Canning Tips: A Lesson from a Canning Expert

I recently met a fellow here in Seattle who bought the house next door, razed it, and planted a 1200 sq. ft. garden. With his urban farm and a state fishing license, he is performing an experiment to see if he can feed his family on the fruits of his labor -- and from the descriptions of the meals he makes, he's doing it tastefully. The economic downturn that has many people out of work and the recent string of health scares in processed foods has more people growing, picking, and canning their own food.

In fact, this new canning wave has sparked the Can-a-Rama, Canning Across America, offering local events to demonstrate canning and help people learn the ins and outs of this ancient tradition. Well, it's not exactly ancient, but according to the American Council on Science and Health, canning was invented when Napoleon offered of a prize for a means of preserving food for his armies.

My first attempt at canning strawberry jam was semi-disastrous so once the raspberries came ripe, I called in the big guns -- Mom. She's been canning for 50 years and has the process down. Here are the best tips I got from her:

1. Gather everything beforehand: And by everything she meant the following:
   1. Sugar
   2. Pectin
   3. Fruit
   4. Pint measuring pitcher (for fruit)
   5. Cup measuring pitcher (for sugar)
   6. Three big pots (one for making jam, one for boiling jars, one for processing) and one small saucepan (for the lids)
   7. Potholders (the pots get hot!)
   8. A ladle with a pouring edge
   9. A canning kit
   10. A canning rack
   11. A lid rack
   12. A candy thermometer (the kind that adheres to the side of the pot)
   13. A kitchen rag soaked in a 1-to-10 bleach-water solution
   14. Enough jars, lids, rings (also called bands) to contain all your jam (here's a converter to help you convert cups to quarts or pints -- the volume will cook down, but to ensure you have enough jars, plan for the amount of volume you put into your jam recipe).
2. Don't scrimp on the above list: Though some things like the canning rack, lid rack, and candy thermometer don't seem mandatory here's how much easier they made things:
   1. Canning rack: Without it you have to pick up each jar with tongs or a jar lifter. Saves time and reduces risk of injury when taking hot clean jars to your counter so you can fill them with jam, and moving processed jars out of the boiling water.
   2. Lid rack: Without it you have to try to separate a lid and pick it up, with tongs, from a horizontal position (not an easy task).
   3. Candy thermometer: The lids should be heated but not boiled. Boiling the lids may cause the sealing compound on the lid to move around, creating an inconsistent seal, causing leaks in the lid seal. Place the candy thermometer on the side of the saucepan and keep the heat below 180 degrees F (boiling).  
3. Follow the recipe: There are recipes for jams, jellies, spreads, preserves, even low-sugar recipes. The important thing is they've all been tested to:
   1. have enough sugar or pectin to preserve the jam without spoilage, 
   2. ensure they jell (in the past I doubled the recipe and it never reached jelly-like consistency),
   3. taste good.
4. Use the canning rack for sanitizing and processing your jars: Put your jars upside-down in the canning rack to sanitize them. You have to add them one at a time to let them fill, then turn them upside-down. When you're ready to fill, lift them out slowly to let the boiling water slowly gush out (make sure you use a pot with high-sides). Turn them over as you remove them from the rack and they're ready to fill. Add jars back to the rack as they are filled with jam. Then they're ready for processing. Saves tons of time, and keeps you from breaking filled jam jars as you add them to the pot for processing.
5. Ladle jam into the jars: I was picking up the pot and pouring jam into the jar -- a picture wrought with peril. My Mom actually screamed when she saw me. She then picked up a hot jar with her gloved hand and held it over the jam pot, placed the funnel on the jar, then very sensibly pulled out a beautiful ladle and nearly filled the jar with one graceful ladle-full. Neat, safe, and easy.
6. Wipe the jam off the edges of jars before you put on the lid: This ensures the lid will seal. Sometimes a little jam spills on the lid when you remove the canning funnel, and a bleach-water solution ensures you don't add any bacteria to the area.
7. Leave the requisite headspace in the top of jar: The rule for jams and jellies is to fill jars up to 1/4-inch from the top. This headspace leaves air in the top of the jar to contract as it cools, and creates a vacuum seal.

Last note: Canvolution Tweeted us to bring our attention to Christine Ferber, the "fairy godmother of preserving," and her book Mes Confitures Jellies. Take a look and let me know what you think.

--Martha Snodgrass

Other articles in this series:

Canning Preparation: Canning Tips and Tools

Canning Do's and Don'ts (but Mostly Don'ts)

For more canning tips and tools check out Amazon's Canning Store.

Comments

[Kim at Dogwood Ridge on August 04, 2009 at 05:34 AM]

It sometimes is included in canning kit (though I know it wasn't in mine and didn't realize they made such a thing for years) but I really recommend a canning magnet. It looks like a plastic pencil but where the eraser would be is a magnet. It is to lift the lids out of the hot water and makes it SO much easier to place the lids on the filled jars. Every time I use it I want to thank whoever invented it. I never have used a lid rack, the only thing I do is put one lid right way and one lid the wrong way into the little pot that I use to sterilize the lids in. That makes it easier to separate them and with the little magnet it is a breeze to pick them up!
Also, I only use two big pots- the one to sterilize doubles up as the one I process in. The water is already hot and it doesn't take long to bring it up to temp. to do the processing since I have taken the jars and filled them, it already has around the right amount of water- that saves on heating energy and a bit of water.
I am by no means an expert and would appreciate it if anybody wants to say "hey don't do it that way..."

