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Garden harvests are starting to come in and that means for a lot of us it's time to start CANNING that wonderful bounty. We don't proclaim to be canning experts but we have done a little bit here and there and shared our adventures on the blog. Today we're going to give you a little canning 101 in case you are a newbie to the canning world. Also don't forget to watch the FREE CANNING SAFETY WEBINAR we held this week!
Canning 101: How to Get Started
Get a GOOD Canning Guide
 Ball has
put out several canning books that I think are very helpful. Our favorite go-to manual is the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. If there is anything you are thinking of canning, there should be instructions in there for you. Make sure to take note of the sections on altitudes as you may find that your processing times are
different if you live in a very high (or low) area.
 Another book we'd recommend if you like to see more step by step instructions,
beautiful photography, and personal tips, is Yes, You Can! And Freeze and Dry It, Too by Daniel Gasteiger. Click here to see a full review on why we love that book. It's really fun to sit and browse
through and great for seeing instructions laid out very clearly.
My pressure canner also came with a booklet with details on processing times for that particular machine. That's a great resource to use as well.
Get Your Canning Tools
Water Bath Canner and/or Pressure Canner If you are wanting process high acid fruits and vegetables all you need is a basic water bath canner. If you want to process meats, beans, and some vegetables, you will need a pressure canner. Here is a link to a video we did explaining some of the differences in pressure canners and pressure cookers.
As mentioned in the video, you can also use a pressure canner as a water bath canner (you need a 23 qt pressure canner in order to water bath quart jars due to the size). So if you think you will do both kinds of canning just go with a large pressure canner to avoid making two purchases. Here are a few links to the canners we recommend.
Presto Pressure Canner
I have the 16 quart shown here but would love to upgrade to a 23 quart some day. |
All-American Pressure Canner
This is a higher-end model of canner. It doesn't have any gaskets and it is a heavy-duty machine. You will never need another canner. |
Water Bath Canner
This is your basic canner. I see these at garage sales quite often, so keep your eyes peeled. They are also fairly inexpensive to buy new. |
Canning Lids  For all canning projects you must have canning lids and rings. This can be an expensive part of canning because you are supposed to buy new lids every time. At $4-$5 per box of 12 that can really add to the expense of one jar of food. I recently have started to buy Tattler Reusable Canning Lids (I buy a few boxes before each big canning session I do so it's not too expensive all at once). I've had a great experience with them so far and I love that I don't have to throw them away after one use.
Canning Jars I usually see these in Wal-Mart at this time of year. Another great place to look is at garage sales or second hand stores. If you buy new jars it's nice because they come with lids and rings. If you are going to use the Tattler Reusable Lids you'll need enough rings for a few batches since you process the jars using rings, and then have to leave them on while the jars cool. You can also find jars at a reasonable price on Amazon.
Optional Tools You can buy extra tools that you may want to have on hand such as tongs, a large funnel, a lid lifter, etc. which will make your canning tasks much easier. This kit is comprehensive and a great price if you are buying everything to get started.
How to Actually Can Things!
Over the years we've done several tutorials on canning some of our favorite things. If you are new to canning, these can be a great way to follow step-by-step and give you the confidence to get started on your own.
Canning Peaches ... Delish!
Learn how to can peaches, Jodi has a little different technique than most books recommend. (To view in a video, visit this post)
How to Make Strawberry Jam
Homemade strawberry jam is such a treat, it is so much yummier than store-bought, which is truly the reason to make it.
How to Can Homemade Applesauce
Applesauce is one of the easiest and most delicious foods to can. This is a step by step tutorial on how we do it. (To view in a video visit this post)
How to Pressure Can Ground Beef
Jodi gives a step-by-step overview of her experiences with this process that intimidated her for a LONG time. (Includes a video)
How to Pressure Can Chicken
See how easy it is to can your own chicken so that you can have shelf stable chicken ready for recipes, and in case of emergencies. (Includes a video)
Home Canning With Confidence eCourse
This is an online video training course all about canning. It is very thorough and gives full instructions and recipes for canning all kinds of things with both a water bath and a pressure canner. We have been going through the class and highly recommend it for both new and experienced canners.
Hope you have a great week and enjoy canning some of that garden goodness!
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Canning Safety:
Free Webinar
This week we hosted a canning safety webinar with our fellow blogger Melissa K. Norris. It was an hour jam-packed with useful info and a thorough Q & A at the end. If you'd like to listen to the replay click here or on the image below. You won't want to miss this if you are going to be doing any canning at home this
year!
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