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Post by smalltowngirlie on Jul 1, 2024 18:20:28 GMT
My garden is doing quite well this year. I have a lot of tomatoes for chili juice, spaghetti and pizza sauce and salsa. I have heard from two friends that have done a lot of canning that they just make what they like for flavors seal them using the hot water bath method. They both said you do not need to worry about the acidity level of what you are making. The recipe I have used in the past clearly states - Do not increase the amount of pepper, onion, or celery. Doing so will alter the acidity level and make it unsafe for canning. So, I have been very careful to follow recipes closely. What can I and what can't I change in recipes and still make sure what I am preserving will be safe in a few months? I would love to just preserve the pico I make, but am afraid it will be bad when I open the jars.
Thank you for any and all advice.
Also, if you have a great spaghetti or pizza recipe that is not sweet, please share.
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Post by Linda on Jul 1, 2024 18:49:58 GMT
I use the recepies in the Ball book because I trust that they are tried and tested. I'm not comfortable experimenting with canning - botulism isn't worth it.
That said -you can freeze tomatoes (whole) for future canning and you can also freeze sauce etc... so that might be a route to go if experimenting.
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Post by scrapperal on Jul 1, 2024 19:42:47 GMT
I don't know how to can, but when I had an excess of tomatoes (that was a great gardening year), I made tomato paste and froze it. It was amazing how many tomatoes that took!
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quiltz
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,850
Location: CANADA
Jun 29, 2014 16:13:28 GMT
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Post by quiltz on Jul 1, 2024 20:24:21 GMT
I simply can the quartered tomatoes and add a clove of peeled garlic and a basil leaf to the bottom of the jar with a teaspoon of salt. This way I can make the sauce however I want to.
I have made a salsa but used a recipe from a recommended canning company and never had an issue.
Years ago I had an electric machine that would sauce the tomatoes and I would cook sauce with onion and garlic for a long time, to boil down the juices. I would do about 3-4 bushels of tomatoes this way. I had great Italian neighbours that taught me their tricks of canning.
I'm back to being single and recently donated my canning stuff to a younger friend. Have fun!
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snyder
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,347 
Location: Colorado
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Post by snyder on Jul 1, 2024 21:13:06 GMT
lol I was scratching my head wondering why you needed to worry about acid levels with peas. Heck shell and freeze instead of canning them. lol
My family has made salsa and pico for as long as I can remember. We always help mom can starting at a fairly young age. I don't ever recall worrying too much about the ratio of any ingredient. We use to get x amount of peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic, etc and judge portions by eye site. We would cook on stove until it started to simmer. We would thne pour in very clean warm jars, make sure the brim was very clean, add lids, and then water bath.
I would look up a recipe to see how much canning salt is needed by how ever many quarts my pot was and then cut in half as I wanted to watch sodium for several in the family. We eat it so quickly, so I don't think I ever went past 2 years before it was all gone, but as the family got smaller, I would say, some probably went to 3 years.
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breetheflea
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Posts: 6,595
Location: PNW
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Post by breetheflea on Jul 1, 2024 21:55:42 GMT
I'm paying attention to this thread because we have about 100 lbs of cherries sitting in my house right now. The tree that gave us maybe a handful each summer went nuts this year.
I pitted and froze some for pie later, washed and destemmed but did not de-pit and then vacuum sealed about 50 lbs, and the kids are still out there picking. I ran out of fridge space, and vacuum sealing and freezing was the fast way to deal with them. Those will probably be made into jam later...
If cherries can be canned, maybe I need to learn how to can stuff. We can't eat them fast enough.
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Post by angieh1996 on Jul 1, 2024 22:00:01 GMT
www.favfamilyrecipes.com/canned-spaghetti-sauce/This is our favorite spaghetti sauce recipe. I make 2 giant roasters full. Cook it down blend it in the blender. We don’t like chunky sauce. But you can do whatever you prefer, then pressure can it. We do some quart jars and some pints.
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Post by mom on Jul 1, 2024 22:03:41 GMT
I'm paying attention to this thread because we have about 100 lbs of cherries sitting in my house right now. T he tree that gave us maybe a handful each summer went nuts this year.
