Table of Contents
Introduction
About This Book
Conventions Used in This Book
Foolish Assumptions
How This Book Is Organized
Part I: Getting Started
Part II: Water-bath Canning
Part III: Pressure Canning
Part IV: Freezing
Part V: Drying and Storing
Part VI: The Part of Tens
Appendix
Icons Used in This Book
Where to Go from Here
Part I
Chapter 1: A Quick Overview of Canning and Preserving
Knowing the Benefits of Canning and Preserving Your Own Food
Meeting Your Techniques: Canning, Freezing, and Drying
About canning food
About freezing food
About drying food
Key Tricks to Successful Canning and Preserving
Chapter 2: Gathering Your Canning and Preserving Gear
Assorted Basic Tools
Key basic tools and utensils
Pots, pans, mixing bowls, and more
Specialty equipment to make work easier
Canning Equipment
Canning vessels
Canning tools
Tools and Equipment for Freezing Food
Tools and Equipment for Drying Food
Chapter 3: On Your Mark, Get Set, Whoa! The Road to Safe Canning and Preserving
Dispelling Your Fears of Home-Canned and -Preserved Food
Preparing your food properly
Packing your jars with care
Choosing the right canning method and following proper procedures
Checking your equipment
Knowing the Acidity Level of Your Food
Avoiding Spoilage
Meeting the spoilers
Adjusting your altitude
Detecting Spoiled Foods
Part II
Chapter 4: Come On In, the Water's Fine! Water-bath Canning
Water-bath Canning in a Nutshell
Foods you can safely water-bath can
Key equipment for water-bath canning
The Road to Your Finished Product
Step 1: Getting your equipment ready
Step 2: Readying your food
Step 3: Filling your jars
Step 4: Processing your filled jars
Step 5: Removing your filled jars and testing the seals
Step 6: Storing your canned food
Adjusting Your Processing Times at High Altitudes
Chapter 5: Simply Fruit
Picking and Preparing Your Fresh Fruit
Identifying the proper degree of ripeness
Cutting and peeling: Necessary or not?
Deterring discoloration
Raw pack and hot pack
Lining your jars with liquid
Fresh Fruit Canning Guidelines
Apples
Apricots, nectarines, and peaches
Berries (except strawberries)
Pears
Rhubarb
Tackling Tomatoes
Chapter 6: Sweet Spreads: Jams, Jellies, Marmalades, and More
Understanding Your Sweet Spreads
Choosing Fruit for Sweet Spreads
Getting Up to Speed with Fruit Pectin
Commercial pectin basics
Types of commercial fruit pectin
Setting Up without Adding Pectin
The Road to Sweet Canning Success
Jamming and canning
Jiggling with jelly
Mastering marmalade, butters, and more
Chapter 7: Condiments and Accompaniments: Chutneys, Relishes, and Sauces
Complementing Your Chutney
Reveling in Your Relish
Satisfying Your Sassy Salsas and Sauces
Chapter 8: Pickle Me Timbers!
The Art of Pickling
The ingredients
Brining education
Adding crunch to your food
Pickling Equipment and Utensils
Pickled Toppers
Pickled Cucumbers Are Just Pickles
Pickled Vegetables
Part III
Chapter 9: Don't Blow Your Top: Pressure Canning
Understanding the Fuss about Low-Acid Foods
Choosing Your Pressure Canner
Cover: With a gasket or without
Gauges
Vent tube, pipe vent, or petcock
Overpressure plug
Rack
A-Canning You Will Go: Instructions for Successful Pressure Canning
Step 1: Gearing up
Step 2: Preparing your food
Step 3: Filling your jars
Step 4: Placing the jars in the canner
Step 5: Closing and locking the canner
Step 6: Processing your filled jars
Step 7: Releasing the pressure after processing
Step 8: Removing and cooling the jars
Step 9: Testing the seal and storing your bounty
Disposing of Spoiled Products
If your jar is still sealed
If your jar has a broken seal
Pressure Canning at Higher Altitudes
Chapter 10: Preserving the Harvest: Just Vegetables
Selecting Your Vegetables
Picking the perfect produce
Vegetables not recommended for pressure canning
Prepping Your Veggies
Cleaning your vegetables
Raw packing versus hot packing
Processing Tips for Successful Results
Pressure Canning Vegetables
Asparagus
Beans
Beets
Bell peppers (green, red, orange, yellow)
Carrots
Corn
Greens
Onions
Peas
Potatoes
Sauerkraut
Summer squash
Winter squash and pumpkins
Using Canned Vegetables
Chapter 11: Don't Forget the Meats!
