I write and teach self-reliant, sustainable living. I've preserved my garden produce for decades. Since I discovered this book 5 yrs ago, it has consistently been in my Top Ten books you should have. This book teaches how to preserve almost every food you can grow without canning or freezing. For years my favorite go-to book on food preservation has been Stocking Up: The Third Edition of America's Classic Preserving Guide But this book goes into topics not covered in most food-preservation books. The key to good self-reliance and sustainability is to have a wide range of options, in case one crop fails or another overwhelms your freezer or pantry capacity. This book gives you that variety and weaves it into a complete, sustainable Whole.The chapters on Root Cellaring and Drying are not as detailed as some might like, but there are dozens of books on those topics and anyone that has gardened or homesteaded for any time is very familiar with these techniques.Where the book really shines is in the chapters on the lesser-known (and ages old) techniques of brining, lacto-fermentation and preserving in solutions such as oil, vinegar and alcohol. I attended a class on brining and lacto-fermentation where we were given taste samples of the brined and fermented food. The taste, color and texture are stunning! After tasting brined green beans--bright, crisp and still tasting garden fresh after 4 years in a jar--I could never go back to colorless, tasteless, soggy home-canned green beans. Family and friends go nuts over my sauerkraut and mixed vegetables brined one jar at a time. (It was this class that led me to this book.) I love that I can use non-canning jars with this process. This saves me on my food budget, keeps more out of the landfill and I don't have to worry about getting valuable jars back when I give the food away.One reviewer worried about the lack of food safety in these methods. No need to worry. These are ages-old techniques, used for centuries before home canning was ever thought of. They do not create the anaerobic environment that botulism thrives in. If one uses good-sense--wash your hands and clean all work surfaces and start with clean, sterilized equipment and jars--these methods are every bit as safe as any other food preservation.This is one of very few books that get my complete, unreserved endorsement. Trust me, you WANT this in your home library. [...]