I pitted and froze some for pie later, washed and destemmed but did not de-pit and then vacuum sealed about 50 lbs, and the kids are still out there picking. I ran out of fridge space, and vacuum sealing and freezing was the fast way to deal with them. Those will probably be made into jam later... If cherries can be canned, maybe I need to learn how to can stuff. We can't eat them fast enough. I am so jealous. Cherries around me are pricey per pound but I love them! |
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Post by Linda on Jul 2, 2024 0:56:04 GMT
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teddyw
Drama Llama
Posts: 7,160
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Post by teddyw on Jul 2, 2024 1:05:19 GMT
My mom canned tomato sauce my whole childhood. We had to help but I don’t remember an actual recipe.
Maybe check with your local university extension office. Mine offers classes.
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quiltz
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Posts: 6,850
Location: CANADA
Jun 29, 2014 16:13:28 GMT
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Post by quiltz on Jul 2, 2024 1:36:32 GMT
If cherries can be canned, maybe I need to learn how to can stuff. We can't eat them fast enough. Cherries can be canned, like peaches in a simple sugar syrup. |
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teddyw
Drama Llama
Posts: 7,160
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Post by teddyw on Jul 2, 2024 2:06:12 GMT
I'm paying attention to this thread because we have about 100 lbs of cherries sitting in my house right now. T he tree that gave us maybe a handful each summer went nuts this year.
I pitted and froze some for pie later, washed and destemmed but did not de-pit and then vacuum sealed about 50 lbs, and the kids are still out there picking. I ran out of fridge space, and vacuum sealing and freezing was the fast way to deal with them. Those will probably be made into jam later... If cherries can be canned, maybe I need to learn how to can stuff. We can't eat them fast enough. I am so jealous. Cherries around me are pricey per pound but I love them! They’re my favorite. Especially sour cherry ones. I buy them frozen at a local farm. They’re pretty pricey. |
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Post by Zee on Jul 2, 2024 2:50:09 GMT
Well, you could buy a pressure canner. They're not hard to use or expensive.
I have one. That, or follow the Ball recipes to the letter if you still only want to use the water bath. If you add lemon juice or citric acid it should be good BUT I don't take chances with canning!
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zztop11
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,542
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Post by zztop11 on Jul 2, 2024 3:16:25 GMT
I am a home economist and studied this in college. If you want to change the peppers, onion, celery then you would need to process this using a pressure canner. Not a pressure cooker (like an Instant Pot) but a pressure canner. You will be changing the ph by altering the veggies. That is why it would need to be processed with a pressure canner. If your friends are doing this in a water bath, then what they are doing is not safe. They are taking a risk of severe food poisoning.
The easy way to remember all of this is to remember that you can always do more processing, but should never do LESS processing.
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Post by smalltowngirlie on Jul 2, 2024 14:12:00 GMT
I am a home economist and studied this in college. If you want to change the peppers, onion, celery then you would need to process this using a pressure canner. Not a pressure cooker (like an Instant Pot) but a pressure canner. You will be changing the ph by altering the veggies. That is why it would need to be processed with a pressure canner. If your friends are doing this in a water bath, then what they are doing is not safe. They are taking a risk of severe food poisoning. The easy way to remember all of this is to remember that you can always do more processing, but should never do LESS processing. Thank you. Everything I have read said you need to follow the ingredients closely for safety purposes. Is there a concern to change the seasoning or spices? I have tried a couple recipes in the past and they are too sweet, so I thought about adding some spice or reducing the sugar. |
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zztop11
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Post by zztop11 on Jul 2, 2024 22:27:00 GMT
Yes, changing the amount of sugar will have an effect on the acidity. There is a great book out there that I used in college. It's still used. (I graduated in 1977, so it is old!) It's called "Putting Food By" by Ruth Hertzberg. It's on Amazon used for $5.
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Post by smalltowngirlie on Jul 12, 2024 17:12:50 GMT
I am a home economist and studied this in college. If you want to change the peppers, onion, celery then you would need to process this using a pressure canner. Not a pressure cooker (like an Instant Pot) but a pressure canner. You will be changing the ph by altering the veggies. That is why it would need to be processed with a pressure canner. If your friends are doing this in a water bath, then what they are doing is not safe. They are taking a risk of severe food poisoning. The easy way to remember all of this is to remember that you can always do more processing, but should never do LESS processing. So I have another question. I am seeing a lot of recipes for smoked salsa. I am wondering if I take a canning recipe I trust (I have one from the Extension service) and smoke the tomatoes, peppers, and onions, will that be ok or will I be changing the chemistry too much. Also, can I sub red for green pepper? I have red peppers. Thank you for all your help. |
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