Today, we will explore how to preserve the fruits and vegetables. By following a few easy steps, we can still eat them when they are out of season.

Freezing

Freezing is the simplest way to save fruits and vegetables. But it is important to freeze them after they have cooled down. To avoid freezer burns, which can affect the taste and feel， we should only use plastic bags or boxes designed for the freezer.

Good foods to freeze include apples, plums, green beans and cabbage. But don't freeze potatoes, tomatoes and bananas.

Canning

There are two main ways to can fruits and vegetables：boiling hot water baths and pressure canning.

Boiling hot water bath is to put fresh fruits and vegetables in glass jars（罐）and then heat the jars in boiling water. The heat gets the air out of the jars and frees the food from microorganisms（微生物）. Then cover the jars tightly. This method works best with foods like apples, berries, cherries and peaches.

Pressure canning food requires a pressure canner. Its size should be based on the amount of food to be canned. The pressure canner should be filled with fruits and vegetables as tightly as possible. Good foods for pressure canning include carrots, corn and bell peppers.

Whichever method you use, you should keep the fruits and vegetables from fresh air.

Pickling （腌制）

There are many pickling methods. You can pickle whole vegetables or vegetables cut in small pieces by adding salt, pepper or other seasonings.

Good late — summer foods to pickle include cucumbers, hot peppers and eggplants.

How to Apply China Visa (签证)

How to apply China visa is the most concerned question for international tourists who plan to travel to China. Here you will find the useful information about China visa requirements and instructions.

China Visa Requirements

▶The valid (有效的) passport

Original passport valid for at least 6 months with blank visa pages, and a photocopy of data page (with your photo on it)

▶China visa application form and photo

The applicants must fill in a complete visa application form and attach it with a recent-taken colour passport photo.

So what is the requirement of the photo? The photo you submit must be passport-type (bare-head, full face) and standard with the correct dimension and background colour.

▶Effective proof of legal stay or resident status (it applies to those who do not apply for China visa in their countries of citizenship).

Supporting Application Documents

For C-Visa, a letter of guarantee issued by a foreign transport company or an invitation letter issued by a relevant authority from China side shall be provided.

For D-Visa, the original and a photocopy of foreign permanent residence identification form issued by China’s Ministry of Public Security shall be provided.

For F-Visa, an invitation letter issued by relevant authorities or individuals from China side shall be provided.

For G-Visa, an onward air (train, bus, ship) ticket with confirmed date and seat to the third country or region shall be provided.

For L-Visa, the tour itinerary (行程) and documents with round trip flight tickets and accommodation reservations, or an invitation letter issued by relevant authorities or individuals from Chinese side shall be provided.

For M-Visa, documents of business activity, trade fair invitation letter or other invitation letter issued by trade partners in China shall be provided.

Further reading: click the link China visa knowledge and types.

Learn how to improve spoken English with our five quick tips.

Repeat the language!

Repeat words and sentences over and over again until you can say them really fluently. 【小题1】The more you say it, the more it becomes fixed in your brain, and then later when you’re speaking, it’ll come out naturally.

【小题2】

First, write out in note form the story you want to tell, and then using those notes, practise telling the story. Now this story could be something that happened to you or from a magazine. Just choose whatever you want, and practise telling it.

Memorise language!

【小题3】 You can do this by writing them out, or by speaking them out loud so that you’ll be speaking normally.

And the more you do this, the more they’ll stick in your mind.

Simultaneous (同步的) speaking!

Simultaneous speaking--it sounds difficult but it’s quite easy. And it’s something as easy as, you take an audio file(音频文件), and you listen along to it, and as you listen to it, you read it at the same time. 【小题4】 So, you’re trying to copy the intonation (语调), the pronunciation, the word stress(重音), and the sentence stress.

Practise forming questions!

Look at a sentence and see if you can change that into a question.【小题5】So, for example, when seeing the sentence, “She’s seen the film,” you need to change it into the question, “Has she seen the film?” And the more you do this, the more fluent and quicker you’ll get at making questions.