I have never heard of "dry packing." I have heard of a raw pack in which you do not add liquid to the uncooked meat, but I have never heard of a dry pack with cooked meat?
Because wiping the rim with your finger is not very sanitary. I know that it doesn't really touch your food, but by not warming up the lids, you are also not killing any of the germs on the middle of the lid. IMO, warming the lids up is a small/easy task that greatly increases the sanitaryness...
My uncle just did the same thing!!!! He kinda made his own salsa, but added Mrs. Wages to season it... it was very good, not spicy, but very fresh tasting if that makes sense LOL. I don't know what all he doctored it up with, but i know there was lots of cilantro I liked it a lot!
Well, I'm not an expert, but isn't water vs pressure canning decided based on the Acidity of the food? This may not be the best way, but if no one else knows, maybe you could get some PH strips and find out how acidic your BBQ sauce is???
I've never entered, but IK that a large part of your score is presentation... I could be wrong, but I believe you can't just like dump the green beans in the jar, you have to literally stack each one in there so they are nice and pretty
Sonew123: Those look great!
My mom canned for me: Peach Jelly and Mrs. Wage's (It's a packet, and you add the tomatoes) pizza sauce (I helped cook diner so she had time to can )