Canning is my favorite method of preserving food. My mother taught me this skill when I was still a child and I am forever grateful. There are those who look on this activity as a hobby, but for me, it is a lifestyle.
Many years ago, my oldest son gifted me a large Presto pressure canner big enough to hold two layers of pint jars for a total of 16 jars per load. I couldn't begin to count how many jars of food have been run through it. Lately and for the first time, I have run into problems. The last couple of large loads of jars I have canned in it ended up with the jar lids on about half the jars not sealing.
First I thought the problem might be that the newer jar lids weren't as good as the older lids. Then I thought it might be operator error. Turns out I need a new seal for the canner lid and there is a button on the lid that pops up when pressure is reached and drops down when pressure drops. That button isn't working. So I need to fix the problems.
In the meantime, I tried something new. A couple of years ago a friend bought one of those electric instant pot appliances. She loves it and uses it often. So I did a little research and found information about the Nesco Digital Canner that can be used for cooking and canning. Ordered one. Stuck it in the closet and promptly forgot about it. Sometimes I have the attention span of a gnat!
Dragged the Nesco from the closet and set it up on my kitchen table. Found it would hold 4 pint jars or 4 quart jars at a time. Canned a total of 30 pints of my 'meals in a jar.' (More about those later.) Every single jar lid sealed.
If you are canning for a large family, it would take forever and a day to can enough food using this appliance. But I am finding that it works well for me.
I have physical limitations. It is much easier to fill 4 jars at a time than it is 16 jars. Removing 4 jars from the Nesco is easier than unloading a large pressure canner. My pressure canner heats up my entire apartment when used in the summer. That doesn't happen with the Nesco. And at this stage of my life, anything that can make life a bit more tolerable is welcome.
I'm not telling you to run out and buy a Nesco. Don't you just hate those blogs or channels that tell you to buy this widget or that gadget or you will surely die? Not doing that. This appliance is a bit expensive unless you find one at a garage sale or thrift shop. Just saying it solves a couple of problems for me. And it works!
Whatever food preservation method you use, keep at it! The way things are going, we may need every last crumb!
When I first started caning about two decades ago, I began with jam from the abundance of blackberry bushes overgrown on the farm we had just bought.The directions on the insert of pectin included “inversion method” (also called “open kettle canning”) where you fill your jars with the boiling jam, turn them over to heat the lid, and turn them upright, then wait. (That is no longer recommended .) Shortly after, I tried my hand at water bath canning with the next batch of blackberries. I didn’t have a canner, so I used an 8 quart pot . I tied screw bands together to make a rack to set on the bottom. The following year, my husband bought me the Presto canner/pressure canner/pressure cooker. Frankly, the first time I used it to pressure can, I was *terrified.* Not only was I afraid it would explode, I was afraid of pathos, so I tried my first batch of pressure canning with quart jars of applesauce (high acid, less risk of pathogens.) That was a game changer! I got 7 quarts of applesauce processed in the same time it took to get half pint jars of jam processed! I now pressure can anything in a quart jar, be it high or low acid, simply because it’s quicker. I am also no longer afraid of the canner exploding! That said, I don’t make a habit of leaving the kitchen as I watch the gauge.
ReplyDeleteI would say canning is a passion of mine! I even once pressure canned chicken broth from a Costco rotisserie chicken carcass! I will never forget using it to make Day after slow cooker Thanksgiving turkey tortilla soup, and seeing my daughter, (the closest thing to a picky eater we raised) holding her bowl and slurping her soup as we decorated the tree, and saying “mmmmmm.”
Just note here: the Instant Pot, and its corporate copycats, have MULTIPLE safety features to prevent an explosion. If the cooker goes overpressure, a safety valve releases. If it goes into overtemp, it'll shut itself off. And you CANNOT open the lid until you've released the steam and the pressure has gone to zero.
DeleteThat should read afraid of *pathogens*not pathos. Hahaha. Autocorrect sure has me make some interesting statements! (MB)
ReplyDeleteSounds like you and I have had much the same experiences canning. Although I never have used the method of turning the jars upside down to seal the lids. I suspect that a number of the methods used "back in the day" are now frowned upon! Canning was just the way our ancestors fed their families, and we continue to use the tried and true methods of food preservation. Seems to be becoming a lost art these days. I am always glad to hear of those who find it a way to preserve.
DeleteAnd yeah - spellcheck doesn't like me much some days, either. :)
If it’s any comfort, pretty much all my friends can as well.
DeleteI just checked out the Nesco and that might be a solution for me as well. Going to really do a deep dive on it. I have a Nesco dehydrator and have used it for years and been very happy with it. Glad to see your canning is humming along!
ReplyDeleteI sure am happy with the Nesco so far. You might want to check out "RoseRed Homestead."
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/@RoseRedHomestead
She did a study of several brands of electric canners, including the Nesco. And I think she has done tutorials using it as well.
