Yes, you can can
Back in the day, many people enjoyed the fun and rewarding activity of canning. It was a great way to follow the example of the squirrel that hid food he knew he would need in the winter.
It still is. Canning during the spring, summer and fall allows people to put many different kinds of chemical-free, tasty, ready-to-eat foods in jars that they can access in the winter, or even years into the future when they need it. It’s a great way to exercise self-reliance.
As with a lot of things, people just don’t seem to have the time or the interest to can anymore. But my suggestion is to get back into it if you used to do it, and to get started doing it if you never have.
One of the great things about canning is that you never have to worry about a power outage spoiling the food that you’ve canned and put in your kitchen pantry. You can put aside vegetables, fruits, preserves, jams, jellies, pickles, chili, stews, sauces, meat, fish and many more food items into glass jars that can be quickly made into a meal or a snack.
Once you’ve decided to do some home canning, you need to choose either a pressure canner or a water bath canner. The first could cost you about $120, but you can probably get the second one for around $20. Before you automatically choose the less expensive canner, keep in mind that it will be something you can use for years. Regardless, it’s important that your jars are properly sealed after you fill them.
There are plenty of books and articles you can find in the library and online to learn the best ways to do canning, so I won’t go into them here. But make sure you follow an approved recipes to assure proper acidity/salinity, mark the jar lids with the contents and the date, then store them in a cool, dark and dry place (without the rings).
When was the last time you did any canning? Readers of this blog could really use your insight into the kinds of foods that you can, the type of canner that you use, and the tips and tricks that you could share. I really hope to hear from you about this.
I’ve been canning for 30 years and I’m still learning new things. We just bought an All American 930 this summer and a 3 burner Camp Chef propane cook stove so now we do our canning outside or in the garage. Cook stove works wonderfully, won’t can in the kitchen again. Just canned turkey broth and ham broth on Monday.
When the kids were little we had a friend that had a guava tree. He would trade us guavas for jelly or baked goods I made. One year I had just a small amount of several fruits left, so made jam with equal amounts of plum, apricot, guava and strawberries. I called it PAGS, It set up well and was on of the families favorites. Don’t be afraid to experiment with your flavors and write down the ones that work for you for future use. Trust me; we think we will always remember, but we don’t. Blessings
I just started canning last year and I’m in my 80’s so it never to late to start. I have both types of scanners and all the paraphernalia that goes with it. I have BlackBerry jam- strawberry jam – dill and bread and butter pickles – veggies- and Turkey noodle soup – tomatoes plus other stuff. Glad I went ahead and got all equipment that was needed so it would be on hand for whatever I was going to do that day. This year I didn’t can . But it’s all stored and ready to use. Should have done this year’s ago but too busy working and raising grandchildren. People need to can their food for emergencies that are coming up. If they can’t grow their own food go to a farmers market – flea markets or buy on sale at the store. Peaches is my next thing for pies and cobblers . It’s so rewarding after it’s done and you ‘ll feel proud of what you did. It’s NEVER too late to start. Get a Blue Ball book for canning and it’s easy to follow. Good luck.
So far this summer I’ve made Strawberry Jam, Peach Jam, Blueberry Jam, Raspberry Jelly, Boysen/Blackberry Jelly Pluot Jelly and Marionberry Jelly is on the way.
I think canning is a great way of storing food. If you do have a pantry you should can as much as you can. I give this an (A +). :)
My grandmother taught me the art of gardening as well as canning. ..It was a way of life for her growing up during the depression era…I am grateful for the wonderful memories of canning with her ss well as the passed down knowledge with it…it actually inspired wto become a chef…
Although I don’t have the time togarden and can right now. ..this is agoal of mine so I can pass fown this knowledge to my own grandchildren.
And she did boyh types of canning..as well as a paraffin wax seal for jelly….
Every one is prepping for the end. I hope u canned some JESUS because your going to need him to survive!
Can anyone tell me some good canning books for beginners.
The starting point for any canning has to be the Ball Blue Book . It’s used by the USDA for their guidelines . $10 at Kmart/Lowes . We pressure can about 98% of our food . We prefer stainless as it doesn’t chip and rust .
Tattler has lifetime gaurantee reuseable lids – they are 2 pieces rubber & lid Been canning for years & saving my family lots of money & healthier eating Guess it’s a natual if you garden
You can bottle just about anything you want to bottle. I recently found a great recipe for Southwestern Chili beans. I have done cream cheese, butter, different kinds of meat etc… The list goes as far as your imagination takes you. Believe me there is a recipe out there for whatever you want to can. I also did brownie mix with dry canning in the oven.
WOW Leesa…I never heard of ” dry canning in the oven”. Sounds like a great idea! Is there an especially good site for canning details? Like meats, soups, Dairy products , and other ” different” things? I’ll order the Blue Ball Canning Book on payday.
No matter how you slice the cake, canning is a very effective way of providing for your family as well as bring them together in a common interest. The family learns that they can and will survive if they work together. What they make will taste better than anything they can buy in the store. It is cheaper to make it for yourself than to have some company do it for you with all their processed ingredients and chemical preservatives.
