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Post by mcscrapper on Aug 12, 2014 2:41:29 GMT
Yeah, I realize I shoulda posted this over in the recipes section but that board doesn't get many views. I'm really wanting to do some canning but have never done it before. My friend is going to show me and do some with me. What can I can? I'd like to do some bruschetta, maybe some salsa, etc with some tomatoes. She cans soups but I guess I don't know what you can and can't can. What are your favorites? Share your recipes and tips please! meredith |
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Post by Minty118 on Aug 12, 2014 2:45:10 GMT
I'll be watching this thread because I'm interested too.
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Deleted
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May 11, 2024 4:43:34 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 12, 2014 2:46:52 GMT
My tip is to use recipes that come from a reliable canning source such as the Ball Blue Book or a state home extension site. I see lots of recipes out there that are set ups for botulism because they are lacking in acids, salt or sugar to kill spores that naturally occur on plants.
Commercial canners are able to obtain a greater amount of pressure and heat than home canners so they can do things you can't reliably and safely replicate at home.
I can't image canned brushetta since that, to me, is a totally fresh recipe.
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Post by elaine on Aug 12, 2014 2:51:00 GMT
My favorite things to can are fruit preserves, but salsa works too because of the acidity.
I, too, think of bruschetta as something made fresh with sun-dried tomatoes and olive oil, not canned.
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Post by mcscrapper on Aug 12, 2014 2:53:51 GMT
Good point about the bruschetta. I usually do just make it as I go. I guess I'm wondering what are some good basics to get me started. The Ball book is a great suggestion. What about soups? |
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Post by dulcemama on Aug 12, 2014 2:57:56 GMT
You can can just about anything you want as long as you have trust worthy recipe. Soup seems a little complicated to start with. Maybe start with something a little more basic like tomatoes, pickles or jams.
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Post by tamaraann on Aug 12, 2014 3:02:45 GMT
High acid foods you can do in water bath canners. Low acid foods you need a pressure canner. Most soups are done in a pressure canner because they contain meat or meat based broths and often have low acid foods in them like carrots, potato's etc. The easiest thing to start with is jams or jellies using the water bath method. Basic tomato sauce is also an easy one to do in a water bath canner, but even that needs lemon juice added to have enough acidity (store bought for consistent acidity as fresh lemons vary in their acidity levels).
There are a couple of good Facebook canning groups, such as Canning or Canny Granny Recipe Share Group.
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Post by Eddie-n-Harley on Aug 12, 2014 3:04:39 GMT
I don't have any recipes. I just wanted to share that most of what I see at the farmer's market right now is either canned tomatoes/tomato sauce or pickled green beans. A co-worker's daughter also loves canned pickled asparagus, but we are mostly out of asparagus season in my neck of the woods.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 12, 2014 3:24:50 GMT
jams and picked vegs (almost all vegs pickle well) are the easiest to start with. I've never started with a recipe. We always start with what is over abundant in the garden or extremely cheap at the market.
This is a recipe for "chow-chow" (a relish that is good on hotdogs, beans, beef or pork) The recipe comes from my grandma. So I've eaten this all my life very literally. It is what she did with the end of season tomatoes and bell peppers that were too green to eat but were about to be lost to the first frost of the winter.
The "chop" should be quite fine; I'd call it more of a mince. Pea sized at the biggest.. I run mine through the food processor.
1 1/2 cups of chopped green tomatoes
4 cups chopped cabbage
2 cups chopped green sweet peppers
2 cups chopped red sweet peppers
2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup salt
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons mustard seed
2 tablespoons celery seed
4 cups vinegar
Wash and drain vegetables. Peel onion; remove seed from peppers. Chop and measure all vegetables. Dissolve salt in in 8 cups water. Pour over vegetables. Let stand 1 hour. Drain. ( If too salty, rinse and drain again.) Mix vegetables with sugar, seed and vinegar. Simmer 20 minutes. Bring to boiling. Pack, boiling hot into hot jars; seal at once.
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M in Carolina
Pearl Clutcher
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Post by M in Carolina on Aug 12, 2014 3:36:34 GMT
I started canning with homemade jams. I can't eat most commercial jams/jellies because I'm allergic to pectin. So I started making my own jams from recipes that use lemon or lime juice as the acid instead of pectin. Hot water canning is actually very easy once you set everything up. I missed grape jam so much for pb&j that I even made homemade concord grape jam and canned it in tiny little jars so my jam would stay fresh. (I put the whole grapes in the food processor because the skins and seeds are so good for you) Canned jams last a long time.
My grandmother always canned whole or chunk tomatoes from her garden. She would then use these for her vegetable soup. Commercially canned tomatoes don't come close to how amazing her soups were. She didn't can the soup itself because the potatoes and vegetables would get soggy. Also, there was never any soup leftovers to can.
