As we are getting ready to harvest vegetables and fruits, we have to make sure our canning supplies are ready to go. Remember to check over your equipment and ingredients before the start of canning later this summer.
The first thing you want to do is wash all parts of your canner in soapy water and rinse well. Check for chips or cracks. Make sure the handles are secure and can hold the weight of a filled canner. Check the pressure plugs and test the dial gauge to make sure it is accurate.
Only use standard home canning jars that will seal properly and are safe to use in pressure canners. Carefully examine the sealing edge of the jars for cracks or chips. If you find any imperfections do not use the jar as products could leak out and your jar could end up not sealing properly. “To check their condition, immerse them in water and boil for 15 minutes. If they are not good, they will break” says, University of Minnesota Extension educators Suzanne Driessen and Kathy Brandt.
Each year you want to use new self-sealing metal lids and never reuse lids. Wash new lids in a warm soapy water and rinse well before canning. Check over all your canning rings and discard if they are bent or rusted. A jar lifter for removal of hot jars from a canner is recommended to have for proper safety. The use of funnels can make it easier to pack food into jars. After packing the jar with your fruit or vegetable you may want a plastic knife or spatula to free the bubbles from your jar. A wire rack, or a board and towel for the hot jars to cool on after processing is also recommended.
Remember to check over your canning recipes to make sure that you have all the ingredients you need. Use recipes from a safe source such as the Ball Blue Book 1994 and Beyond, Complete Guide to Home Canning USDA, Free Preserving Food Safety at Home: A Self-Study Series and University or Extension Publications and websites.
For more information on food preservation or canning from the University of Minnesota Extension: https://z.umn.edu/preserve https://z.umn.edu/preparefoodpreservationext