We can when we find items on sale throughout the year in the stores and what is ripe in my garden like pickles. When summer and fall rolls around we can what is in the garden and what the farmers in my area have available. It can be an all day chore, but, it is fun when you work together as a family, the memories you share throughout the year along with the preserves you made together with a taste that is out of this world.
Hi Frank, The wife and I raise a garden . We use pressure cookers to can. I smoke and can fall salmon.
I REALLY do a lot of canning. My family is only me and my young son, but I work full-time and meals need to be simple on work days. I can all year around. During the summer, I put up stuff from the garden (freeze and can). I use beans and my canned tomatoes to pressure can chili, ham and navy beans soup, and much more. I have lots of jars of chicken stew and beef stew that can be used in a varity of ways, like shepard stew, chicken and dumplings, etc. I also make up large batches of, say, manicotti, and freeze them in meal size portions. During the past two years, I have found many ways to stock my shelves and eat good, too! This week, I canned small jars of chicken to make chicken salad sandwiches for lunches.
I am always on the look out for recipes that can be make in larger batches and then make time to do them. The pressure canner’s price has paid for it many times over and the price of eating organic is minimized. (My favorite recipe is baked beans. My little guy LOVES beanie weinies).
I enjoy this site and all of the articles. However, there is a very annoying popup that I can not get rid of. It is a large “share with your friends on Facebook”. It is annoying at the least. There must be some way of getting rid of it other than not visiting this site or just placing this site in the spam folder.
If possible send me your answer to my E-Mail address.
Hmmm…sounds like the marketing guys have been mucking about again. Let me see if I can just get rid of it.
I started canning while in my early 20’s but learned how from my mother and grandmother as a child and am now in my 60’s, I plan on continuing to can as long as I am able to cook, the food prepared from home canned products is far better than any gmo or organic produce bought from a store and I know exactly what’s in my food!
Started last year with my wife. Canned everything from our garden, heirloom tomatoes (amazing taste), jalapeño jam, zucchini relish, pickles, squash, spaghetti sauce, potatoes, etc. Placed extremly well at county fair. Alot of work but well worth the effort, along with learning from our mistakes. Good family time. ENJOY!
zucchini relish? (says the man always on the hunt for better ways to preserve zucchini)
I have both a pressure canner and a stock pot I use to do water bath canning of tomatoes, fruit, jelly – we can all kinds of things. I have both regular lids and some of the new Tattler lids. The Tattler lids are tricky and you have to follow the directions exactly or they don’t seal. You must take the rings off those to check them. My grandmother never, ever left the rings on jars because if they rust, they can ruin the food, the ring AND the glass jar! I never leave the rings on.
The stone soup story has a real basis but no one ate stones. The idea of stones in soup came from the Indians, who would heat stones and put them in vessels of water to heat them. The legend is that the Hobos carried it further by putting stones in a kettle of boiling water and inviting others to add to the soup. No one ate the stones – they sank to the bottom of the pot, which would contain whatever food the various people found to put into it.
For 3 generation my family both sides has canned from their own large gardens using only pressure cookers absolutely. My grandmother showed me one big problem she seen people doing that causes very high loses of canned stuff — jar selection — this is very important. only use jars with company name made in glass, such as Ball or Mason. Many people tried to use jars saved from buying stuff in stores, this may work 1 out of 5 about because those jar tops are not always seal-able. We use 36″ x 15″ x 6′ racks with 5 shelf holds 2 layers of 36 quart full jars separated by cardboard on top of bottom layer ( 72 quart per shelf ) to store our canning jars. 3 1/2 racks are full of jars and 1 1/2 rack is equipment, such as 2 — 7 quart pressure cookers, 6 pans for shelling, no auto shell all hand done, (who can shell butter bean one in each hand ?? ) ” ME “. When I put these racks together did not like all the weight of 2 layers of full quart jars depending on some kind of rubber shelf holder for each corner so I applied a screw under each shelf corner now shelf can not move down at all and if shelf needs to be move I can move easily. As for leaving rings on jars, we always tighten by hand after cooling jars and put on shelf. We have a cover (sheet) over whole rack to floor all the time in home. Using canned stuff from 2010 now.
I did that recently – bought some attractive “canning” jars at a discount store. As I’m sure you’ve figured out, they are now really pretty pencil holders. sigh.
Frank, have some pictures for you of wife and my canned jar shelf with Ruger tomatoes. hehehe
Some rural counties have community canning centers where you can go and can large numbers of jars. The employees will help you if asked. The cost is not bad, mayb $.40/quart and you avoid heating up your home on a hot summer day.
I have some cans of mixed vegetables and tomatoes that are nearing their use by date. I plan to mix them together as stew or soup mix and can them in glass jars. Does anyone know why this will not work? When I open the jars, I can either add bullion or meat to season the soup or stew. Ides, anyone?
be very careful doing that those cans from store may be plastic lined and plastic would be in food, just like a dented can on shelf at store, we would not know if dent broke plastic or not if did then food would be touching metal for how long ??
I try to can at least a few things every year, more to keep in practice until I actually get a large enough garden going to have food left over to can.
