Family Chow Hall

Basic Canning Information

January 1st, 2006

Every now and then I will post about something I can or have canned, so I thought it would be good to have this in the archives.

Pressure Canning

If you don’t know how to pressure can or have never heard of it, you have a lot to learn. Fortunately, canners come with very specific instructions and if you follow them carefully, it’s a snap. Canning recipes also come with detailed instructions which you will soon learn to understand and follow easily.

If you want to get started, you will need:
a canner
mason jars
lids
rings
a jar lifter

If you are a pro at pressure canning, don’t waste your time reading this.

Boiling Water Bath

This is a much simpler method of canning, but can only be used on certain foods, such as tomatoes, peaches, and pickles and some other relishes and sauces. It depends on the acidity of the food. In short, if a recipe says to use a boiling water bath, then it’s fine. If a recipe calls for processing a certain number of minutes at a certain pounds pressure, you need to use a pressure canner.

The process for a boiling water bath is pretty simple and can be done in any pot that is deeper than the jars you are processing. It’s best to have a rack on the bottom, so the jars are not sitting directly on the bottom of your pot.

Generally, it works like this: Let’s say you’re doing tomatoes. You have a pan of prepared tomatoes on the stove, hot. You have clean, sterilized jars ready to be filled. They’re hot, too. I keep mine in a clean sink full of very hot water. Also on the stove you have a small pan in which you have sterilized the lids and rings that you will seal your jars with.

Fill a hot jar with hot tomatoes.
Use a knife to remove air bubbles, if necessary.
Wipe the rim clean.
Grab a hot, sterile lid, dry it off and place it on your jar.
Twist the ring on.
Place in a large pot of hot water.

Do this with all the jars until you are out of prepared tomatoes or your pot is full. Now make sure there is enough hot water to cover the jars up to their necks (where the rings are). Bring it to a boil, place a lid on top (not necessary) and boil for as long as the recipe requires. Many times this is only about ten minutes. Then turn the heat off and let it cool a little. Then it will be safe to move the jars to waiting towel or rack. Soon (if you haven’t already) you will hear quiet little popping sounds (0ne from each jar) that tell you the jars are sealing. After that, they can be stored at room temperature indefinitely. But once you open it, keep it refrigerated.

Entry Filed under: Condiments, Mixed bag