Home Canning

[Michele]

I may be suffering from delusions of grandeur in assuming I'm actually going to grow enough vegis to need to can them, lol, but does anyone know how to do this?

 

I'm loooking for book recommendations, safty tips or things to watch for, etc.

 

Do I have to can the actual vegis or do I make the tomato sauce and then can that? How long does it keep?

 

How do you tell if it's gone "off"?

 

I turn the AC off during the day while I'm at work so the stored jars (even just on the kitchen shelf) will be in 90+ degrees - will that make them go bad?

 

Can you preserve in olive oil rather than go through the whole canning schabago and how long would that keep?

 

Will I, in the end, ultimately save money or spend more money doing all this (including buying soil and plant containers, lol) than if I just went up to the grocery store?

 

Is freezing a better way to go and how long is something good in the freezer?

 

M

[Aloe]

I may be suffering from delusions of grandeur in assuming I'm actually going to grow enough vegis to need to can them, lol, but does anyone know how to do this?

 

I'm loooking for book recommendations, safty tips or things to watch for, etc.

 

Do I have to can the actual vegis or do I make the tomato sauce and then can that? How long does it keep?

 

How do you tell if it's gone "off"?

 

I turn the AC off during the day while I'm at work so the stored jars (even just on the kitchen shelf) will be in 90+ degrees - will that make them go bad?

 

Can you preserve in olive oil rather than go through the whole canning schabago and how long would that keep?

 

Will I, in the end, ultimately save money or spend more money doing all this (including buying soil and plant containers, lol) than if I just went up to the grocery store?

 

Is freezing a better way to go and how long is something good in the freezer?

 

M

 

I don't know the answers to all your questions, but in regards to the book recomendation, I just bought a new pressure canner and use the book that came with it as far as how to can each different vegetable, meat, etc. It's worked out good for me. :)

[winter night]

I don;t know anything about canning but we grew most of our veg when I was a kid.

 

My mum blanched everything we couldnt eat in time from the garden, and froze it, and most lasted till the next fresh veg grew again the following year.

Worked great for things like carrots, peas, onions and other firm veg. She also set to work and turned strawberries into jam. I can see how canning would be good though for squishy things like tomatoes, though you could make these into 'passata' like sauces and freeze them too,

 

I plan to grow some of my veg this year, but with a small garden I will probably be able to eat what I produce. I will check up my book as it has tips on how long things last and come back to you on the freezing method.

 

The alternative to canning is pickling in jars, which would last ages, but depends whether you are a fan of vinegar! They would look lovely though as you can see the contents. Is canning the same as using glass jars, or is canning actually cans? (I know this is probably a stupid question!)

 

Would be interested if anyone has tips on canning, never thought about this one!

Edited March 19, 2011 by winter night

[winter night]

I may be suffering from delusions of grandeur in assuming I'm actually going to grow enough vegis to need to can them, lol, but does anyone know how to do this?

 

I'm loooking for book recommendations, safty tips or things to watch for, etc.

 

Do I have to can the actual vegis or do I make the tomato sauce and then can that? How long does it keep?

 

How do you tell if it's gone "off"?

 

I turn the AC off during the day while I'm at work so the stored jars (even just on the kitchen shelf) will be in 90+ degrees - will that make them go bad?

 

Can you preserve in olive oil rather than go through the whole canning schabago and how long would that keep?

 

Will I, in the end, ultimately save money or spend more money doing all this (including buying soil and plant containers, lol) than if I just went up to the grocery store?

 

Is freezing a better way to go and how long is something good in the freezer?

 

M

 

 

also! in terms of cost if growing your own, once you buy the inital pots, these will last for years. buying half grown plants will work out much more expensive than growing from scratch and are really just for the novely value (e.g. they are selling a potato plant and bucket kit in stores here which works out more than buying a bag of potatoes).

 

You can compost your waste food, and this will feed the soil for the next year, and then your only overheads are seeds, if you need to buy these, and then the electric for the freezer. If you are able to rotate which plants you grow where from yea to year, the soil should keep producing good veg without having to buy in any more.

