I am so afraid the art of canning could be lost if us older women don't teach the younger ones how to do it. So many women will post on one of the cooking forums or homesteading forums how they are afraid to do it. They are afraid of the pressure canners. They are afraid of the food not being safe. So they don't do it. The ones who take the big step and do it are usually quite pleased with themselves when they see the jars of food cooling on the counter. Not to mention how great it is when you put the food away in your pantry on your shelves. That is indeed a great feeling! I have to admit that I love canning food. But I always hate using it up or seeing my jar count going down.
You need a pressure canner for canning all meats and most all vegetables. If you are canning tomatoes, it depends on the type of tomato as the newer ones do have the acid in them. Or you can add lemon juice to each jar, which is what I do no matter what. Just to be on the safe side. The heirloom tomato varieties are the ones that are acidic so you can use a water bath canner for them. The water bath canner is used for your fruits, jams, jellies, preserves, juices and dairy products.
There are a few good books that will help you. The most famous canning book
is The Ball Blue Canning Book
. It gives you good information and is easy to follow. Not very much money and is definitely worth the money. I learned to can from my father, who is 91 now. He taught me how to can grape jelly
and grape juice from the wonderful grapes he grows. I took it from there and learned to do all the jams, jellies, preserves, fruits and juices. Then wanted to do more...........which led to me buying my first used pressure canner from a garage sale for ten bucks. I still use that one but added a new one as my Christmas present
to myself last year.
is The Ball Blue Canning Book. It gives you good information and is easy to follow. Not very much money and is definitely worth the money. I learned to can from my father, who is 91 now. He taught me how to can grape jelly and grape juice from the wonderful grapes he grows. I took it from there and learned to do all the jams, jellies, preserves, fruits and juices. Then wanted to do more...........which led to me buying my first used pressure canner from a garage sale for ten bucks. I still use that one but added a new one as my Christmas present to myself last year. 
This 23-quart Presto Canner
is the one I bought and told about it in this post "My New Pressure Canner Works Great!". So I won't repost that topic here. You can read it on that link. I like this canner very much and have used many times so far. I also can use it as a water bath canner which is very handy. There are many different sizes, price ranges and styles available so just study them and research the ones you might want to purchase. One thing I always do on whatever I purchase is to read the reviews on Amazon. Even if I am not purchasing it there, I read the reviews which are written by other buyers and are quite honest. The women who reviewed this canner were VERY helpful and gave me some wonderful advice. So be sure to check them out.
is the one I bought and told about it in this post "My New Pressure Canner Works Great!". So I won't repost that topic here. You can read it on that link. I like this canner very much and have used many times so far. I also can use it as a water bath canner which is very handy. There are many different sizes, price ranges and styles available so just study them and research the ones you might want to purchase. One thing I always do on whatever I purchase is to read the reviews on Amazon. Even if I am not purchasing it there, I read the reviews which are written by other buyers and are quite honest. The women who reviewed this canner were VERY helpful and gave me some wonderful advice. So be sure to check them out.
Copyright © 2010 Kathleen G. Lupole
5 comments:
I am one of those people who are scared to can! I have Carla Emery's Country Living book and she tells how to can things. My mom canned some stuff while I was growing up, but I never learned. I guess I just need to try it, right?
Yes! You need to do something easy first. Like fruit or tomatoes in a water bath canner. Then you can gain your confidence to go on to the pressure canner. Once you do it, you will love having all that canned food on your shelves!
I got so incredibly giddy when I saw this post. I cannot wait to learn how to can! I'm going to get the books you recommended and start slow. So excited! Great post!
When I was little, my mom canned all sorts of jam: strawberry, rhubarb, raspberry, highbush cranberry, blueberry. I'm of the young generation (I'm 25) and I really look forward to picking wild berries and making jam. It's definitely a rewarding experience: I actually just posted about making wild strawberry jam on my blog a week or so ago. I don't know anything about pressure cooking though. How is that different from the water bath canning?
Pressure canning is not pressure cooking. They are two different things. A pressure canner is the canner in my photo. A pressure canner is what you use for all non-acidic vegetables and ALL meats. You cannot use a water bath canner for them. The low-acid foods need to be processed at 240° F. This temperature can only be achieved with a pressure canner.
Post a Comment