Canning

[BrooklynQ]

Anyone here have experience with canning? I don't know anyone who has canning experience. I heard about a lot of grandmother's doing it, but no one who is still alive.

I made some home made ketchup yesterday and canned it based on the recipe's instructions. The lids are on tight, but one convexes slightly inward and the other is flat. I only got about 4 pints (two ball jars) of ketchup out of 2 gallons of tomatoes!

I checked out a cookbook on canning in the store today, and it's directions for canning were completely different from my recipe. The cookbook called for total immersion of the bottles, but the recipe said hot water up to the necks.

Have I just canned some poison?

[willkat98]

This just got moved outta Woodpile

This isnt exactly Q per se, but if it was BBQ sauce or Jap jelly, which I know alot of brothers can, then it would be.

So this is no different.

[BrooklynQ]

The recipe I was following was Paul Kirk's home made ketchup - so I guess this is Q or at least the basis of a BBQ sauce.

[willkat98]

Just didnt want your serious post to get trashed in the Pile.

My dad used to can pickles, which by the way I am about to embark on, and i recall 1/2, to 3/4 of the way up the jar in boiling water.

It was easier to get the pickle "brine" up to temp then your ketchup, so that the concave feature was pretty pronounced.

I'm waiting for DF Little or Mark to hit this thread. I got Jap Jelly from Dave, and I know Mark is one to do alot on his own. Theirs will be real knowledge, versus my 20 year recollections

[BrooklynQ]

Thanks Bill. One other question for the canners out there. If these aren't sealed properly, can I dump out the contents, heat it up again and re-can them cause the recipe says they need to sit for a month before using?

[parrothead]

Tomato based products can be safely canned with a 20 minute boiling water bath. This still means that it needs to be covered in water. I can ketchup and q sauce all the time. 20 minute bath is the key. Look in the pressure cooker manual. Pull it out and it should "pop" within 30 seconds. I have not had a single dud. Other things that you want to can may require the "pressure" part of the pressure cooker.

[BrooklynQ]

Thanks Greg. The instructions I had were strealize the jars, fill with hot ketchup, seal, put into boling water up to their necks and boil for 15 minutes after the water starts to boil again. No pressure cooker. No immersion. Think it will be ok? Also, do you need to store them in the dark or is the basement OK? No direct sunlight, but electric lights and windows around.

[parrothead]

If they "popped" they should be fine. I then place in the pantry (no light).

[BrooklynQ]

define "popped". there's two jars. one the lid curves inward slightly, the other is flat. i can't pull em off easily, but i didn't want to put too much pressure on them. But, if i open one can I re- can it?

[parrothead]

But, if i open one can I re- can it?

I would think so, and the sooner the better. I am not an expert by any means, this is just an opinion.

[Mark]

Or just put the one that is "flat" in the fridge and start using. Otherwise, seems like a lot of effort re-canning just one jar.

[Mark]

define "popped". there's two jars. one the lid curves inward slightly, the other is flat. i can't pull em off easily, but i didn't want to put too much pressure on them. But, if i open one can I re- can it?
" Popped" means the sound made when the cooling contents in the sealed jar create enough of a vaccuum to pull in the lid.

[david]

Thanks Greg. The instructions I had were strealize the jars, fill with hot ketchup, seal, put into boling water up to their necks and boil for 15 minutes after the water starts to boil again. No pressure cooker. No immersion. Think it will be ok? Also, do you need to store them in the dark or is the basement OK? No direct sunlight, but electric lights and windows around.
This sounds like one ot the "old" recipes... boiling water bath should cover a jar by about an inch, with a rolling boil (you'll know it when you see it). Canning is one of the few things where I would rather be overly cautious of what I'm doing, since the results can be very bad otherwise (read this as: lots of botulism problems with people using old recipes).

Also, if the lids don't seal you have 2 options... reprocess with a new lid or put it in the fridge and use that jar first.

For good information...
http://extension.usu.edu/publica/foodpubs.htm
http://www.foodsafety.ufl.edu/
http://www.homecanning.com

[chad]

You're probably fine. Ketchup with it's high acidity will be pretty "safe" anyway.

I'd go with Mark's advise and use the "suspect" first -- just put it in the fridge.

Next time around: sterilize the jars, put the hot product in the jars, put the sterilized lids and rings on and water bath them -- pressure cooker is fine if you have it but the rolling boil water bath will be perfectly ok.

The pop is just that - you'll hear the lids pop as they seal. Technically, you should be able to then remove the rings and store the jars -- pick the jars up by the edge of the lid -- if it comes off (yeah, you have a mess!) they weren't sealed and therefore weren't safe. (Old canning trick)

[BrooklynQ]

THanks for all the info guys. I lifted the jars by their lids and neither one opened up so I should be ok. Question about head space. how important is it? If I left too much space will it matter?

[Mark]

You need some headspace to help create the vaccuum (as the air cools, it shrinks). But too much headspace is simply a waste of space and mason jars/lids aint cheap.

[david]

Some recipes tell you how much headspace, but we usually just fill up to the ring below the threads. I think (mark will correct me here) that too little headspace is better than too much.

[BrooklynQ]

the recipe said half an inch, which i did i think. i didn't know if it meant half inch from the lip or half inch from the threads. i did somewhere in between. But the reason I ask is it seems like the contents are less now than when I started. Or I could just be obcessing about the whole thing.

[david]

the recipe said half an inch, which i did i think. i didn't know if it meant half inch from the lip or half inch from the threads. i did somewhere in between. But the reason I ask is it seems like the contents are less now than when I started. Or I could just be obcessing about the whole thing.
yep, from the top of the jar. Sometimes some of the liquid escapes in the BWB, and I wouldn't worry a whole lot if theres a bit less after your done.

Like somebody else said, there's not a whole lot to worry about since it's a fairly acidic food.