Who here cans??

[farmerlor]

I can all year round. Right now of course I'm canning tomatoes day in and day out but throughout the year I can soups, spaghetti sauce, and meat. My pressure canner and steam juicer are my favorite toys EVER!

 

[the4heathernsmom]

o.k. if noe one has any recipes av ailable can some give me the ball canning website?

 

[Blackbird]

You should be able to find some recipes here;

http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=215

 

[delia_peterson]

What is the difference between water bath and pressure cooker canning? Which makes the canning contents safer?

 

[Blackbird]

What is the difference between water bath and pressure cooker canning? Which makes the canning contents safer?

I think the pressure canning does, atleast from everthing I've read on botulism says that.

 

[farmerlor]

PC canning is the safest PROVIDING you can according to the correct times for the contents of your jars, you remember to adjust your pressure for sea level and you make sure your product is not too dense.

 

[me&thegals]

What is the difference between water bath and pressure cooker canning? Which makes the canning contents safer?

A pressure canner lid "screws" on, making it very, very tight. It also has a gasket. There is a weight that is placed over the vent on top with different pressures on it. This allows a tiny bit of steam to vent but mainly keeps intense pressure within the canner (and heat).

The water bath canner is simply a big pot with boiling water and a loose lid. It doesn't get as hot as a pressure canner and is used for any acidic foods: Fruits, pickled items.

 

[freemotion]

With a pressure canner, you can get the contents up to 240 F (I think that is the number! ) to kill pathogens, especially in the veggie and meat items that are not acidic. You can't get them hot enough in a water bath canner, or so "they" say. Bee waterbath cans her meats with no ill effects. If I were on my own, I might do it, too, but can't risk it with giving food to my mom and dad. Who boils everything for 20 minutes before eating it??? Really!

eta: You know, Bee, that this is not a criticism in any way, shape or form....it is said with loving admiration!

 

[Farmfresh]

When water is heated it comes to a point when the water begins to vaporize into steam. The vaporization forms bubbles. This point is called BOILING.

The boiling point for water at normal atmospheric pressure (under normal open pot conditions) is 212 degrees Fahrenheit or 100 degrees Celsius.

Decrease that pressure (as at high altitude) and the temperature is lower increase that pressure (like with a pressure canner) and the temperature is higher. The higher temperature kills more bad bacteria and kills them much faster.

A water bath canner (which is not pressurized) will boil at 212 degrees F. You should have you jars off of the bottom (on a rack) and covered by at least 1 inch of water when water bath canning. This ensures the temperature is constant all around the jar. Certain foods, like tomatoes or fruits, contain enough acids naturally in the food that certain types of bacteria are inhibited. Other foods like pickles have the acid added and still others like jams and jellys have the bacteria growth inhibited by the use of sugar. These foods need to only 212 degrees to properly preserve them.

Other foods, like meat or low acid vegetables like green beans provide a good environment for bacteria to thrive. Foods like this need a higher processing heat to ensure safety when preserving. In a pressure canner the water gets hotter at the boiling point. A pressure canner at 10 pounds of pressure (which is 10 times atmospheric pressure) boils at a temperature of 359 degrees Fahrenheit!

See the site below for some good charts.
http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/boiling-point-water-d_926.html

 

[dragonlaurel]

Frozen Feathers, I just started last year. I'm not sure what set it off. (dh) John & I bought our first home together in 10/06. And that spring, it just came to me. I started doing it without even thinking about it, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

I remember when I was very young, ages 4-12 or so, watching my grandmother freezing and canning. I was her little apprentice (actually, the only one of her 19 grandchildren that could pay attention and stand still long enough to help.) I also helped her make butter and tend many, many chickens. She had a milk cow, but I never learned to milk.

She also taught me to sew (by hand, we didn't have a machine), and quilt.

After that age, we ended up moving and my mom never got into doing that kind of stuff. My grandmother died when I was about 21 or 22. For almost 15 years, it never occurred to me to make jelly or put up tomatoes or have chickens or any of that stuff. And when we bought this house we have now, I wasn't thinking of any of that stuff at all. We bought it so our little son could go to the school we wanted.

But as soon as it got warm I thought--man, I want some chickens! Out of the blue! Just went to the feed store and bought some chickens. Then, I thought--man, I need to make some jelly! And bought all the jelly making supplies.

I guess what I am asking is what inspired you to get started? I know what inspired me, but still haven't figured out how it hit me out of nowhere.

Cassandra

Cassandra- sounds like your guardian angel Grandma knew you could start doing this stuff finally and guided you. I bet you were her favorite from spending all that extra time together.