What canner did you order Lucille? All the guidelines and how-tos are online at NCHFP if you want to be reading through them now. All the books are based on NCHFP. The latest edition of the Ball Blue Book is available now and has been for the past 3-4 months.

Dave

NCHFP

I ordered a Presto 23 quart, and lids and jars and stuff. Oddly, Amazon is not going to ship the book until May 31 which they say is the release date. But that's OK, I'll take a look at the NCHFP. I'm premature anyway since the tomatoes are only recently in the ground, but that's OK too, by the time it's canning time I'll have done a bunch of reading and maybe a test run or two.

I went ahead and cancelled the book order, since I can just look at the NCHFP. Thanks Dave, your post saved me money!

Oh I see what book you were looking at and no you don't need it. All you really need, if you want a book, is the Ball Blue Book of Home Canning. It is sold anywhere they sell canning supplies. Costs about $8 at Walmart last time I priced it.

Dave

Glad to see you decided to go for it, Lucille. I taught myself to can because I didn't get taught at home. Back in 1967, the dark ages, we were stationed in San Antonio, Texas and there was a beautiful plum tree and equally beautiful peach tree in the yard of the house we rented. I decided to make jam and did. They were delicious. Since then I graduated into pressure canning and love it. My mother started canning some time after I did. I bought a 6 qt. canner and she bought the big Presto double decker. We lived no where near each other, but we taught ourselves. I don't know about her, but I was always a little leery of the pressure canners because I'd heard too many horror stories. I now wonder how many of those stories were true. After she passed, I inherited her Presto. The Ball Blue Book was always what we relied on. I did purchase the Ball Complete Book of Canning a couple of years ago, but don't use it that much. I really do refer to the NCHFP a lot as well. I think you'll probably wind up addicted to canning like the rest of us. My late husband thought it was a waste of time because you could just go to the store and buy canned vegetables. He just didn't get it. This year I plan on a huge garden and hopefully to can most of the vegetables and fruits to last me through the coming year. Happy canning!

Madonna

Madonna,

You are an inspiration!!!

The canner arrives this afternoon according to the tracking #, I'm excited. It is going to be a while before the newly planted veggies start to produce, but I'm planning on reading the NCHFP, do some test runs, then putting up some veggies from the grocery store.

I'm planting more this year, my garden is small but with proper attention it can crank out a lot of veggies. I have a large chest freezer but the possibility of an extended electricity outage (which happens when we have a hurricane, I'm on the Gulf Coast) would mean the loss of an entire year's produce. By canning some of the produce I won't have to worry about that happening.

Lucille - with the Presto 23 qt. you will want to also order the 3 piece weight set (Part #50332) so you can use it as a weight canner rather than having to get the gauge checked all the time. BIG advantage. that we talk about here often. amazon carries it for about $12.

Dave

Dave I ordered it yesterday:) I'm not quite sure how to use it, but I'll read up, it sounded like something I ought to have.

The canner arrived, it is beautiful. It actually came with a booklet that had directions and recipes, enough to get me through the first months of canning as it has tomato sauce and pickle recipes and more.

The 3 piece weight set should arrive in another day or two.

I am doing a lot of reading on this forum, and notice that there are a lot of questions on whether and how to vary directions. I've decided that I'm not going to vary, not going to even ask, I want to have safe food and don't want the slightest doubt that anything I might do would put safety in jeopardy.

I have a small kitchen and don't have a lot of cabinet space so I moved a couple Ikea storage pieces into the kitchen and am trying to get all my canning equipment- canner, jars, etc. in one area so everything is easy to find and use whenever I want to can.

I didn't realize that I can use the canner for boiling water canning so I got one of those big metal pots also.

I haven't checked the Presto manual lately but it used to be very outdated in the instructions. So as a general guideline several of us here have always advised against using it for instructions. They may have updated it but I just don't know.

So when it comes to using it, do so with care. The current step-by-step guidelines on "How to Use a Pressure Canner" are available at NCHFP. Same for recipes.

Dave

Using Pressure Canners

OK thanks I'll used the NCHFP, thank you for the link.

If you get the time could you do a quick comparison of the manual to NCHFP guidelines on the how-to-use and some of the recipes and let us know if the manual they are currently including varies from the current guidelines. I know in the past they did not include the needed acid for tomato products or the minimum approved vinegar brine for pickles, the need to pre-vent the canner, or the cool down steps to avoid siphoning.

Dave

I will look into it in more detail, but there are differences. My Presto booklet is marked 2015. I took a quick look and it does include specifications for acidification. But the timing for instance, for tomato sauce using pressure canning varies by 5 minutes shorter than the NCHFP.