[HopeSew on August 04, 2009 at 11:41 AM]

"My Mom actually screamed when she saw me."

I can just picture the scene now! Your mom is awesome. Thanks for sharing your adventure and all these tips from a pro. :D

[Jamie on August 04, 2009 at 12:28 PM]

It may be worth noting explicitly that you can't hot-water-bath can everything (the process described here), or at least not safely. Lots of things have to be (or it's strongly recommended that they be) canned in a pressure canner, because they don't contain enough acid to ensure that they don't grow dangerous bacteria.

I'd also add #8: Any jar that doesn't audibly "pop" into vacuum-sealage some time after removal from the hot water bath should be considered NOT SEALED. If you can press on the flat part of the lid and it moves AT ALL, it's not preserving a vacuum. I understand it's possible to re-process the contents of unsealed jars IMMEDIATELY, using FRESH lids and rings - maybe somebody knows the process for sure...

And finally - can anybody tell me how long you can keep canned jam? Does it vary by recipe? I have about six jars left from last summer's strawberries and I hate to get rid of them if I can still use them.

[Dusty on August 04, 2009 at 12:34 PM]

Just a suggestion: Put the funnel up in the list. It is indispensable. Don't forget the masher, preferably the round type with the flat plate, instead of the bent rod type, for the jellies and jams. Oh, and cheese cloth or strainer bags if you're doing jelly.

My neighbor is my expert and we do double batches as he knows how to avoid the double batch problem but we're canning two to three gallons of fruits in total and it's just too time consuming otherwise. On to the peaches, now.

[Thomass on August 04, 2009 at 01:04 PM]

I wouldn't use food scares as a reason to get into canning. I think your odds are MUCH higher of hurting or killing yourself by doing it yourself.

That said, if done right it is fun. Especially if you have a big garden.

[Quilly Mammoth on August 04, 2009 at 03:27 PM]

The "go to" source for me on canning is Jackie Clay of Backwoods Home Magazine. If there is something that you want to can she can tell you how. As Jamie mentioned canning some foods, particularly meats and such, require a pressure cooker. Search Jackie's column to see times and recipes.

I only remembered the way my mother and grandmother canned jams and have been successful using their methods; but the info Jackie gives has elevated canning to a new level.

Jamie, I opened a jar of my mother's Chutney that she made four years ago. The distinctive "pop" of vacuum being released told me it was ok. But normally 24 months with a "pop" is as far as I go. YMMV.

BTW: Jackie has a great article on Cast Iron up on this issue:
http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/clay118.html

Of modern cookware only some of the stuff from Emeril works as well for me as Cast Iron.

And no, I have no relationship with that magazine or the people who write for it.

QM

[Stephen on August 04, 2009 at 03:56 PM]

My wife and I have been making jams and preserving fruit for a few years now. We lately have been eating some pears we preserved in early 2005, and they taste fine and with no spoilage. As long as your seal is still good time does not seem to be too much of an issue

[karen on August 04, 2009 at 04:03 PM]

Gathering up everything first is the only way! Also, it sounds silly to repeat but read/re-read the recipe for what you are canning. As you do note different fruit uses different sugar and pectin amounts, or adjustments for low-sugar recipes. I read the recipe, and pull everything together the night before leaving myself time to run to the store if needed. There's nothing worse than standing in a Saturday morning grocery line with one box of lids!

Your mom is awesome, thanks for sharing! For anyone with older relatives who canned make sure you get their recipes you loved growing up. While I learned jams from my mother it was an older cousin who made the best pickles. I was in high school when she died and at that age not interested in any of it. Now, I only wish I would have been as no one else remembers either.

[Concerned Citizen on August 04, 2009 at 05:39 PM]

Canning is easy, fun and a great way to save money, even if you don't have your own garden. I don't grow every thing myself and for those items it's a good idea is to go to your local farmer's market right before it closes. For anything left at that point, the farmers don't want to bring it home with them -- a lot of it will probably end up in their compost pile, so they will wheel and deal. If you are making jam from fruit, ask for the "sort outs". These are the dented, bruised and "overripe" fruit that is perfect for canning. Many times they will give this to you for free or a nominal charge.

As for shelf life, if items are properly canned, many things can last indefinitely, that is be safe to eat, but you will definitely start to get discoloration. Jams, pickled things and salted items will last for years. Some items with high acidity like tomatoes, salsas, etc. are good for about two years. 118 year old canned meat found from an arctic expedition was fed to a cat with no ill effects, but your milage may vary. http://www.internet-grocer.net/how-long.htm

One warning -- many canned goods require higher temperatures to kill dangerous bacteria. You will need to use a pressure canner for these items.

[jeux d action on September 24, 2009 at 03:50 AM]

Wow, I had no idea you were into this. I've resisted the canning impulse so far so I was forced to participate in it so much as a kid.

This tips is really a very nice, i definitely try this once at my home..