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As any gardener will tell you, there’s nothing quite like the taste of homegrown vegetables. During the warmer months, a well-tended garden can yield a prolific bounty of ripe and juicy tomatoes, lush lettuces, and crispy beans. But by the time winter hits, homegrown produce is often a rarity—unless you happen to have your own root cellar.
Root cellars don’t need to be lavish or large. In fact, home gardeners can make a simple DIY root cellar by burying a clean trash can in the garden and loading it full of root cellar vegetables. But if you want your produce to last through the winter, it’s important to choose the right crops for winter storage.
Potatoes are a quintessential ingredient in hearty soups and other cozy winter meals, so you’ll definitely want to leave some room in your root cellar for spuds. All types of potatoes can be stored in root cellars; however, late season “winter storage” potatoes with thick skins are particularly good for root cellaring as they won’t dry out as fast as thin-skinned new potatoes. Some classic picks for cellaring include German Butterball, Yukon Gold, and Red Pontiac.
When harvesting potatoes, wait until the potato leaves die back and then dig up your spuds. Damaged potatoes should be eaten right away, while pristine potatoes should be cured for a few days in a dark, dry place before storing. Airy crates and baskets will keep potatoes fresh, but be sure to shelter spuds from light so they don’t turn green!
Shelf Life: 5 to 8 monthsOur Recommendation: Yukon Gold Seed Potato at Amazon for $9.99With a rich, nutty flavor, Yukon Gold is an all-purpose potato, ideal for mashing, roasting, boiling and baking.
Like potatoes, onions are another must-have storage vegetable as they can be used in almost any savory dish. For best storage, harvest onions late in the season once their leaves start to flop over and their “necks” dry out. Instead of washing onions, dust dirt away and then cure onions in a warm, dry space for 2 weeks before storing them in braids, mesh bags, or well-ventilated crates.Although onions last awhile in the fridge, not all onions are ideal for cellaring. Sweet Spanish onions will often turn mushy in root cellars, but storage onions like Stuttgarter and Red Zeppelin will last for months and months.
Shelf Life: 5 to 8 monthsOur Recommendation: Stuttgarter Reisen Onion Set at Gurney’s for $6.79Famed for their mild flavor and versatility, Stuttgarter onions can be grilled, sautéed, or eaten fresh.