Re: first attempt at canning

CapeCoddess Mon Sep 24, 2012 4:49 pm

Thanks, HC! Yeah, that's what I was finding, too...recipes that had to be cooked to be canned. The recipe we use isn't cooked so I guess it shouldn't be canned.

Too bad.

CC

**rowena___.** Mon Sep 24, 2012 5:43 pm

this is my completely unofficial opinion, having nothing to do with any certification authority: i bet they are safe. pressure canning kills the spores that cause botulism in meat--and cranberries are way more acidic. they might not taste as you expect when you open them, though. they will taste "cooked". you can always open them, decant into a freezer-safe container and freeze them.

yolos Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:21 am

Okay, I finally tried canning tomatoes. What a lot of work that is. Not necessarily the canning part, but peeling, coring, etc. All added together it was quite an ordeal for me after working 10 hours at my regular job. My hats off to you all who do this all the time.

I canned 4 measly pints of tomatoes, in their own juice, using the boiling water method. I followed the recipe to boil the tomatoes in a sauce pan for 5 minutes, put in jars, and then in canner for 45 minutes.

I have two questions. First, the tomatoes have all risen to the top and the juice is at the bottom. From previous comments on this thread, it appears as if that is okay.

Second, what if I did not get all of the air out of the jars before canning. It looks like there is some bubbling going on inside the jars when I took them out of the canner. It looks like there are some air bubbles.

I only took them out of the canner about 10 minutes ago and I have been hearing the tops popping already.

FamilyGardening Wed Sep 26, 2012 2:16 am

yolos congrats cheers

on your first canning of tomatoes!

its normal for the jars to be bubbling when you take them out of the canner....they should still be boiling unless you leave them in the canner for a long period of time and they cool off.....

today we did our first plum jam Very Happy

harvested from our own tree!

first attempt at canning - Page 4 Dscf0163

9 pints of plum jam cheers

first attempt at canning - Page 4 Dscf0164

we also did 7 Qts of plums in a light syrup

first attempt at canning - Page 4 Dscf0165

the plums seemed to really cook down....we used the cold pack method....wondering if there is much plum left in the jars or if its a lot of juice.....with peels Shocked

hugs
rose

TooterBelle Wed Sep 26, 2012 2:32 pm

yolos wrote:

Second, what if I did not get all of the air out of the jars before canning. It looks like there is some bubbling going on inside the jars when I took them out of the canner. It looks like there are some air bubbles.

I only took them out of the canner about 10 minutes ago and I have been hearing the tops popping already.

It is best to get the air out, but it doesn't reallyhurt anything. The bubbles that you are seeing are probably just from the fact that it is boiling still.

cheyannarach Wed Sep 26, 2012 2:40 pm

yolos wrote:Okay, I finally tried canning tomatoes. What a lot of work that is. Not necessarily the canning part, but peeling, coring, etc. All added together it was quite an ordeal for me after working 10 hours at my regular job. My hats off to you all who do this all the time.

I canned 4 measly pints of tomatoes, in their own juice, using the boiling water method. I followed the recipe to boil the tomatoes in a sauce pan for 5 minutes, put in jars, and then in canner for 45 minutes.

I have two questions. First, the tomatoes have all risen to the top and the juice is at the bottom. From previous comments on this thread, it appears as if that is okay.

Second, what if I did not get all of the air out of the jars before canning. It looks like there is some bubbling going on inside the jars when I took them out of the canner. It looks like there are some air bubbles.

I only took them out of the canner about 10 minutes ago and I have been hearing the tops popping already.

Yay, congrats on your tomatoes! How did you peel them. If you put them in boiling water for about 45 secondsish them take them out and put them into a bowl of ice water the skins should slip right off!

yolos Wed Sep 26, 2012 3:04 pm

Yes, I did dip the tomatoes in hot boiling water for about 30 - 60 seconds then the ice water. It was easy peeling but took time. It took 40 smallish size tomatoes to fill the 4 pints. I had to cull a few for different reasons. It just took time, peeling, coring, cutting, washing jars and equipment, sterilizing, reading directions and then rereading directions again and again, and then finally canning.

Next batch will be dehydrated.

Too many tomatoes. Next year rather than trying to preserve the excess tomatoes, I will just give away the fresh ones. I have to grow this many incase the diseases set in early and limit the yield. This year was the best year for keeping the tomatoes alive thru a good harvest. I even have some suckers planted that are just now strarting to set tomatoes.

**camprn** Wed Sep 26, 2012 6:38 pm

When I blanch my tomatoes for peeling I usually leave them in the hot water 3-4 minutes and the skins slip right off. I have found that lass than two minutes in the hot water, the skins are still plenty stuck.