 

the only advice I would give if you live anywhere windy, is not to buy a cheap plastic wrap covered greenhouse - I did that one year, and the plants grew huge with loads of almost ripe tomatoes, then the wind came and destroyed the lot overnight!

 

You will probably find too, that you will go through periods where you are eating a million lettuces, because they are popping up all over the joint, so its a really good way to get extra green's into your diet! :vhappywitch:

 

p.s. sorry for rambling - I love growing veg!:chakrahearts:

Edited March 19, 2011 by winter night

[Michele]

Re freezing - that was one of the things I was wondering about.... considering I'll need it to last 3 to 6 months, is there any reason I can't just cook pasta sauce then freeze it until I'm ready to use it? And why would you have to steralize things for home canning (which is in jars not cans) but not have to for home freezing? Can I just shove everything into a mason jar (clean but not steralized) and freeze that? I can see jam and stuff one might need to can becuase it would freeze really weird. And maybe carrots although I will try the blanching thing and see what happens. I've started off small... 3 tommy plants, 2 zucchini, 2 cukes, 2 basil, a handful of green onions. If I seem able to grow this stuff (I can grow orchids and roses, lol) then I will try with seeds next year. Digging up the grass and making beds was a COMPLETE bitch, though... took me all bloody day and my legs are still shaking.

 

M

[Michele]

Mum said that in her day no one had money to buy special canning supplies. They just saved every single jar they ever got, washed them out and filled 'em with new stuff and no one ever keeled over. (They also had a little fish mum had caught in a stream who lived in a jam jar on the windowsill. His name was Jimmy Tiddler and in the winter the water in the jar would freeze and he'd be stuck in about a inch or so of water at the bottom and they'd dig him out with a pick and add some new water every morning. He lived for years like that, lol.)

 

M

[winter night]

Re freezing - that was one of the things I was wondering about.... considering I'll need it to last 3 to 6 months, is there any reason I can't just cook pasta sauce then freeze it until I'm ready to use it? And why would you have to steralize things for home canning (which is in jars not cans) but not have to for home freezing? Can I just shove everything into a mason jar (clean but not steralized) and freeze that? I can see jam and stuff one might need to can becuase it would freeze really weird. And maybe carrots although I will try the blanching thing and see what happens. I've started off small... 3 tommy plants, 2 zucchini, 2 cukes, 2 basil, a handful of green onions. If I seem able to grow this stuff (I can grow orchids and roses, lol) then I will try with seeds next year. Digging up the grass and making beds was a COMPLETE bitch, though... took me all bloody day and my legs are still shaking.

 

M

 

you can definately cook pasta sauce and then freeze and re-use. you can even do the ice cube tray thing, where you freeze as cubes, then empty out into a freezer bag - it means you can remove a few blocks at a time and not have to defrost the whole bag at once.

 

My mum always steralised the jam jars. she didn't steralise the elderflower wine bottles properly once, and the batch had to be binned as 'things' grew in it!

 

I think the temperature of a freezer stops germs multiplying but putting them in room temperature jars gives any tiny bug a chance to start growing. It doesn't take long to sterlise jars, my mum used to boil them in water and then put them in a low oven to dry off quickly.

 

The herbs could be dried and then frozen to stop them going squidgy too. Anything watery like zucchini or cuecumbers are probably best tinned - you can put in oils and chillies, and other things to add to their flavour.

 

Its always worst in the first year getting the garden up and running, but it will pay off in the following years. Vegetables are much easier to grow than flowers so you will be fine!

As I moved house I am starting from scratch again! but its worth it! :wickedwitch:

[winter night]

Mum said that in her day no one had money to buy special canning supplies. They just saved every single jar they ever got, washed them out and filled 'em with new stuff and no one ever keeled over. (They also had a little fish mum had caught in a stream who lived in a jam jar on the windowsill. His name was Jimmy Tiddler and in the winter the water in the jar would freeze and he'd be stuck in about a inch or so of water at the bottom and they'd dig him out with a pick and add some new water every morning. He lived for years like that, lol.)