The Lowdown on Canning Meats
Tips for safety and efficiency
Selecting and preparing the meat
Meat canning, step by step
Canning Beef and Pork: Cubed Meat
Preparing the meat
Filling the jars
Canning Ground Meat
Poultry
Canning fresh chicken: Cold packing
Canning prefrozen chicken: Hot packing
Fish and Seafood
Picking your fish
Preparing fish and seafood
Filling the jar
Including Meats in Other Canned Mixes
Chapter 12: Combining the Harvest: Soups, Sauces, and Beans
The Lowdown on Canning Combined Foods
Choosing a processing method
Tips for a successful meal
Getting your meal on the table
Stocking Up on Soup
Teaming Up with Tomatoes
Rounding Out Your Meals with Beans
Part IV
Chapter 13: Baby, It's Cold Inside! Freezing Food
Defining Freezing
Meeting the Spoilers of Frozen Foods
Bacteria, molds, and yeast
Enzymes
Freezer burn and oxidation
Ice crystals
Gearing Up to Fill Your Freezer
Knowing what should (and shouldn't be) frozen
Evaluating your freezer
Packaging Your Food and Filling Your Freezer
It's a wrap! Choosing a container
Tra
cking your frozen food trail
Packing your freezer
Thawing Out Your Frozen Food
Choices for thawing
Unplanned thawing
To refreeze or not to refreeze thawed food
Chapter 14: Meals and Snacks in a Snap: Freezing Prepared Foods
The Whys and Wherefores of Freezing Food
A guide to planning your meals
The key to delicious frozen prepackaged food
Freezing Convenience Meals
Main dishes
Soups, stews, and sauces
Freezing Bread, Snacks, and Other Treats
Bread, buns, muffins, and rolls
Cakes
Cookies
Pies
Freezing Dairy Products and Nuts
Freezing Meat, Poultry, and Fish
Packing hints
Thawing tips
Chapter 15: Freezing Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs
Mastering Freezing Fruit
Selecting your fruit
Preparing your fruit
Selecting a storage container
Syrup concentrations at a glance
Headspace guidelines
Thawing and using frozen fruits
Freezing Vegetables Like a Pro
Blanching perfect vegetables
Packing your vegetables
Step-by-step instructions for freezing vegetables
Thawing and using your vegetables
Freezing Fresh Herbs
Part V
Chapter 16: Dry, Light, and Nutritious: Drying Food
Opening the Door to Successful Food Drying
Key factors in drying food
Necessary equipment
Other tips for successful drying
Choosing a Drying Method
An electric dehydrator
A conventional oven
The sun
Protecting the Life of Your Dried Food
Chapter 17: Snacking on the Run: Drying Fruit
Putting Your Fruit in Order
Sizing up your preparation options
Pretreating your fruit
Detailing Your Fruit-Drying Expertise
Evaluating dryness
Drying fruit step by step
Drying a Variety of Fresh Fruits
Enjoying the Labors of Your Drying
Chapter 18: Drying Vegetables for Snacks and Storage
Your Vegetable-Drying At-a-Glance Guide
Drying know-how
Storing and using your dried produce
Signs of trouble: Good vegetables gone bad
Drying Common Vegetables
Beans, shelled
Beets
Cabbage
Carrots
Corn
Green Beans
Greens
Onions
Peas
Peppers, sweet
Potatoes, white or sweet
Pumpkin
Tomatoes
Zucchini
Chapter 19: Drying Herbs
Drying Common and Not-So-Common Herbs
Dill
Marjoram
Mint
Oregano
Rosemary
Sage
Stevia
Tarragon
Thyme
Getting Creative with Herb Cooking Blends
Herbs for Teas
Chapter 20: Root Cellars and Alternative Storage Spaces
Finding the Perfect Place for Cold Storage
Tried and true: The traditional root cellar
DIY storage spaces
Following Simple Storage Rules
Preparing Foods for Cold Storage
Apples
Beets
Cabbage
Carrots
Garlic
Onions
Pears
Potatoes
Turnips
Tomatoes
Part VI
Chapter 21: Ten (Or So) Troubleshooting Tips for Your Home-Canned Creations
Jars That Don't Seal Properly
Jars That Lose Liquid During Processing
Jars with Cloudy Liquid
Dark Spots on Your Jar's Lid
Jelly with the Wrong Consistency
Cloudy Jelly or Jelly with Bubbles
Moldy Jelly
Jelly with Very Little Fruit Flavor
Glasslike Particles in Your Jelly
Hollow, Shriveled, Discolored, or Slippery Pickles
White Sediment at the Bottom of the Pickle Jar
Food That Floats in the Jar
Food with an Off Color
Chapter 22: Ten (Plus) Sources for Canning and Preserving Supplies and Equipment
Alltrista Consumer Products Co.
HomeandBeyond.com
Cooking.com
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
Your local extension office
KitchenKrafts.com
CanningUSA.com
Excalibur Products
Mountain Rose Herbs
Pressure Cooker Outlet
Tupperware Corporation
Appendix:
Metric Conversion Guide: Note: The recipes in this book were not developed or tested using metric measures. There may be some variation in quality when converting to metric units.
Canning & Preserving For Dummies®, 2nd Edition
by Amelia Jeanroy and Karen Ward
Canning & Preserving For Dummies®, 2nd Edition
Published by
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Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
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About the Authors
Amy Jeanroy: Amy has been canning and preserving foods for 20 years. She is passionate about filling the pantry with useful, delicious foods, and creating healthy meals from her own small farm. Amy is the Herb Garden Guide for About.com and also writes a weekly farm newsletter that provides homemade recipes to help her readers store and use their summer bounty.
Karen Ward: The author of Pickles, Peaches, and Chocolate, Karen is a life-long home canner, home economist, and recipe developer. In addition to judging preserved food at the San Diego County Fair each year, Karen teaches canning and preserving to men and women of all ages. Karen has been a featured guest on many television shows, including QVC and HGTV's Smart Solutions. She is a founding member of the San Diego Chapter of Les Dames d'Escoffier International, a nonprofit organization mentoring women and providing scholarships in the culinary arts. Karen is a native-born Southern Californian. She makes her home in San Diego with her husband, Chris.
Dedication
From Amy: To my uncles, John and Paul, whose constant support and wisdom gave me the confidence to continue with my dreams.
Acknowledgments
From Amy: I would like to thank my entire editorial team at Wiley: Tracy Barr, who kept me motivated; Emily Nolan, who tested the recipes; and Elizabeth Kurtzman, who provided the illustrations. Thank you, everyone! Creating a book is truly a team effort.