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Water bath canning at home is a great way for beginner canners to learn the skills of home food preservation on their homesteading journey.
I first started my home canning journey with this easy homemade strawberry jam recipe, and after I learned the ins and outs of food safety I became confident in trying new canning recipes to start providing my family with home-preserved healthy foods for our everyday life.
Water bath canning is an excellent way of preserving foods that are high in acid, such as fruits (apple butter anyone?!), pickles, and salsa. It involves submerging filled jars in boiling water for a specified amount of time to kill bacteria, remove air, and create a vacuum seal.
Learn how to Make and Water Bath Can Your Own Lemonade Concentrate!
Many traditional-skills enthusiasts like myself start learning the principles of canning because it is a fun and safe way to preserve garden produce. Canning provides timeless knowledge to make food shelf stable without risking it going bad before you can eat it.
Learning proper canning techniques allows you to gain the skills of lost knowledge of self-sufficiency and rely less on the grocery store as well as have a piece of mind knowing what exactly is in the food you and your family eat.
Water bath canning is perfect for preserving high-acid foods. High-acid foods are items such as fruit spreads, most fruits, pickles, relishes, chutneys, salsas, and tomato products with added acid such as lemon juice or citric acid.
A quality canning kit is a wonderful addition to your preserving supplies as well as different sizes of jars and lids. Buying quality the first time ensures that your preserved food will be safe and it saves you money in the long run so you don’t have to replace them, they could even be used for future generations.
Check out my post on Quality Kitchenware That Will Last You a Lifetime!
Quality lids play a major role in the success of your home canning. Trusted brands such as Ball, Kerr, and even my new favorite For Jars are perfect for water bath canning at home.
Below is what you need to get started with your water bath canning journey!
Check out my favorite canning supplies!
An affordable and quality water bath canning kit for beginners!
Water bath canning is a great way to preserve high-acid foods like fruits, jams, and pickles at home, but it is important to follow proper safety canning practices to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria and ensure that the food remains safe to eat. Here are some safety practices for water bath canning at home:
By following these safety practices, you can ensure that your water bath canned food is safe and delicious to eat.
Water bath canning and pressure canning are two different methods of traditional food preservation. While both methods involve canning food in jars, they are not interchangeable and are used for different types of foods.
Water bath canning is a process of preserving specific foods like high-acid foods, such as fruit products, pickling vegetables, and jams, by immersing the jars in boiling water. This method relies on the natural acidity of the food to kill off any harmful bacteria, and the heat from boiling water to create a vacuum seal that keeps the food fresh.
Pressure canning, on the other hand, is used for low-acid foods, such as vegetables, canning meats such as red meats, and fish, which require a higher temperature to kill off any harmful bacteria. This method involves processing the jars in a specialized pressure canner, which raises the temperature above the boiling point of water and creates a high-pressure environment that ensures the food is safely preserved.
There are many series of canning guides and recipes to choose from for water bath canning. My favorite canning recipe book is The All New Ball Book of Canning.
It is important to follow the step-by-step directions of your trusted recipe without adding any recipe alterations. Failure to follow directions could jeopardize the safety of the product and increase the risk of botulism.
Botulism is a rare but serious illness caused by a toxin that attacks the body’s nerves. The toxin is created by Clostridium botulinum bacteria. Improperly canned, preserved, or fermented foods can provide the right conditions for the bacteria to make the toxin.
You cannot see, smell, or taste the toxin, but taking even a small taste of food containing it can be deadly. Please read the original source by the CDC for more information on Botulism.
Once you have the basic building blocks of water bath canning, you will build the skills and confidence to preserve the harvest of your canning garden and provide your family with quality food to enjoy all year long.
Special Notes: Visit the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the USDA complete guide to home canning.
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