Anyone do lots of home canning/food preserving?

[ChickieNikki]

I'm new at it. Never done it. I remember the food mill with tomatoes or apples with my mom, but I also remember canning day we got chased out of the kitchen because of the pressure canner. I don't own one, but I can borrow one.

Any tips? Hints? Good recipes? I'd like to do sugar free jellies & jams (not sweetened with splenda, but with apple/grape juice or honey), chilis, vegetable soups, pickles, relish, tomato sauce, pizza sauce, salsa and anything else good. I'd also like to freeze some veggies, and maybe learn about food dehydration--other than raisins, all dried fruit has SOOOOO much sugar, and I want it completely natural.

Can we start a thread here for any food preserving tips/recipes? I'd love to hear what everyone has learned and get some good recipes!

 

[sparkles2307]

I dont but am going to learn how this year.

 

[newchickenfamily]

I made blackberry jam for the first time last summer!

BUT, I used sugar. Sure was good! You might also check out BYC's sister site www.sufficientself.com if you haven't already. There's probaby lots of good canning info there too. Can't wait for the blackberries to come again this summer!

 

[tamlynn]

I've been learning to can in the past few years. My dh helped his mom as a kid and its in his blood.

I recommend you check out current canning and preserving guidlines and do not rely on "the way grandma used to do it" because many of those practices are not safe (things like re-using old mayo jars to can with, or processing the jars in the oven come to mind.)

I like the Ball site, http://www.freshpreserving.com/

and The National Center for Home Food Preservation; http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/

Our favorite things to can are jams, salsa, pears, peaches, tomatoes and applesauce. We have a dehydrator and like to do apples and dh even made beef jerky once. For freezing, peppers, shredded zuchinni and berries are the easiest, other veggies need to be blanched, like peas.

Anyway, its fun and a great experience!

 

[Rolsjo]

I used to can, but then moved overseas and couldn't get the supplies. Now we're back in the good 'ol USA and have a huge garden planned. As a matter of fact I was just pricing more jars.

I can tomatos, tomato sauce, salsa and green beans. These are our major crops for canning. I'll also do some apple pie filling if our trees produce this year. I also freeze winter squash, berries, greens, broccoli, and herbs.

I totally agree with following the safety guidelines. Everyone in my husband's family insists that its perfectly safe to can green beans without a pressure canner, but I've seen how many jars they open that are bad. Botulism is not something to mess around with. I usually just throw away the ones they give me.

I look forward to scanning some different recipes!

 

[NanaKat]

Definitely a pressure canner is necessary.
30 minutes in a pressure canner beats 3 hours in a water bath any day in my book!!!!!
Besides the heat in the kitchen

We can asparagus, crowder peas, green beans, carrots, poke, spinach, peas, tomatoes soup mix, tomatoe juice and tomato paste.
Pickles, sweet relish, jalepeno relish, tomatillo salsa, beets are also regulars
We make our own saurkraut and can that.
Then there are apples, applesauce, apple butter, pears, pear butter, peach jelly and peach butter, apricot butter. Jellies include blackberry, strawberry, elderberry, plum, grape.
Then there is the frozen corn, etc.

Whew.

 

[NanaKat]

Oh advice...do not use table salt to can with because it has iodine. This will make your veggies soft. Use canning salt.

 

[tamlynn]

NanaKat, that is awesome! Do you grow all that produce? Your garden is probably bigger than my entire yard.


Here's another plug for www.sufficientself.com I just spent way too long there!

 

[Acre of Blessings]

I have been canning now for several years and I love it

I have a pressure and water bath canner. I can everything from Beef, Chicken, & Pork to Tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, g. beans, pintos, kidney beans, black beans, cannellini beans, navy beans, northern beans, spaghetti sauce, chili sauce, salsa, grape jam, strawberry jam......


The list could go on. I can everything that I can get my hands on. I don't rely much on a freezer, though it is full right now, thank God.

I agree with the guidelines, use them, that's why they are there. Don't listen to old wives tales like turning the jar up-side down before canning,

DON'T DO THIS!!!!!

Also use the..... "when in doubt, throw it out" You'll probably be glad you did

Visit the link in my signature and you will find a whole slew of canning people and recipes. We are there when you need us.

Happy Canning!!!!!

 

[Jen4]

My husband and I learned how to can last summer and we LOVE it and I also freeze alot of veggies too. After we moved to the country and got to plant huge gardens we've turned into planting, growing, harvesting, canning fools

I've learned alot from.... www.pickyourown.com

Good luck and Happy Canning