The only problem I have found so far is that the Nesco heats up much faster than a pressure canner on the stove where you regulate the amount of heat. I had filled jars with product that had been in the fridge overnight and was very cold. I should have heated the contents a bit as the difference between cold and heat broke a jar. So, from now on I make sure whatever I put in the Nesco is a little bit warm and is packed in warm jars. Other than that, I am really pleased with it. Good luck with whatever you decide to use!
This article came at the perfect time. I have been wanting to try my hand at something beside preserving jams. I was afraid to pressure can a big batch for the first attempt. Kohl’s has the Nesco on sale right now. In addition, I had a 20% off coupon and a $5 coupon for my birthday this month. It was a pretty good deal all around I thought. Thank you for the information.
ReplyDeleteGood for you in finding a Nesco on sale!! I'm going to suggest watching a video or two on how to use it. It is different, somewhat, from a regular pressure canner. For me, it seems easier to use than a stove-top canner. At any rate - enjoy!!!
ReplyDeleteGreat information. Thank you, Vicky.
ReplyDeleteBe safe and God bless.
Glad to see you are still here! Take good care.
DeleteI find the Nesco is great for when I just want to put up small batches, like the 4 quarts of chicken stock I made today from a rotisserie chicken carcass. Saves room in the freezer.
ReplyDeleteRobin
I think this Nesco may be one of my better purchases! It is working out well so far.
DeleteI've been checking every day in case the urge to post struck you, and now, happily, it has! No worries about what you say, my suspicion is that we all just enjoy hearing from you!
ReplyDeleteAlthough you do have some explaining to do about a certain governor... 🤔
Thought of you yesterday when I began to process: carrots, onions, peppers, and potatoes. The first two will be dehydrated, the peppers went into the freezer, and I'll can the potatoes.
Glad you're back! Robin
Robin...I am afraid there is no way to explain our knuckleheaded governor. We are just happy that he is elsewhere just now so he isn't here working to ruin as many Minnesota lives as possible.
DeleteQuestion - When you can potatoes, do you use liquid in the jars or do you can them dry? I didn't like the results of canning them in liquid and plan to can some without next week.
I'm glad to be back as well. I missed all of you!
Good to see you back, Vicki! Yeah; I sent you an e-mail about using one of those Instant Pots for canning a while back. They're actually good little machines. They can't handle a lot, but they do a good job with what they CAN handle. And they're GREAT pressure cookers!!! My wife bought an Instant Pot a few years back. I thought it would be yard sale material in a couple of months. WAS I WRONG!!! It works GREAT as a pressure cooker, either for whole meals or for parts of larger ones. It'll steam up a batch of rice in five minutes! 'Need to cook up some pinto or black beans quickly? Look no further than the Instant Pot! Prepper types like us will run into pinto beans that have sat a while and have hardened. The Instant Pot LAUGHS at those, cooking them up just fine! 'Want easy-peel hardboiled eggs? 2.5 cups of water in the pot. Drop one of those collapsible steamer trays into the pot and load a dozen eggs. Set the pot for five minutes. When the timer goes off, let the eggs sit another five minutes before releasing the steam. Then remove the eggs and run them under cold water. This works especially well on NOTORIOUSLY hard to peel FRESH eggs.
ReplyDeleteFolks, if you're short on cash, keep your eyes open at yard sales and thrift shops. These things show up with astonishing regularity in both places. I have TWO Instant Pots, brand new, in the box, that I picked up at two different yard sales for $20.00 and $15.00 US!
Again, thanks for the posts, Vicki. God bless you and yours!!!
So good to hear from you, Pete!
DeleteThe only thing I have used my Nesco for so far is canning. I expect it will get a workout this coming weekend. My grocery order went in this morning. Chicken drumstick family packs for 68 cents per pound. Ordered 4. Seasoned pork loins (the smaller loins) are buy 1 get 2. Ordered so I should get 6 total. I have had lousy luck canning potatoes in water. Russets are on sale, so I ordered 10 lbs. Going to give dry canning potatoes a try to see if they turn out better.
My son told me about hard boiling eggs in the Instant Pot. Haven't tried that yet but plan to.
You are always a wealth of information and I truly appreciate that. God bless you and yours. And stay safe. The world becomes more crazy by the minute!!
Read your post re: canning potatoes. You may have better results if you can find Kennebec potatoes. I have read that russets drier texture degrades a bit in jars. I personally use Kennebec or yellow types[ Yukon] which are firmer. You may not have these readily available in your region. I am in Ohio and we do have a variety here.
ReplyDeleteLucky
Thanks for the suggestion, Lucky...I ordered 10 lbs of russets that are on sale, but I can dehydrate those instead of canning. Will see what I can do about getting my hands on other varieties. I really would like to have some canned potatoes on the shelf.
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