Pickles are also great for canning. Pickled carrots with cumin are amazing. (there are also refrigerator versions of these) Growing up in the South, everyone with a garden had their own bread and butter pickle recipe. I prefer dill pickles. Pickled okra, asparagus and dilly green beans were also pickling staples.
I collect cookbooks and have a few British jam and pickle cookbooks. The chutneys and pickled onions look amazing. I need to try some new recipes and go to the farmer's market.
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Post by shanni on Aug 12, 2014 3:40:08 GMT
I would start with tomatoes, salsa, or jams. Applesauce, peaches, or pears are all pretty easy too. This year I'm planning on branching out a bit and canning apple pie filling. One of my friends does it and it's so nice to just pull it out, dump it in a crust, and bake!
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Post by berta147 on Aug 12, 2014 3:50:42 GMT
I have canned for years. We do lots of whole tomatoes, pears, apple sauce. We have both a large canning kettle for the water bath method and a canning pressure cooker.
Find a good home canning book like the Ball Blue Book and start with something simple, like jams, pickles or tomatoes.
In canning it is best to start simple.
I love going to my canning cupboard and pulling out a jar of tomatoes to use in my dinner. Or the applesauce I used last night.
Good Luck!
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LeaP
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,939
Location: Los Angeles, CA where 405 meets 101
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Post by LeaP on Aug 12, 2014 4:12:11 GMT
I made a lot of canned jams as a kid it was 50% fruit, 50% sugar by weight. No botulism, but that is probably because they were eaten before anything could grow. I don't think I ever made more than two small jars at a time, because I picked all the wild berries myself. As I recall it was pretty easy and everything set.
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Post by Skellinton on Aug 12, 2014 4:17:46 GMT
The chow chow looks amazing, I think I am going to try that one this weekend!
I just canned tomatoes for the first time this weekend, I can't wait to use them in the fall and winter!
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Post by juliet on Aug 12, 2014 5:02:52 GMT
I've canned for the first time last weekend! I made a rhubarb crumble and had some leftover rhubarb. I'd bought the canning kettle two years ago but hadn't used it yet (too intimidating, hah!). But I found some recipes and helpful youtubes online and decided to give it a go. I made two batches of rhubarb, two batches of nectarines and two batches of strawberries, all to be used in a crumble or in yogurt with granola. Out of the five pots, one didn't 'pop' after the water bath, so I had to bathe it again. The second time it worked (relief haha). Upcoming weekend I'm going to try canning apple sauce.  Here's my canning board: Here's a video I liked: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wd3eWgVP70Q |
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Post by juliet on Aug 12, 2014 5:08:36 GMT
here's my canning pot  The pan on the right, that is my largest size soup pan. So the weck-pot is ginormous  |
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Post by hjs on Aug 12, 2014 5:22:53 GMT
I agree with Voltagain to get a reference like the Ball Blue book, or the Bernardin guide. The Bernardin web site also has lots of step by step instructions and recipes. I am a nervous canner, and only use recipes from very reputable sites, or my copies of the above mentioned books. Low acid veggies like green beans, and all meats should ONLY be processed in a pressure canner. I have seen internet sites where people claim to can these things in a water bath, but this is too risky.
My favorite item to have on hand is tomato sauce, it tastes fresh out of the garden which is so nice to have all year. I also caN applesauce and use that in place of oil when baking. I am not fond of jarred fruit, but I do can lots of Cherries, peaches, pears and plums in sauces, salsas and chutneys. It is a bit of an addicting endeavour, as it is so nice to see all the jars lining up on the pantry shelves!
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Deleted
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May 11, 2024 4:43:34 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 12, 2014 5:25:19 GMT
I made a lot of canned jams as a kid it was 50% fruit, 50% sugar by weight. No botulism, but that is probably because they were eaten before anything could grow. I don't think I ever made more than two small jars at a time, because I picked all the wild berries myself. As I recall it was pretty easy and everything set. Sugar acts as a preservative. Your ratio of fruit to sugar sounds about right. Problem is the modern recipes that cut back the sugar (or salt) on a "less sugar/salt is better for your health" without realizing canning is more than just flavor. There is a science to the preservation of the foods without also providing favorable living conditions for anaerobic bacteria |
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Post by anniefb on Aug 12, 2014 5:30:07 GMT
I do fruit (surplus from garden) as well as jams, marmalade, salsas & chutneys. I'd avoid most vegetables because you need a pressure canner.
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Post by hjs on Aug 12, 2014 5:41:47 GMT
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Post by anniefb on Aug 12, 2014 7:52:27 GMT
Sounds good. Might have to give this a go. |
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Southern Side eyed Pea 
