Learning To Can Safely

By crazygreenthumbs on June 28, 2024

I have been canning for close to twenty years. I already knew how to water bath can, from watching my mom and grandmother's, as I was growing up. But I had to have my mom actually show me how to run the pressure canner. The picture above was from ten years ago. I had gotten my sea legs for canning by then.

When I can things, I follow the "Ball Blue Book for Canning" directions and only water bath can things with approved recipes. I recommend this water bath canner for a limited number of cans: https://amzn.to/4bm8yJc

This one if you are doing large batches: https://amzn.to/3XCn24u

(I prefer tall narrow water bath canners over short wide ones. You can get two levels of jars in tall ones and also, you are able to can larger, single, unstacked jars.)

I also pressure can. Find one here: https://amzn.to/3KVO8fj

It's a super easy way to preserve meat. And you don't have to remember to thaw it!

Christmas, cinnamon and lemon pickles

However, you can do a lot of things wrong in canning. Pressure canning in particular is something you should see done, before you attempt to do it. Especially with older, manual pressure canners. There's just some things to know about. Like: the rocking rhythm of the weight or the time you let it vent before adding the weight. It isn't particularly complicated, but still good to witness before going out and doing it yourself.

Soon to be pickled, okra

They have digital pressure canners now, which don't do big batches, but they might be a good way to go for beginners. Sort of load it, push a button and walk off. It'll beep when it's done. Digital canner: https://amzn.to/4eCowSw The pricing between electric/digital and manual/stove top pressure canners is pretty similar. Although: electric, digital pressure canners are smaller.

Pears and pearsauce

I love my pressure cooker: https://amzn.to/3RFm6bY (Although, these are two separate things. Pressure cookers and pressure canners are not interchangeable. Some products do both, but not all. Make sure you are getting something that will do what you want it to do.) I just load my pressure cooker, press a few buttons and when it beeps, you let the air out and you are ready to eat. I like it because I don't have to stay in the kitchen and monitor it. If you have a very busy life and don't want to sit near your pressure canner to monitor what it's doing: then a digital pressure canner would be a less attention draining experience. Much like my digital, pressure cooker is.

Pickled peppers

I have a big, manual pressure canner. I don't own a digital one. But that's because pressure canning is super simple once you've figured it out. Although, I've been thinking about getting one for a few years.

So, if you don't want to just watch someone you know, who cans, and hope they're doing it right: I suggest watching Rose Red Homestead on YouTube. She's a retired university professor and she'll show you exactly how to safely preserve food. She doesn't just can things. She uses many different preservation methods. All of them safe.

Pickled peppers

I have learned a lot from her channel. One of my favorite things she does is dry eggs for preservation and then reconstitute them to cook scrambled eggs. There's a lot of things I didn't know about before binge watching her channel.

I believe in having a deep pantry, plus: a longer term, emergency food and water supply. If you are interested in self reliance, go watch her channel. If you just need to know what to do with a giant amount of fresh produce from your garden (that needs processing): she can help.