With the introduction of our brand new glass jar. The 350ml Le Parfait Familia Wiss Terrine Jar. We thought it would be good to write a handy guide on how to use this style of jar. In particular how to use a canner to help store all sorts of products and produce.
Preserving food is a tradition that's been around for thousands of years. It's an important part of our culture and is great way to make food last longer.
Preserving methods range from smoking and curing to canning in glass jars. Preserving food will stop the growth of any bacteria and micro-organisms within the food. This will prevent the food from going mouldy and will last longer.
Using glass jars to preserve all sorts of food is easy and can be done at home. Smoking and curing can also be done at home but for now we will focus on canning with jars.
Glass jars are the perfect storage container for preserving food as the glass will not leach any chemicals or tastes in to the food you are preserving.
Below we've got two methods of preserving which work with different types of food. So make sure you know the right method for the food you are preserving!
Water Bath Canning With Glass Jars
Water bath canners are ideal for processing high-acidic foods. Such as jams, pickles, fruits and salsas. The food needs to have a pH of 4.6 or lower.
If the recipe you are following calls for a processing time of 10 minutes or longer. Research has shown that you no longer need to sterilise your jars before filling them. This is a great time saving piece of advise. We still recommend giving them a wash and rinse to ensure there is no dust or debris in the jars.
You don't need any specialist equipment to use this method. All you need is a large pot with a rack at the bottom. Make sure your large pot is big enough to submerge your chosen jars and you are good to go!
How To Use A Water Canner
These instructions are a general idea of how to use a water canner. Each recipe will require slightly different timings so make sure you check your recipe before starting.
Start with clean jars! Check out our handy jar sterilisation guide if you need help doing this! But remember if you are processing for more than 10 minutes you don't need to sterilise them, just give them a quick clean!
Fill the canner with water and bring to the boil. Make sure you have enough water to cover your jars by at least an inch.
Fill the jars with your desired food or creation. Leave a little room at the top for air. Remember the food needs to be acidic!
Secure the lids on firmly and place in the canner.
Cook for the desired time according to the recipe you are following. This will vary depending on the type of food.
Once the time is up. Remove from the canner and leave to cool.
Store in a cool dry place and use when desired.
Pressure Canning With Glass Jars
Pressure canning is a similar method to water bath canning but it requires a special pressure canner. It has a vent, pressure gauge and screw clamps. Because of this it is capable of heating jars to a temperature hotter than boiling water.
It's designed to preserve low-acid foods. Low acid foods must be preserved in a pressure canner. The types of food you can preserve in a pressure canner include vegetables, meats and fish.
These types of food aren't acidic enough to prevent bacteria growing. To kill any bacteria and to stop them growing you need to boil the jars at a very high temperature. This simply isn't possible unless you use a pressure canner.
The reason for this is that although botulism bacteria is killed at the temperature of boiling water. It's spores aren't. To ensure the spores are destroyed as well, you need to use temperatures hotter than boiling water. Which can be achieved using a pressure canner. Another way to get rid of these spores is with acidic foods. Hence why the water bath method works with acidic foods and lower temperatures.
Empty jars which are to be used in a pressure canner also don't need to be sterilised. Saving you time. This is because the temperatures reached within the canner are so high that it kills off any bacteria. We do still recommend you give them a wash however. This ensures that there is no dust or anything else in the jars!
How To Use A Pressure Canner
Every pressure canner is different and each brand will have slightly different instructions. Make sure you read the manufacturer's instructions carefully before you start using it. The instructions we've listed below are for canning in general and may need to be adjusted. Also the timings may need to be adjusted depending on what you are preserving.
Fill the canner with the specified amount of water in the manufacturers instructions.
Start heating the water.
Fill your jars and place them in the pressure canner.
Close the canner lid and vent steam for 10 minutes. Check how to do this in your instructions!
Build up the pressure in the canner and process the jars.
Make sure you depressurise your canner before opening.
Carefully open the canner and remove the jars. Taking time to make sure they stay upright.
Leave on a cooling rack until completely cool.
Store in a cool dry place and use when desired.
Do you currently use either of these canning methods? What's your favourite canning recipe? Let us know if the comments below!
What guide or recipe would you like to read on the next Sen5es blog? Let us know if the comments below or on social media. We love hearing your suggestions.
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All the best
The team at Sen5es