In the article you state, “you need to choose either a pressure canner or a water bath canner,” and then go on to discuss price differences. People need to know that it is not just a matter of price, but the two types of canners serve different purposes, and you choose one based on what you are planning to can. A water bath canner processes food at 212 degrees Farenheit, and is safe for foods with sufficient acidity, such as most fruits and pickles (the added vinegar makes them acid). For any combination of vegetables and meats that are not pickled, you need a pressure canner to bring the temperature up high enough to kill the bacteria that can grow in them.
I have a small pressure canner, but have not yet been brave enough to try it, so I generally just can jam, pickles, and tomatoes. I buck the tradition somewhat, and usually do not use a canner at all, but rather a method told to me by a co-worker probably thirty years ago. I wash the jars and lids in hot water, prepare the food that will go in them, fill and seal the jars, and put them on the rack in the center of my oven. I turn the oven to 250 degrees, and start counting the processing time from the time it has preheated. Sometimes I allow a few extra minutes just to be safe. Then I turn off the oven and remove the jars and let them cool. Most people think I am crazy when I tell them this, but I have never had a problem. The purpose of the hot water bath is to raise the temperature of the jars to 212 degrees and sustain it for a certain period of time. The oven method does the same thing. Technically I could preheat the oven to 225, but I like it a little hotter, in case the thermostat is off. When I moved several years ago, I found some things in the back of a cupboard that I had canned this way seven and eight years earlier. They were a little discolored, but still sealed and edible.
I have canned for many years. You are correct when you say you will be able to store them without worrying about power outages. This is one of the reasons I do it. I highly recommend that you use both a canner and a pressure cooker. The canner can be used to boil your jars to kill bacteria and the pressure cooker makes sure the items in the jars are cooked correctly for the right amount of time and they rarely do they not seal. If they don’t seal put the food into the refrigerator and used up quickly.
My late Grandmother taught me to can the Veggies she grew in her Victory Garden during WWII. I purchase my Heritage Seeds from an Oregon Company that specializes in non_hybrid seeds I raise the “Three Sisters”. Beens, Corn and Squash. In addition I raise a variety of Greens. Spinach, Collards, Kale, Mustard, etc.. Some of the corn and beans are dried. I save the seeds of the “Three Sisters” and plant them the following year.
My Canner is a 7 quart Pressure Canner purchased by my late Wife’s Father in 1946.
Survival is the best revenge!!
We are avid canners and can meat, stews, chili, and every veggie from our garden. It is hard work but well worth the effort. If you are doing items that have low acidity you MUST use a pressure canner . A water bath canner is good but it cannot do what a pressure canner does try reading Putting Food By. It is a great place to start. Also consider dehydration of some foods. It takes up almost no room and lasts a long time. We make our own deer meat Jerky and it is delicious. I’ve dehydrated apples, zucchini, onions, etc. it is another wonderful way to have food stored for future use. Especially if a natural disaster happens and you have to leave your home, the dehydrated foods are light and much easier to transport than jars in an emergency.
I have a wonderful book on canning called -the amish canning cookbook.
by Georgia varozza.
Hi Frank, we have canned all my life great grandma did it, grandma did it, mom did it, and now my wife and I do it, and we are teaching our 2 daughters. 1 of the main reasons we can is because we can control what the commercial canning companies call others ( stuff that should be thrown away). It taste great and is always setting there on the shelf just waiting for us to eat it. We take everything from our non gmo garden.
Keep up the good work. I really enjoy your blogs.
Charle
If someone is going to get serious about canning, they will need both kinds of canners, not one or the other. Meats and most vegetables must be processed under pressure. I have had only limited experience doing it, but have several friends that do it year round. One of them raises and cans rabbits! Many county extension offices give hands on classes in the summer.
Dear Frank,
Back in the late 70’s I participated in a man hunt for a fugitive who had gone to ground way out in the plains. I tracked him to where he had take shelter in an old abandon homestead.
Searching the property we found an old limestone root cellar (the outlaw missed it), but when we searched it we discovered shelves of corn, beans, fruit and even meats that had been there since the “Dirty 30’s” as near as we could find out.
To our surprise, many of the jars were still sealed and appeared fine. I was the only oNe brave enough to open a few. The chickens were foul smelling, but to my astonishment, the corn, bean and pickles REMAINED EDIBLE !!!
Later (after capturing the bad guy) I went back and gathered a few jars. WE took them to a local museum. They remained on display for a couple years, but exposed to room temp and light they went bad.
God Bless,
Orrin
P.S. The person who talked abut “stone soup” during the depression … NOT! That is an old hobo joke and urban legend.
However, I do enjoy “Hot Rock Cooking” foods in the field or for purifying questionable water!
OMK
My wife has a soft spot for those tin capped old mason jars; we use them for short term storage of dry goods around the house. I know she would have been enamored to find someone’s preserves all lined up like that.
I’ve heard people say that during the depression years some people would make stone soup. if stones were gathered on an Ocean Beach they were even better from the salt water. they said there was some vitamin value in the stones. maybe true , because they survived the bad times.