Processing the food is time consuming, but there is nothing quite like popping that lid in January and taking a big whiff of Summer. Very Happy

TooterBelle Wed Sep 26, 2012 9:42 pm

yolos wrote:
Too many tomatoes. Next year rather than trying to preserve the excess tomatoes, I will just give away the fresh ones. I have to grow this many incase the diseases set in early and limit the yield. This year was the best year for keeping the tomatoes alive thru a good harvest. I even have some suckers planted that are just now strarting to set tomatoes.

The peeling gets easier with practice. The first year I put them up, me and my daughter took all day to peel a bushel and a half...the next year, we peeled and put them up in one day. Smile

**Turan** Thu Sep 27, 2012 12:08 am

I stopped peeling a long time ago. We do not notice them in the prepared foods.

kdms Thu Sep 27, 2012 6:31 am

I peeled the first year....and haven't bothered since, seeing as the only thing I use canned tomatoes for is a variety of types of tomato sauce, and they always end up crushed anyways.

We picked up a 30lb box of romas from a local farm (our plants didn't produce as much as we wanted) and after washing them, we cut off the tops and chucked them whole into a food processor, skins and all. Took all of 2.5hrs to process the whole box, with two of us working at it.... and you can't tell the skins were left on. (And we get to keep whatever nutrients are in the skin, too! Laughing

)

**rowena___.** Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:58 am

when i have more tomatoes than i can process, i core them and put them in the freezer. then when i'm ready to either use them or can them, i let them thaw and the skins just slip off.

yolos Thu Sep 27, 2012 10:47 am

That is good to know that I can freeze them first and then can them later when I get the available time. But knowing me, they will probably remain frozen until I use them.

Thanks for all the help from everyone.

TooterBelle Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:53 pm

Later in life, my Aunt went to freezing her tomatoes all the time...my freezer isn't as large as either of hers though. Smile

FamilyGardening Sat Sep 29, 2012 3:27 pm

did some more canning from the garden cheers

up front 6 pints of salsa, then 5 pints of pizza sauce using Mrs Wagners pasta sauce pk....then 4 pints of pasta sauce that has tomatoes, carrots, celery, onions, garlic and herbs Very Happy

total of 15 pints of goodness for the winter!

first attempt at canning - Page 4 Dscf0166

i love canning from our own garden!!
hugs
rose

**RoOsTeR** Sat Sep 29, 2012 4:59 pm

Looks outstanding Rose! Very Happy

happycamper Sat Sep 29, 2012 5:14 pm

Great job! Food that doesn't tast like CANS, and you know where it came from and what's in it.

CapeCoddess Sat Sep 29, 2012 5:15 pm

Beautiful, Rose! Your photos gave me the bug! I think I might be able to make some salsa, too, with all I have from my garden now. Maybe even can a couple pints. Thanks for the push!

CC

FamilyGardening Sat Sep 29, 2012 6:24 pm

thank you Rooster, happycamper! and CC

cant wait to see your pic's CC Very Happy

happy canning!

today we are canning green, purple and yellow beans cheers

i also wish the purple beans would stay purple ......they are so pretty!

thank you all here in our SFG forum for all the encouragement!

hugs
rose

Nonna.PapaVino Sun Sep 30, 2012 12:29 am

Good work, Rose, impressive output. Do you make your salsa spicy, or leave it to your audience before adding more "heat" just before serving?

FamilyGardening Sun Sep 30, 2012 1:31 am

this year ( 2nd year making salsa) the salsa tasted differnt then what we made last year.....last year we grew our own tomatoes, onions and yellow banana peppers that we used.....we used store bought cilantro....along with a oange and red pepper.....loved the salsa..... Very Happy

....we put in a small amount of hot sauce....the salsa was on the mild side.....really good flavor Very Happy

this year we used our own home grown green peppers....(we froze our peppers thru the summer so we could use them in the salsa).....we also grew and used our own cilantro, tomaotes, onions and store brought garlic and 2 small jalapeno peppers......it tasted good too....on the mild side....just differnt then the first year....the flavors in this one is stronger....i can really taste all the veggies we used.....last years veggies blended more into one flavor....

we havent tasted this batch after the hot water bath....going to let them sit for a bit and then pop one open Very Happy

not sure if i even answered your question Nonna LOL

hugs
rose

**rowena___.** Sun Sep 30, 2012 10:56 am

well done, rose!!!

Nonna.PapaVino Sun Sep 30, 2012 12:06 pm

Yes, Rose, I understand what you said about heat. Making salsa to appeal to the majority of us is a great idea, because it's so easy to add minced hot pepper like fresh seranno or cayenne to make some hotter for the few heatseekers in the party. It's wiser than making the whole batch for the few with asbestos tongues, right? Nonna

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