When it’s time to start preserving your garden produce, many homesteaders turn to canning. Canning your food makes it shelf and pantry stable, can easily be stored for a year or more, and meals are heat and eat. If the power is out, you can still consume your home canned food, just open the jar and you are ready for a hearty meal.
Over the years, canning has changed since Great Grandma did it. For example, sealing a jelly jar with wax instead of putting the jar in a water bath was common. Great Grandma may also have water bath canned her vegetables like green beans, potatoes, and peas. She may have also not worried about adding extra citric acid to her home grown tomatoes. Life was different back then.
Frankly, so was the soil. Most of us deal with mineral depleted soil, especially when first starting out. Chemicals that eradicate weeds, and help the grass to grow are commonplace now. Even if you don’t do this yourself, run off from your neighbor who DOES spray can and does happen. Those chemicals can ruin even the best garden soil, if given the chance. We need to take different precautionary measures when we are home canning now because of this. Cross breeding of seeds, hybrids, and even GMO can make all the difference in how we home can our food versus how Great Grandma did.
For example, tomatoes are not consistent with the amount of acid. Even heirloom tomatoes can change in acid levels from plant to plant, harvest to harvest. To keep your home canned tomatoes safe, adding lemon juice or powdered citric acid is important. If you choose not to add this, you will need to pressure can your tomatoes instead of water bath them to be safe.
What home canning equipment do you need?
- Water bath canner-for fruits, jellies, jams, salsa , applesauce and other high acid foods (tomatoes with added acid)
- Pressure canner-for low acid foods like green beans, meats, and broths (better safe than sorry!)
- Jars (1/2 pint, pint, 1 1/2 pint, quart, 1/2 gallon) in regular and wide mouth
- Bands (can be reused, as long as they are still in good shape)
- Lids (must be brand new each time, or you risk false seals or seal failures)
- The exception to the lids would be hard reusable ones, such as these from Tattler
- Jar lifter to remove hot jars from canners
- Hot Pads to protect your hands
- Towels to set hot jars on to cool
- Timer for keeping track of processing time
Canning tools and equipment that are nice to have:
See this post here on how to get more counter space when you are canning!
Where To Get Cheap Home Canning Supplies
Home canning equipment that is reusable such as jars, canners, and bands can be obtained quite cheaply if you know where to look. Try:
- Yard sales
- Estate Sales (often the best source, in my opinion)
- Thrift Stores
- Craig’s List
- Asking Great Grandma for her stash
- Amish Bulk Store
Some things to watch out for when purchasing used, cheap home canning supplies:
- Check for cracks in the jars, especially on the upper mouth
- Pressure canners should have working seals, and all the weights
- Water bath canners need to be free from rust or holes in the bottom.
- Bands should be rust free, and in good, round shape
- Blue jars are pretty, but the metal lids that came with them will most likely need new gaskets.
Should you reuse mayo jars for your home canning? Find out here.
Home canning equipment doesn’t have to cost an arm and leg to get started, either. Simply start with one canner, a few jars, and add to your collection when you can. Remember to can safely and enjoy your garden produce! Share in the comments your favorite piece of canning equipment and where you got it!
Want to learn more about canning off grid? This video will guide you through everything you need to know how to safely prepare and can your food, even when there is no power, and you find yourself truly off-grid. In this DVD:
- Which way out of three different canning methods, is likely to kill you?
- How has bacteria mutated since Grandma used to can, and how does that affect you?
- How to can raw meat, and why some meat has to be canned differently.
- Why canning milk and eggs should be avoided.
- When to use different canning methods.
- How to can berries, vegetables, fruit, meat off-grid.
- How to blanch tomatoes
… and so much more!
Get a FREE copy of the ebook, Canning For Beginners with each purchase as well! Grab yours today! Only $14.95 it also makes a great gift!
Grab Your DVD and Ebook HERE
the post first appeared on thehomesteadinghippy.com See it here