 

M

 

 

it is true that we are probably too worried about germs and stuff, I remember we had a pantry for milk and cheese, before we got or first fridge (late 70's) and we didnt get any bugs from anything that was a bit wiffy!

 

Would be a shame though to find out your hard work was spolied if stuff started to go furry!

 

That's mad about the fish though! lucky Jimmy!

[Michele]

Okay - all these blogs I read said to freeze the harvest, but to first blanch it, then steralize the container, then fill and resteralize and freeze.

 

Huh? When I make chicken soup I toss the leftovers into an UNSTERALIZED tupperware, put it in a freezer bag and use it within six months. WHy can't I just do that with the veggies? I don't plan on keepting anything longer than 6 months. I mean by then winter will be here again and I'll have a new crop (assuming I am any good at this veggie-growing venture, and that's a BIG assumption, lol). (a great seasoning - mince garlic and ginger and add some tumeric or cumin. Put in a baggie and press flat to about 1/2 inch thick and freeze. Break off pieces when you are cooking and just toss in frozen as you cook. Read that on an Indian cooking blog. No need to steralize anything.)

 

I was thirsty after all the hard work and while I was watering the new veggie patch I took a coupla sips out of the hose. My neighbor had a fit... am I not supposed to do that? Can you get sick from doing that?

 

M

[Aloe]

Okay - all these blogs I read said to freeze the harvest, but to first blanch it, then steralize the container, then fill and resteralize and freeze.

 

Huh? When I make chicken soup I toss the leftovers into an UNSTERALIZED tupperware, put it in a freezer bag and use it within six months. WHy can't I just do that with the veggies? I don't plan on keepting anything longer than 6 months. I mean by then winter will be here again and I'll have a new crop (assuming I am any good at this veggie-growing venture, and that's a BIG assumption, lol). (a great seasoning - mince garlic and ginger and add some tumeric or cumin. Put in a baggie and press flat to about 1/2 inch thick and freeze. Break off pieces when you are cooking and just toss in frozen as you cook. Read that on an Indian cooking blog. No need to steralize anything.)

 

I was thirsty after all the hard work and while I was watering the new veggie patch I took a coupla sips out of the hose. My neighbor had a fit... am I not supposed to do that? Can you get sick from doing that?

 

M

 

I don't sterilize containers containers before freezing veggies... I just put the veggies in a clean container and go with it. *shrug*

 

What did you neighbor say about the hose water? Me and my cousins used to drink from the water hose all the time... Never made us sick. Could be that something's different about it in Florida or could be that you're neighbor's an overcautious germophobe... lol

[Michele]

I don't sterilize containers containers before freezing veggies... I just put the veggies in a clean container and go with it. *shrug*

 

What did you neighbor say about the hose water? Me and my cousins used to drink from the water hose all the time... Never made us sick. Could be that something's different about it in Florida or could be that you're neighbor's an overcautious germophobe... lol

 

lol - yes... he also had a fit becuase I keep all the cat feeding stations on the kitchen table so we can all eat breakfast together (OMG - but their butts touch the table when they sit down - and then you EAT THERE????????!!!!!!!!!). Ahhhhh... nothing like a little cat-ass to season your bacon and eggs with ;-)

 

M

[Aloe]

Ahhhhh... nothing like a little cat-ass to season your bacon and eggs with ;-)

 

M

 

I just happened to read that with my mouth full of bacon and eggs and a cat sitting in front of me. lol

[EarthFaery]

I was thinking of doing tomatoes this year for the first time, providing I get a good crop, last year was horrible. The stores discontinued the canned tomatoes I use and I haven't found anything of the same quality to replace them so I thought I'd give it a try. I make a double batch of sauce every Sunday, and freeze half for the next week. I can't imagine how many tomatoes! like barrels and barrels it would seem lol. I remember my neighbors used to can everything. They packed it all into mason jars, poured wax on top and sealed them up. it *seemed* easy enough

[CelticGypsy]

