raisins, cinnamon, and garlic. Properly fermented winter squash will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 year. Once it is opened, consume it within a month.
Canned winter squash must be pressure canned as it is a low-acid food. It is essential that you cube the winter squash rather than puree it. You can always puree it later when you’re ready to use it.
This method requires access to a pressure canner, seals, lids, and a tool to remove air bubbles. These aren’t incredibly expensive but can cost around $100 on the lower end. Also, you need space in your kitchen to can gourds and other winter squash. Use a tested and safe recipe from the National Center For Home Food Preservation.
Store winter squash in cans for 3 years. Properly canned winter squash can also have a storage life of up to 5 or 6 years. You can leave these cans out at room temperature for a while, but once you open them, you need to get rid of them quickly.
How to Store Yellow Squash From the Garden
FAQ
What is the best way to preserve summer squash?
What is the best way to store squash for long term?
Can I freeze summer squash without blanching?
How to keep yellow squash fresh longer?
How do you store summer squash?
Store summer squash by gently wiping the fruit clean with a damp cloth and then placing it in a perforated plastic bag (to maintain humidity) in the vegetable crisper of the refrigerator. Do not store summer squash in the refrigerator for more than 4 days.
how do I prepare yellow squash?
Roasted (or Baked) – Cut in half, slice or cut into pieces. Brush with olive oil and season with salt. Bake at 400-degrees for 20-25 minutes or until tender. Throw some other veggies on there to make a delicious roasted vegetable medley. Sautéed – Slice or cut into smaller pieces and sauté in butter over medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Season with salt or seasoning (see ideas below). Grilled – Cut into thick slices or wedges. Brush with vegetable oil and grill for 5 minutes per side or until tender. Season with salt with each turn. Air Fried – Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Air fry at 375-degrees for 8 minutes, flipping half-way through. Season more after flipping if needed.
How long does summer squash last?
Handle gently. The skin is thin and fragile. If stored in the refrigerator in a plastic bag, summer squash will keep up to a week. Zucchini is the most popular summer squash, but other varieties are available. Yellow Crookneck or Straightneck has yellow skin and flesh. The skin may be smooth or bumpy.
Where should squash be stored?
Keep the squash in a cool place in the kitchen or pantry away from direct sunlight. Do not place them near bananas, apples, and other ethylene producers to prevent the gas from ripening the gourds too fast. When trying to decide where to store squash other than the counter, the refrigerator is a great alternative.
