August Activity - Canning 101: Preserving the produce from our bounteous harvests

This month we learned the basics of canning. Sister Arline Law presented on water bath canning, and Sister Shelley Hughes talked about pressure canning. Here are some of their top tips!

General Tips:

--You can purchase all you need online, or at Walmart, True Value, and other grocery stores. You can  often find supplies at thrift stores.
--Never use old lids (the flat part) as they may not seal properly. You can reuse the rings and jars, just make sure they are in good condition.
--It is important to process ALL canned foods.
--Use the "Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving." It is available at almost any grocery store or online. --Always follow a recipe. The pH (acidity level) is very important to preventing spoilage. The Ball book has done a lot of experimenting to get the pH right, and we don't want to poison our families by not processing the food correctly.

Water Bath Canning:
--Water bath canning is for high acid foods like fruits and tomatoes.
--You will need to add time to adjust for our altitude--usually 5 minutes for water bath canning but check the recipe or canning resource to be sure.

Pressure Canning:
--Pressure canning is for vegetables and meats, soups, and stews.
--You will need to adjust the pressure for altitudes above 1000ft.
--You should have your pressure canner checked each year to make sure it will maintain pressure accurately. If it doesn't, the food you preserve may be unsafe to eat.


Click here for places to get your pressure cooker checked, more canning info, and books, and recipes.
This PDF has some quick tips from Ball on canning as well. See the Ball website for more.
Here is a helpful document with info about pressure canners, gauges, and the like.