I was thinking of doing tomatoes this year for the first time, providing I get a good crop, last year was horrible. The stores discontinued the canned tomatoes I use and I haven't found anything of the same quality to replace them so I thought I'd give it a try. I make a double batch of sauce every Sunday, and freeze half for the next week. I can't imagine how many tomatoes! like barrels and barrels it would seem lol. I remember my neighbors used to can everything. They packed it all into mason jars, poured wax on top and sealed them up. it *seemed* easy enough

 

I " can " and so does Aloe, I don't use wax though, I use the seal and ring method. For me to know that my jars have sealed properly without any bacteria, nothin' is finer than counting the number of " pings" the seals sing when they know that the jar of tomatoes is ready to be put away. The jars let you know with this method. Oh.. and just so ya know.. mine don't have cat's asses in them or hair... and I have 7 cat's.... well aware of fur and tail swishing across my bacon and eggs.............erhm... Aloe... Michelle... now really...girls.... :rolleyes_witch:

 

Regards,

Gypsy

[Aloe]

I " can " and so does Aloe, I don't use wax though, I use the seal and ring method. For me to know that my jars have sealed properly without any bacteria, nothin' is finer than counting the number of " pings" the seals sing when they know that the jar of tomatoes is ready to be put away. The jars let you know with this method. Oh.. and just so ya know.. mine don't have cat's asses in them or hair... and I have 7 cat's.... well aware of fur and tail swishing across my bacon and eggs.............erhm... Aloe... Michelle... now really...girls.... :rolleyes_witch:

 

Regards,

Gypsy

 

 

I'm with you CG, I've gotta hear those seals pop or else I put it in the fridge to eat immediately.

 

Well ya know... cat ass happens. :D (Not in canning though. lol)

[EarthFaery]

Oh boy, I have a lot to learn. I thought they used the ring and seal after they poured the wax? I guess I don't really remember. I'm gonna try it and see if it's worth doing, and without dog hair! I kinda like the idea of knowing where my food comes from.

[Vermillion]

Re freezing - that was one of the things I was wondering about.... considering I'll need it to last 3 to 6 months, is there any reason I can't just cook pasta sauce then freeze it until I'm ready to use it? And why would you have to steralize things for home canning (which is in jars not cans) but not have to for home freezing? Can I just shove everything into a mason jar (clean but not steralized) and freeze that? I can see jam and stuff one might need to can becuase it would freeze really weird. And maybe carrots although I will try the blanching thing and see what happens. I've started off small... 3 tommy plants, 2 zucchini, 2 cukes, 2 basil, a handful of green onions. If I seem able to grow this stuff (I can grow orchids and roses, lol) then I will try with seeds next year. Digging up the grass and making beds was a COMPLETE bitch, though... took me all bloody day and my legs are still shaking.

 

M

 

My mum taught me to can when I was little. Haven't done it on my own for lack of supplies, but help her all the time. As someone has already said, the trick to canning is boiling the jars and lids so that as much of the bacteria is killed off as possible. The food is added to the boiled jars while it is still hot, where possible. The lower the bacterial count when you seal them up, the longer they last. The cans would be happier in cold storage, but if you don't have a cellar or basement, use a closet that's coolish or under the sink or some other somewhat cool and dark place, they should still be ok for quite some time. And yes, you can reuse jars from pasta sauce, etc. as long as you make usre there is no sign of rust on them.

 

Don't freeze sealed glass containers - they will crack and break. You are better off to use plastic containers that stack nicely and can be written on, or even ziploc freezer bags that can be frozen flat and then tipped on end like a bookshelf of sauce and food! (and it's easy to find thing this way, too)

 

There are lots of recepies for really good freezer jam. These are made up in plastic containers before freezing.

 

As far as cost goes, this book has been on my to-buy list for a while now (it seems easy to find, including on Amazon): "Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation".

 

A bit of the description - "Typical books about preserving garden produce nearly always assume that modern "kitchen gardeners" will boil or freeze their vegetables and fruits. Yet here is a book that goes back to the future--celebrating traditional but little-known French techniques for storing and preserving edibles in ways that maximize flavor and nutrition. Translated into English, and with a new foreword by Deborah Madison, this book deliberately ignores freezing and high-temperature canning in favor of methods that are superior because they are less costly and more energy-efficient."

