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| Canning jars and lids |
Monday, June 12, 2023
Canning is one way to preserve the harvest. With heat canning, you can preserve your harvest and be able to keep it in the pantry to use through to next season's harvest. When you think of canning, many of us remember our grandmother or great grandmother getting out her huge pressure canner and her canning in a not kitchen for days on end. However, only a simple stock pot and canning jars are needed for many crops, pickled goods and jams.
So, what makes it safe for water bath canning instead of having to go the pressure canning route? It's the level of acidity of what you are preserving. Higher acid foods do not need to be pressure canned because they provide an inhospitable environment for the bacteria clostridium botulinum that produces toxins. Always follow the recipe exactly to ensure the acid level is high enough for water bath canning. If a recipe calls for pressure canning, also follow it exactly as the time for canning under pressure is critical for making sure all bacteria is eliminated during the canning process.
Here are the web pages and resources I use when canning. They have recipes and instructions for both water bath canning and pressure canning:
Mother Earth News “How to Can” app
National center for home food preservation http://nchfp.uga.edu
USDA’s Complete Guide to Home Canning http://goo.gl/pwrxd
Home Canning www.homecanning.com
“Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving” book
“The Complete Book of Small Batch Preserving” book
Here is what I can via the water bath method:
All you need to water bath can is a large stock pot, canning jars, a funnel, and canning tongs. Always follow the recipe as written to insure food safety. If the food is not acidic enough, it can allow botulism to grow.
My favorite canning jars are Weck's. They have glass lids so only glass touches your food and they are really pretty. My back up are antique glass lids that fit both antique glass jars and today's small mouth glass jars. My third is Tanner's lids made of a plastic that does not contain BPA.
In general, any crop that is acidic by itself like tomatoes or is preserved using an acidic liquid or solid like vinegar and sugar are good candidates for water bath canning. Do follow the recipe from a reputable source to guarantee food safety.
So besides the ones that I use a water bath canner for, most jams and jellies if using sugar and most pickled items will be a candidate for the easier and quicker water bath canning method.
I finally bought a 23 quart pressure canner to be able to can low acid foods like meat, sweet corn, green beans, roasted peppers, etc. I use it for canning deer stew meat. Pressure canning definitely takes longer and is more involved. The benefit is that you can put up your bounty in the pantry versus having to freeze it. Myself, we have lots of freezer space so I freeze my extra okra, greens, peppers, tomatoes, beans, and corn.
If you decide to go the pressure canning route, make sure you get a canner that is large enough for minimizing the time needed do can everything you want to can. My 23 quart canner can hold up to 7 quart jars or 16 wide mouth pint jars at a time. A pressure canner can also be used as a water bath canner if you want to have just one pot for both. If you have an induction cooktop, you will need to be sure to get a canner with a steel bottom as most pressure canners are made out of aluminum.
The other options for preserving the harvest besides canning and freezing are dehydrating or freeze drying. Dehydrating can be done with an affordable dehydrator, in the oven or outside. Freeze drying equipment is now available for the every day person but is still pretty pricey.
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