Canning/Preserving food?

[DSNY4ever]

I wanted to know if anyone does this and has any tips, or knows of good websites or books they can recommend with good recipes and instructions.

I already make jam every year and I love it. It saves us money and tastes so good! This year I want to try jarring possibly apricots and peaches, or maybe making pickles, tomato sauce, or even salsa!

Any tips or other suggestions on things to jar to save money?

 

[jbmom]

I really like my Ball Canning Book. It has easy to follow instructions and thats what I needed when I started! We can green beans, tomatoes, pickles, pickled jalopenos, pickled banana peppers, applesauce and sweet jalopeno pepper jam. All the other jams I make are the freezer type. We also freeze sweetcorn, blueberries and bell peppers. The peppers get mushy, but they are fine cooked in recipes. Most of the food we can and freeze comes from our own garden and its a huge money saver!

 

[Linda in sunny SC]

I want to second the vote for the Ball Canning Book. I still have the one my Mom used years and years ago. I used to help her can pickles, beans, tomatoes, peaches and apples. I hadn't done it for a long time but last summer I made bread and butter pickles from the recipe she always used.

 

[Gigi22]

I have canned a variety of things--mainly jams, jellies, pickles, chili sauce and preserves. I have also put up homemade tomato sauce, as DH was gardening a lot and we had loads of tomatoes. You really need the right equipment to in order to preserve safely, as well as correct and up-to-date information. Be very careful about using older recipes that do not contain information about how long they should be processed in a boiling water bath--failure to process correctly or long enough can lead to food spoilage and food poisoning. There is a USDA publication called "Complete Guide to Home Canning" that may be available online.

 

[missysid]

We have been canning for years and put up everything from soups, broth, all kinds of veggies, and fruits to jams and jellies. I agree the Ball Blue Book is a great "safe" way to start. Be careful with some of the older canning books. They are outdated and may not be safe according to todays standards. Ball even puts out a new book every few years to keep up to date on the standards.

Also you might try these books:

Canning & Preserving for Dummies - very good basics book.
How to store your Garden Produce
Putting up
Pickles to Relish
Preserving Natures Bounty

I have used all of these books and they are all newer so the should be up todate. Most should be available at the library also.

We can the following from the garden each year and add new things each season:

Green Beans
Waxed Beans
Baby Potatos
Carrotts
Apple sauce
Hot peppers
Apricot Jelly
Apple topping for ice cream
Apple Jelly
Apple Butter
Peach Jelly
Peach Jam
Peaches - halves and slices
Spiced peaches
All different kinds of berries
Stewed tomatos
tomato sauce
spaghetti sauce
chicken soup
milk
all different kinds of soups and stews (pea soup is a good one to learn on)
Pickles - 7 different kinds
relish
Chili
sweet corn (easier to freeze if you have the room)

Wow I know there is a bunch more but without being at home to look at the pantry or my books those were the first to come to mind. We put up over 600 jars a year - garden premitting. The main way to make this save you money is to ask around for jars from friends and neighbors. You would be surpised how many people have them in their basement and will never use them. I have about 800 empty jars right now in storage for this seasons crops. We have expanded our garden to just shy of 2 acres so I imagine I will be busy.

**One tip on your salsa you mentioned. Make sure to measure the items carefully. For instance if it calls for 2 cups onions try to be as close as possible. It can affect your processing times.

 

[missysid]

Sorry forgot this one. Self paced online study that is helpful also. It is about half way down the page.

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/

 

[DSNY4ever]

Thanks for all the tips- I hadn't even thought about older canning books not being very good anymore, I was just eyeing the Ball Canning book on Amazon.

And so many good ideas too, fruits and veggies I hadn't thought of! I am so jealous of those of you with big backyards for gardens. Luckily we have some great local farms. I will ask around for jars too, that is a good idea.

Hopefully this will be fun and will help pinch a few pennies! I'll have to start reading up to be ready by summer.

 

[laurafergie]

I really enjoy this blog: frugalcanning.blogspot.com

 

[Evi]

wow thanks for all the links... I've really wanted to try canning but been really afraid of having it go really wrong lol. But after I read up maybe I'll try it this season.

 

[worm761]

I learned how to can at pick your own. http://www.pickyourown.org/
I started with jam and it was super easy. They have pictures along with the recipe!

 

[tinkarooni]

I third the Ball Blue Book, if you have an older one purchase a new one. They do update the recipes and procedures. Like when I was a kid my mom used to put wax on top of the jelly, that's a big no no now.

So all my mom ever canned was jelly, I am self taught from the Ball Blue Book. We use a boiling water canner and a pressure canner for veggies. Once you get started you sort of get addicted to home canned jars on the shelf.

My tip is to tell everybody you know that you're looking for canning jars. So many people have boxes of them in their basements and are happy to find a good home for them. Especially grandmothers who don't can anymore. Good Luck!

 

[Figment's Girl]

Thanks to the OP for posting this question, I was just considering this morning starting to look into canning!

 

[FirstTimertoDiz]

I use this site: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/harvest/

It has lots of great info, especially for beginners like me, on how to can all sorts of things. There is lots of emphasis on safe practices while canning. Have fun!

 

[NHWX]

I'm going to keep this thread in mind once we have something actually growing the ground. This morning there was mixed rain and snow coming down...

NHWX

 

[monkeybug]

I'm another Ball Canning book girl!
Also for Jam I have found that we much prefer freezer jam. It tastes so much fresher than canned, and is really easy to make!

 

[AndreaDM]

I like canning and preserving for dummies and this book that just came out (I know the author ). http://store.mpn.net/productdetails.cfm?PC=1450