Of course cleanliness matters in home food preservation. That goes without saying. However, clean is sufficient. Sterile is not required in this case because 30 minutes of processing in a boiling water bath will achieve the same results.

Assuming your DH followed a tested recipe, once the beets are processed and sealed they will be safe to eat not just for months but for years. (I will tell you that canned goods have been salvaged from a Civil War shipwreck and were still quite safe in terms of bacterial load even after some 140 years.) Properly processed and sealed, they will not become less safe over time.

What will happen over time is that the beets will soften and become less appealing. Flavors also sometimes alter but certainly the beets will be fine at least a year.

Having said that, the only issue I can think of beyond the recipe itself (appropriate proportions of vinegar to water, adequate strength of vinegar, etc.) is that occasionally a seal will pop if jars are not stored properly. In other words, if the beets were stored in a garage which is 90° in summer and 35° in winter, there might be a problem. If a seal pops, you discard the jar.

I recommend to assuage your concerns that you verify the recipe itself. Did it come from the latest Ball Blue Book or some other standard source?

I'm providing a link to the National Center for Home Food Preservation with a pickled beet recipe. Also, you might go to their home page and check out some of their other resources on the basics of food preservation. They offer loads of helpful information as well as a free self-paced course that can tell you much of what you need to know.

Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Preparing and Canning Pickled Beets

I'm new to canning as well, though I used to help my mom with her canning (ok, I was told I had to help) when I was a kid.

Linda Lou is one of the many great sources for canning info you'll find here on the canning forum. Her advice and commments have been extremely helpful to me, and I'm sure to many other newbies and more experienced canners alike.

I'm pretty sure most, if not all, of us have had your worries and concerns. My mom canned for years and was always a cautious about jars she didn't feel comfortable with. Funny thing is she never did poison any of us though I suspect there were days... ;^)

Just for grins here's my recipe for canning paranoia (hope you do get a grin out of it):

Whynotmi's Super Special Paranoia Paste ;^D

Read the Bell Blue Book.

Re-read the Bell Blue Book.

Lurk in the harvest forum reading every post for the past 3 years.

Re-read all posts on the harvest forum.

Gather all canning materials.

In a non-reactive pot bring to a boil then stew your paranoia. Length of stewing time depends upon the amount of paranoia present. Personally, I tend prepare a double batch.

If you like a bit of crunch in your paranoia throw in a few heaps of "I must be nuts. I must be nuts. I must be nuts."

Prepare canner, jars and lids following instructions found in BBB.

Place 1 tbs of excess stomach acid in prepared jars then fill with hot paranoia paste leaving 1/2 in head space.

Clean rims and place 2 piece lids on jars following directions.

Process in BWB for 10 mins for pints and 15 mins for quarts (see chart in BBB for additional processing time for elevations above 1000 ft). While the jars are processing panic slightly thinking you didn't wipe the rims off properly.

Remove jars to cool.

After 12 hours of cooling test for seal.

If you have a good seal give him (or her) a fish and a drink of water. The seal is likely to be hungry and thirsty after sitting on your kitchen counter all night.

Re-read the BBB then post your step by step canning procedure here in the forum.

Wait for replies.

While waiting for replies program the number of the local EMT into your speed dial.

Read replies from the great folks on the harvest forum.

Smile because you actually have canned something.

Note the date on your jars along with the contents.

Throw out all but 1 jar of paranoia. This stuff is really concentrated so you really only need 1 jar.

:^D Happy Canning!!

whynotmi

YIKES!! Sorry Readinglady, I goofed. For some reason I was thinking Linda Lou replied to the original post. Of course you, Linda Lou and a couple others are all filed together in my mind as the "super canners". Now I'm paranoid that I've offended. Guess I'd better get out the canning equipment. ;-)

Whynotmi, the latest FDA guidelines are to BWB the paranoia paste for 20 min pints, 20 min qts, again adding time for altitude.

To be safe, you should throw out everything, and just buy imported food.

Which reminds me, I saw that the frozen peas (those little white boxes that have been around since they invented frozen peas), in our big chain grocery store now come from a large nation on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. I think I'll grow my own.

David,

Thanks for the update. Now I just wish I'd added some extra processing time for the sake of paranoia. ;^)

BTW, don't let my lighthearted comments throw you off. I'm very cautious by nature and hence my experience with canning paranoia. I may get silly but I'm always serious when processing.

cheers,
whynotmi

Well done, both of you, david and whynotmi!!
But...........can ya do it under pressure?

And what would the time/pressure be?

:+)
Deanna

Oh, you guys are FUNNY !! LOL ! I loved it.
You will gain confidence as time goes on. I think we all felt like that at first. Now we can practically can in our sleep.

I loved the canning paranoia posts! (And I don't mind being confused with Linda Lou, LOL.)

Carol

Linda,
If you can can in your sleep, what music do you play?

DARFC
Deanna

See what too many years of marketing/advertising work can do to a perfectly good brain?

Pressure canner settings are the standard 10 lb jiggler and 11 lb gage. The appropriate music is Queen/Bowie's "Under Pressure".

Dream canning music depends upon the person. The standard is the "Can-Can" while more experienced canners prefer the score to "Cannery Row".

Cheers

I only get paranoid when I pull out the pickled beets at Thanksgiving and put my pickles and jams into gift baskets for Christmas.

So far all my dinner guests and relatives in other States are still living, so I guess I havn't created any deadly bacteria. I took 5 jars of various pickles to a church picnic two weeks ago. It was only our second week at the church it being a new church for us, havn't heard of anyone keeling over yet so the pickles must have been ok. Anyway, I always test my canned goods on church folk that way if anyone gets sick or drops over dead we can have a healing/resurection service! Hey ya know if ya gonna talk the talk ya gotta walk the walk, right? LOL

No offense intended, hope no one is offended by my sense of humor.

Susan

I'm certainly not, Susan.
I do, however, think your posts should come with a warning...............it's not good to shoot coffee and spit all over my computer from laughing!!
Eeeewwww........

Deanna

Getting everying 'squeaky clean' is always important as the less they are exposed to bacteria the better and safer the process. I must assume that the beets were parboild and peeled before packing in jars.

Whynotmi, Isn't that BALL, not BELL..

David52,
Buy imported food... Read the one about counterfiet toothpaste with antifreeze in it.. It comes from China..

Yup Ken, it should be Ball. Guess I need to ask Vanna White if I can buy a vowel. :)

LOL! Thanks for the fun reading, everyone!

Unfortunately my humor isn't quick enough for a snappy response, I'll probably think of something at 3 in the morning and then forget it by the time I get up.

Ann

Gaaaahhhhh, the dreaded 3AM "ding" of the imagination.