I'm not going to use the booklet because of the differences, I will only use the NCHFP, so if you want I'll be happy to mail the booklet to you.

Lucille, I think you'll find a lot of inspiration on here. There are lot of people who learned from their families, but a lot who had to teach themselves. That's one of the reasons this is such a wonderful forum. I've gained a tremendous amount of knowledge from the people on here. Sometimes we just have to do what we fear in order to better ourselves. Some things are easier than other and canning is one of the easier things to do. Hope to see lots of pictures of your garden and your canning results later this year.

Lucille, I taught myself how to can/preserve from this very forum (and books, websites, etc.) over 10 years ago! There are some true Jedi Masters here that can help with ANY question you have.

I will second getting the weighted set; it will make your life so much easier when you are ready to branch into pressure canning.

Start off with something easy like a jam or pickle, and before you know it, you'll be hooked! The first thing I ever canned was a spiced strawberry jam and I was SO proud!

I'm proud of y'all!

I have a few more projects to take care of, but then I'm going to the store and buying some veggies just so I can can them, mine won't be ready for another six weeks I estimate.

Congratulations on the new canner, Lucille.

My grandmother taught me to can, then I had to "re-learn" as the rules changed, I've been canning since I was big enough to stand on a chair at the sink and help peel tomatoes. I've learned to balance my "risks" and decide what I'm willing to do to get the results I want. I also learned that the guidelines in Europe and Canada are different than ours, which shouldn't have surprised me, but it did.

Tomatoes are at least 4 months away here, but I usually find something to can all the time, whether it's chicken stock from all the backs and wing tips and carcasses from roasted chickens I've saved or jam from berries in the freezer or beans when I find a 5 pound bag of dried ones on sale.

Happy canning!

Annie

BWC, 3 pints of pickle slices. A disaster. Forgot to buy ginger, but decided to go ahead because I've been putting this off too long (decades, lol). Then I got flustered and forgot to put in the onions and the pickle crisp. And how did the kitchen get to be such a mess over just 3 pints?

So I will put these pints in the refrigerator after they cool down, because you are not supposed to vary a recipe.

The good news is that the cucumber plants are full of tiny cukes which will probably be ready in a few days. I planted more plants, too, but for now 3 pints at a time seems good so if a disaster happens I have room in the refrigerator.

I have to say that even though things did not go perfect at all, I felt a smidge of pride as I set those three little pints out to cool. I heard three little pings just a few minutes later, wonder if that was a sealing sound?

Baby steps.

Not in a pressure canner, in the boiling water canner (BWB?). I have to work up to the pressure canner, maybe after a few more pickles I'll try the pressure canner on some tomatoes. Auspiciously, there is a thread on bread and butter pickles I happened upon in the cooking forum, with posts on pickle sandwiches.

Ummm love B&B pickle sandwiches. ;)

I opened a jar this morning. (It had a seal!) The pickle slices were crisp and delicious, better than store bought if I do say so myself.

Thank you Dave and thank you everyone who have offered suggestions and advice on this particular forum (even if they weren't my threads, I've read hours worth of them).

I did 6 more pints today of BWB pickles. Followed directions, didn't leave anything out. The second time was easier. Heard the tops make a little sound sealing after. How long until I know I did it right and they are not contaminated and going to unseal themselves?

12-24 hours after finished processing you remove the rings and wash them and put them away, check the seal (center depressed and feels snug to fingers, wash the rims of the jars with a hot soapy rag, and store. All is good.

Sweet! I checked the seals, they were all good!!! I opened one and put it in the fridge, the rest got date labels and got put up.

I'm ready to try the pressure canner now, unfortunately I've been snacking on tomatoes out in the garden so there are not enough right now. I think next week there may be enough to can 3 or 4 pints.

Use the time to do some practice runs with the canner and weight. Just "can" some jars of water with food coloring in them to get comfortable with using the canner and learning your heat control setting and how to prevent siphoning.

Dave

Good for you, Lucille!! I also love bread and butter pickles, although I really like the onions in them better than the cucumbers.

I just found an unsealed jar of pickles on my shelf today, occasionally one will come "unsealed" even months after processing. If and when that happens, it's normal, be sure to discard it safely, and don't worry that you did something wrong.

I'm envious of the tomatoes, here in Michigan there are still just blossoms....

Annie

No tomato canning. The fresh tomatoes are so wonderful I keep on snacking on them instead of saving them for canning:)

A question about the bread and butter pickle recipe please: There is quite a bit of sugar in the recipe. Is that for safety or taste? Could I replace it with Splenda if it was for taste?

Lucille, the sugar is for taste and there are some people who use Splenda or Stevia in canning, but say it sometimes gives an "off" taste.

