pumpkin storage and processing

[red]

we have stored our pumpkins in the shed and they seem happy - but its time to cut into the big one -

any tips on storing it once cut? I have cooked down batches of pulp and frozen that and that works fine. any other ways?

[Chickpea]

That's exactly what I did - stored it in a cool vermin-free place for three months then cut it, used some fresh and froze the rest as puree.

You could make chutney or jam or wine I suppose, or it might bottle.

[Millymollymandy]

I can't help other than freeze the puree like you said, to use later on in pumpkin pie, cake or whatever. I guess you could make a huge load of soup. I don't think the pumpkin will stay fresh very long once it is cut. Your pumpkin's the biggun' isn't it? In which case the fridge probably isn't going to be an option!

I'll be interested to hear other people's opinions.

[lindysman]

MMM,
We noticed the French in our neck of the woods seem to grow these quite profusely but seem to let them rot and not pick them. Is there any reason for this (compost etc?), does it happen in Brittany?

[red]

guess it will mostly be puree then - as the puree can be used in so many recipes there after. just i really like the chunks roasted. given that we have so much, I will experiment with blanching some chunks and freezing and see how they come out.
and keep as much as i can in the fridge.. now there is some post Christmas space.

[Millymollymandy]

MMM,
We noticed the French in our neck of the woods seem to grow these quite profusely but seem to let them rot and not pick them. Is there any reason for this (compost etc?), does it happen in Brittany?

No, I've not seen or heard of that before! Bit strange!

I don't see many pumpkins or squash in people's veg patches round my way. Spuds and leeks seem to be the most popular!

[lindysman]

Not everyone grows them, but most of what we have noticed is they are grown mainly along a perimeter fence where the plant can grow through and the pumpkin can hang from. They seem to be left to split open and not picked. We wondered if it was something to do with 'companion planting' to keep certain nasties out......

[supersprout]

If you save cooked pumpkin puree in the freezer, you can use it later - oh, pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin gnocchi, soups, bread, cakes ... danged useful stuff to have handy

Round here (Fens) they grow tons of pumpkins for the supermarkets. Once they're harvested, they stay in the fields to rot. A farmer told me that they don't pick any with the slightest damage as they rot and spoil the rest, which are crated a few weeks before shipping to the supermarkets, so perhaps what you're seeing is the leftover damaged punkins after the perfect ones have been harvested?

[Tay]

I've noticed it too. The neighbouring farmer's father has a small plot of land next to one of our front gardens, and this year he planted some pumpkins. They were planted a long way from the rest of his veg (spuds and lettuces), so I don't think it was for 'companionship' reasons. He let them grow over the fence, and gave us several. He let a number of them rot; mainly because he doesn't live in our hamlet, but 5km away. I think he just comes to this plot to escape his wife for a day...

Another neighbour grows pumpkins, and actually picks them! She puts them in the flowerbed at the front of her house for decoration. However, they are now rotting, so don't look particularly decorative. Given that she sees them every day, it can't be that she has forgotten them. She is a little 'mad' though (Parisian), so perhaps this explains it?

[lindysman]

Thanks Supersprout, I take your point, but most of what we've seen are in people's gardens and not intended for commercial use.
Maybe we'll ask the right questions to our neighbours once our French is up to par...
By the way, we know Peterborough and the Fenlands, we used to live in Bury St Edmunds until last year!
.
.
Tay, thanks for that bit of 'back up' you've described it exactly how we've seen it apart from no one seems to pick them to eat, that why we thought they were grown for compost or companion planting.
.
Seem to have gone off tack for the purpose of the thread, but I had to ask the question...........