 

I really want to try making sour kraut!

 

Let us know how it goes, M.

[Aloe]

 

As far as cost goes, this book has been on my to-buy list for a while now (it seems easy to find, including on Amazon): "Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation".

 

A bunch of my fundy christian friends decided awhile back that the end of time was near and America was going to go into martial law and they all bought this book and started lacto fermenting everything in an attempt to stop using electricity and live off the land amish-style. Made for some REALLY nasty side dishes at at BBQ's when everybody's bringing veggies rotted in vinegar! LOL

 

(Did your Mom use the pasta jars with a pressure canner or just the boiling water method? In my experience, old pasta jars are more prone to breaking when you're using a pressure canner - which is different from the boiling water method, and pressure canning is what I use since I can meats and beans etc. So I only use mason jars. Spoken as someone who's cut the hell out of her hand cleaning out broken glass from a pasta sauce jar from the bottom of her pressure canner. ;) )

[CelticGypsy]

I may be suffering from delusions of grandeur in assuming I'm actually going to grow enough vegis to need to can them, lol, but does anyone know how to do this?

 

I'm loooking for book recommendations, safty tips or things to watch for, etc.

 

Do I have to can the actual vegis or do I make the tomato sauce and then can that? How long does it keep?

 

How do you tell if it's gone "off"?

 

I turn the AC off during the day while I'm at work so the stored jars (even just on the kitchen shelf) will be in 90+ degrees - will that make them go bad?

 

Can you preserve in olive oil rather than go through the whole canning schabago and how long would that keep?

 

Will I, in the end, ultimately save money or spend more money doing all this (including buying soil and plant containers, lol) than if I just went up to the grocery store?

 

Is freezing a better way to go and how long is something good in the freezer?

 

M

Last time I read, you are the woman who threw her stove out and down the steps. lol. Now you wanna learn how to

" can " ??? lololol... with that out of the way, I'll give you some tips.

 

I never can my other vegies except tomatoes. I blanch and freeze my yellow beans, sweet corn, sweet peas, ect.

When you blanch you only boil the veggies for about 30- 45 seconds, then you immerse them in ice cold water, I use all my ice in the trays for this. This stops the cooking process, then I scoop them up and put them in individual freezer zip lock baggies. Depending on the veggie, as my peas are harvested continually as well as my beans, they can last in your freezer about 10 months.

 

Yes, you save $ and the produce is better for you anyways.

 

If you " can " your produce in the sealed jars will last a long time, in any kind of room temperature. I don't have AC and it gets quite warm up here, and my tomatoes are just as fresh as the day I canned them.

 

The only time I ever had a bad batch, Himself made tomato juice, while I made a tomato V-8 juice with extra carrots, beets, celery, onions .. ya know a veggie juice. I don't know what I did wrong, and I was so disappointed, all my jars sealed, but when I went to open them, it looked like on the top of the juice, like cottage cheeze floating. Himself's tomato juice, was just beautiful, my V-8 juice just sucked and was foul. Either I didn't scrub my carrots and other root veggies well enough, or I didn't clean the rim off before I put the rubber seal on it. I'm not giving up on the V-8, as I love V-8 and vodka.

 

Now when I can tomatoes, I cook the sliced-chunked tomatoes first, then put them in the hot sterilized jars, with the seals and caps and rings. When the tomatoes are used let's say for pasta, if there is any left over sause, I put it back in the jar, and freeze that. When I've made spaghetti sause out of the home grown tomatoes, I'll put that in jars and freeze that. I've never " canned " my home-made sause, only the tomatoes that produce the sause.

 

It's so easy and the end result is just fabulous. Maybe you and your Mum can do it in her kitchen, I'm inclined to believe that she has a friendly relationship with her stove, dear. :rolleyes_witch:

 

Regards,

Gypsy

[CelticGypsy]

A bunch of my fundy christian friends decided awhile back that the end of time was near and America was going to go into martial law and they all bought this book and started lacto fermenting everything in an attempt to stop using electricity and live off the land amish-style. Made for some REALLY nasty side dishes at at BBQ's when everybody's bringing veggies rotted in vinegar! LOL

 

That's just wrong on so many levels.:sickwitch: WTF wasn't anybody thinking? Gross, and down right rude to be associated with any type of BBQ.

