Jared77
Garden Addicted
Both recipes look GOOD! Though those pickled eggs need some hot peppers in there to really jazz them up!
New to canning:
- Thread starter DebFred
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hoodat
Garden Addicted
Some of the older books recommended canning at 15 pounds of pressure for a shorter time but it has been found that some of the denser foods didn't heat all the way through in that short time and some of the less dense foods boiled over ruining the seal. Most books nowadays recommend 10 pounds and longer cooking times. Anything containing meat (including stews and soups, need a full 90 minutes at 10 pounds.
vfem
Garden Addicted
Wish you were closer, I teach classes! 
You're going to love it.
You're going to love it.
ducks4you
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NO KIDDING!! We need to talk...about making grape jelly. EVERY TIME I either turn it into candy, or it runs like Niagara Falls. 
r4eboxer
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I've never tried canning potatoes, It scares me for some reason. I think I read something about canning potatoes and not to do it at home. Do you have to process for a long time? or add lemon juice or citric acid? I'm now wondering where I read that about canning potatoes.MontyJ said:Canning is great! You have been given some excellent advice so far and I don't have anything to add, except that it can be addictive. We can all kinds of things. I have grape vines, peach trees, apple trees and strawberries, so we always have tons of canned jam and jelly. We can carrots and potatoes together. We cut them into big chunks for instant stew veggies during the winter. For green beans, I place a piece of smoked pork in the bottom of the jar (I don't like bacon because of the grease it produces). Then I layer cubed red potatoes and snapped beans into the jar until full. That's like a taste of summer in February
Just start simple. Maybe you could borrow a pressure canner? If not, a water bath canner can do lots of things.
I also read that you should not home can pumpkin either. I'm new to canning, only been doing it 4 years and I do get nervous doing some of the higher density stuff. I'm now wondering why pumpkin should not be canned even in a pressure canner?
I did a LOT of potatoes last season...the first time I'd tried it and they came out well. I used the pressure canner, of course and they sort of caramelized a bit...they came out not white but a sort of beige color. Larger ones I peeled and cut into chunks, added 1 tsp salt to quarts, 1/2 tsp to pints. Quarts were processed for 90 mins, and pints for 75, pretty much like everything else. For the smaller ones, I just scrubbed and filled the jars. I poured boiling water over them, leaving headspace.
All in all, I prefer fresh ones, but the canned ones are fine. I canned because we had lots all at once and we don't have anywhere to store them adequately. We're working on a root cellar, so hopefully next year we can stash them in there instead, and free up shelf space for other things.
Pumpkin can be canned with pressure, but they recommend not making the puree...just can in chunks and pureeing when you're ready to make pies or soup
As a rule, I don't mix things in my jars. I find it more convenient to just open a jar of each item I want to use. So, to make some chicken soup, I open a jar of stock, one of chicken, one of potatoes and one of carrots. I throw it all in a pot and heat it through and it's ready to eat. If we want chicken dinner, I can open the same jars, minus the stock, and either heat individually or portion the items out on the plate and heat in the microwave.
Last season was my first for canning meat as well, and I've been really pleased. One thing I learned is that for us it's not a good idea to put meat in quarts...it's just too much to use up. Next year, potatoes will go only in quarts and meat will only go in pints. I found the canned ground beef to be extremely handy; in fact, we only have a couple jars left..it's just so easy for soups and casseroles, sloppy joes and the like.
I also tried my hand at salmon for the first time...oh my...it's just awesome! Could hardly be easier either. We picked it up on sale and I ended up with about 16 pints; I used the flat pint jars so it's really easy to remove. We got fillets rather than steaks...simply took it out on the deck and removed the scales, then cut it into strips that I could wind into the jars...I cut the strips so they were just wide enough to fit and leave appropriate headspace. I did a cold pack, so nothing in the jar but the fish and 1/2 tsp salt. We kind of miss the bones, though, so at the next good sale, I think we may get the steaks instead. Scaling won't be quite so easy but we'll get all the lovely soft bones in the meat.
All in all, I prefer fresh ones, but the canned ones are fine. I canned because we had lots all at once and we don't have anywhere to store them adequately. We're working on a root cellar, so hopefully next year we can stash them in there instead, and free up shelf space for other things.
Pumpkin can be canned with pressure, but they recommend not making the puree...just can in chunks and pureeing when you're ready to make pies or soup
As a rule, I don't mix things in my jars. I find it more convenient to just open a jar of each item I want to use. So, to make some chicken soup, I open a jar of stock, one of chicken, one of potatoes and one of carrots. I throw it all in a pot and heat it through and it's ready to eat. If we want chicken dinner, I can open the same jars, minus the stock, and either heat individually or portion the items out on the plate and heat in the microwave.
Last season was my first for canning meat as well, and I've been really pleased. One thing I learned is that for us it's not a good idea to put meat in quarts...it's just too much to use up. Next year, potatoes will go only in quarts and meat will only go in pints. I found the canned ground beef to be extremely handy; in fact, we only have a couple jars left..it's just so easy for soups and casseroles, sloppy joes and the like.
I also tried my hand at salmon for the first time...oh my...it's just awesome! Could hardly be easier either. We picked it up on sale and I ended up with about 16 pints; I used the flat pint jars so it's really easy to remove. We got fillets rather than steaks...simply took it out on the deck and removed the scales, then cut it into strips that I could wind into the jars...I cut the strips so they were just wide enough to fit and leave appropriate headspace. I did a cold pack, so nothing in the jar but the fish and 1/2 tsp salt. We kind of miss the bones, though, so at the next good sale, I think we may get the steaks instead. Scaling won't be quite so easy but we'll get all the lovely soft bones in the meat.
ducks4you
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I grew and canned Hubbard squash a few years ago. I cut it into chunks, but I didn't pressure canned. Didn't matter. I ate them all in 2 months.
r4eboxer
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I do think it was the puree now that you say that. If I get any pumpkins this year I think I'll try that. I am so thankful for our root cellar. It has a potato bin that my hubby built when he was a kid. I don't remember what they said about potatoes but if I get a huge crop I'm grateful I know I can safely can them. I'm wondering about canning meat. I've been afraid to try it. We have friends that can a lot of different meat and I've always wondered about the grease.
duck: I have canned squash too, it's great to have on hand for Minestrone soup, which DH dearly loves.
duck: I have canned squash too, it's great to have on hand for Minestrone soup, which DH dearly loves.
MontyJ
Deeply Rooted
r4, canning potatoes isn't hard. We do it every year. I don't recall the processing time being overly long, maybe 40 minutes or so, but don't trust that as I don't have my Ball Blue Book or recipe in front of me. It seems I also soak them before processing. I don't memorize the recipes, less chance of forgetting something that way. I'll look it up and get back to you.
April Manier
Deeply Rooted
Canning is my obsession. Forget buying any other books. There are TONS of free recipes online. If you are going to be doing green beans and things in just water and salt you need a pressure canner.
I warn you, it's addicting! I have some canning recipes up on my blog if you are interested, but there will be a lot more this summer as I expound on my successes and failures last year. Nothing to fear.
Once you hear the first sounds of your lids popping... ahhhhhhh
I warn you, it's addicting! I have some canning recipes up on my blog if you are interested, but there will be a lot more this summer as I expound on my successes and failures last year. Nothing to fear.
Once you hear the first sounds of your lids popping... ahhhhhhh