I've never tried it myself, as I figure, how many B&B pickles would I eat in one sitting anyway? LOL! I'd rather have the real thing and not take the chance of ruining something I worked so hard to put up, especially if I grew it myself.

That's a good point. But I'm eating low carb. I don't know how much of the sugar actually makes it into the pickles, but I ate (OK so maybe I should be embarrassed to admit this) 1/3 of a pint jar one evening while I was binge watching Scandal on Netflix.

Today is a momentous day. For most of you no big deal I'm sure, but it has taken me a while. I used my pressure canner for the first time. Canned 8 pints of ground beef.

WTG!!! :-) Now you'll be addicted to it.

Dave

Canned 12 pints of chicken early this morning. Fortunately when I was buying supplies I bought a second stacker plate because I had to process them in 2 layers.

@Lucille: "My Presto booklet is marked 2015. I took a quick look and it does include specifications for acidification. But the timing for instance, for tomato sauce using pressure canning varies by 5 minutes shorter than the NCHFP."

Hmm.... The Presto manual says, "Process at 10/11 pounds, pints and quarts, 15 minutes. (page 32). The USDA says, "10/11 pounds, pints and quarts, 15 minutes (USDA 2015, page 3-8. http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_03/tomato_sauce.html) Were you perhaps looking at the USDA's 20 minutes for 5/6 lbs?

Anyone wanting to look at a Presto manual can view one online here (this is for the 23 quart, 2012) : https://www.gopresto.com/downloads/instructions/01781.pdf

NOTE: As of 2015, Presto was still distributing a French version of the manual dating from 2003. I wrote to them to alert them of several updates needed in that translation of the manual.

I don't believe I have the Presto manual any longer. I use NCHFP recipes, I have a Ball book which is convenient because I can take it into the kitchen, but when I use a Ball recipe I also check similar NCHFP recipes.

I use my Presto manual all the time for quick reference. I once checked it line for line against the USDA Complete Guide, and while the Presto guide eliminates some cold pack options for the sake of brevity (or a judgement call on quality), otherwise, it follows the USDA Guide like the laws of the Medes and the Persians. Just wanted to put that out there for those reading this thread in the future. :}

I'm glad you are happy with your manual. We all have our preferences.

Lucille, these days So Easy to Preserve is mostly my go to in the kitchen - I just use the Presto to refresh my memory on basic basics like the times on beans and mushrooms. So Easy to Preserve is co- written by the woman who runs the NCHFP. It's a bargain (cost includes shipping in the continental US), really easy to work from in the kitchen and I'd say easily the best home canning book out there in its class (it's not gourmet like the new All New from Ball), though we all have our preferences as you say of course. Lots in there that you won't see on the NCHFP site, such as home canning onions. There's an accompanying DVD set, too, for those that want. You may wish to check it out sometime..... http://setp.uga.edu/

Thank you for the link.

A connection with NCHFP inspires confidence. I've seen all sorts of recipes for canning and newbie though I am, I know some of the ones I see floating around the internet are not safe.

So Easy to Preserve is compiled and published by NCHFP and is a good book to have if possible, and many of us do. But with a few exceptions it is duplicated on the website and its additional links, just organized a bit differently. Plus the website links to many other approved publications not included in the book and the website is searchable and free. ;-) It is just a matter of which format appeals to you the most - a book or a website - but you can't go wrong with either.

All the Ball/Bernardin books are based on NCHFP guidelines, as are all the state/county extension services, and fully reliable. However Ball/Bernardin does some additional research of their own so their books do include additional recipes beyond those found in NCHFP publications.

As for canner manuals, there have simply been far too many errors and/or lack of updates reported in many of them to recommend their use as a primary source of info. Especially when much more current info is so readily available. It is a situation where nothing is gained and some potential for error exists to rely on them information source.

Dave

For me right now, one website and one book (the Ball recipe book) is enough, then. And (again, for me) learning to can the basics is fine. I'm a good cook, and can take the canned basics and turn them into a meal easily.

>> As for canner manuals,

@Dave, we'll have to respectfully agree to disagree on that one, Dave, as far as the Presto manual goes. It's not a mountain I'm prepared to die on today, but the current Presto English version is absolutely fine. I've studied them all very closely, very recently and I'm with you on the other canner manuals. But if there's a problem with the Presto manual, we're all in a lot of trouble, because it copies the USDA and Ball almost word for word except where they left out the USDA's raw pack and 5 lb options for fruits.

No disagreement just want to point out that many folks have had their Presto pressure canners for years, if not decades, so they don't have the 2015 edition you have. So having that link to the current edition will be helpful.

Which still leaves us with the problems with the Mirro and AA canner manuals (not to mention the off-brands out there) but that's a whole other story. ;-)

Dave