 

Regards,

Gypsy

[Aloe]

 

A bunch of my fundy christian friends decided awhile back that the end of time was near and America was going to go into martial law and they all bought this book and started lacto fermenting everything in an attempt to stop using electricity and live off the land amish-style. Made for some REALLY nasty side dishes at at BBQ's when everybody's bringing veggies rotted in vinegar! LOL

 

That's just wrong on so many levels.:sickwitch: WTF wasn't anybody thinking? Gross, and down right rude to be associated with any type of BBQ.

 

Regards,

Gypsy

 

I dunno what they were thinking.. most of them have given up on it now and are moving on to the next 'urban homesteading' or 'living off the land' fad when they found their men cheating on the fermented veggies with McDonald's. LOL I am a decent cook - not great just decent, but you can't imagine how fast my side dishes disappeared at these gatherings! :rolleyes_witch:

[Jevne]

I dunno what they were thinking.. most of them have given up on it now and are moving on to the next 'urban homesteading' or 'living off the land' fad when they found their men cheating on the fermented veggies with McDonald's. LOL I am a decent cook - not great just decent, but you can't imagine how fast my side dishes disappeared at these gatherings! :rolleyes_witch:

 

People who mess with BBQs and their related foods should be cursed. All Hail the Southern-style BBQ rib Gods!!!

 

J

[Vermillion]

A bunch of my fundy christian friends decided awhile back that the end of time was near and America was going to go into martial law and they all bought this book and started lacto fermenting everything in an attempt to stop using electricity and live off the land amish-style. Made for some REALLY nasty side dishes at at BBQ's when everybody's bringing veggies rotted in vinegar! LOL

 

(Did your Mom use the pasta jars with a pressure canner or just the boiling water method? In my experience, old pasta jars are more prone to breaking when you're using a pressure canner - which is different from the boiling water method, and pressure canning is what I use since I can meats and beans etc. So I only use mason jars. Spoken as someone who's cut the hell out of her hand cleaning out broken glass from a pasta sauce jar from the bottom of her pressure canner. ;) )

Hm... well I don't really want to give up too much of my modern lifestyle, I just love sour kraut and pickled things and wanted to give it a shot for a while now. I also get a delivery from a local organic farm each week and I want to learn how to put some of it away if I get too much of one particular item in each season (I will most likely fall back on freezing, except during tomatoe season). My mum boils her jars, I guess the commercial jars not intended for canning might not be tempered well enough for heat under pressure?

 

People who mess with BBQs and their related foods should be cursed. All Hail the Southern-style BBQ rib Gods!!!

 

J

...mmm, BBQ rib Gods... now -those- are dieties I am comfortable having relations with. :loveeyes:

[Aloe]

Hm... well I don't really want to give up too much of my modern lifestyle, I just love sour kraut and pickled things and wanted to give it a shot for a while now. I also get a delivery from a local organic farm each week and I want to learn how to put some of it away if I get too much of one particular item in each season (I will most likely fall back on freezing, except during tomatoe season). My mum boils her jars, I guess the commercial jars not intended for canning might not be tempered well enough for heat under pressure?

 

...mmm, BBQ rib Gods... now -those- are dieties I am comfortable having relations with. :loveeyes:

 

I believe that is the case.. mason jars are specifically made to be pressure canned, not all of the other jars are. I generally reuse my old pasta sauce (etc) jars for storing dried herbs.

 

I think I'm getting a message that an orgy with the BBQ gods is in order again soon. :D

[Michele]

A bunch of my fundy christian friends decided awhile back that the end of time was near and America was going to go into martial law and they all bought this book and started lacto fermenting everything

 

Now that is odd. I thought Xtians were all beamed up at the second coming, so why would they all be worring about how to survive after it?

 

M