[Hunnybee_420]

Hi! For the last 3 years I have been planting a garden and the more and more I get the hang of it, the more and more I need and want to look into my food storage options. I thought about taking up canning this year but put off researching it and now it might be to late to start but I guess after an hour and half of research so far these are my questions... Please number answers so I make sure I am covering all grounds because one thing the websites made clear this isn't to be taken lightly and I don't want to die.

Keep in mind my aim is to mostly can salsa and spaghetti sauces...

1) Should I experiment with water bath canning or go straight into (educated of course) pressure canning because as far as I can tell water bath has limitations the pressure does not. Prime example, I can't water bath a sauce with mushrooms etc in it but I could in a pressure canner, or neither?
2) Could this be dangerous or would there be signs of not to eat something?
3) If I follow the salsa recipe I should be fine there but there are questions when it comes to spaghetti sauce, acidity wise?
4) Are there other more optimal ways to store a) spaghetti sauce b) salsa

I think I had other questions but my mind wandered, I think I have the water bath canning down, I started reading into pressure but it got confusing for as late as it is so I might just put it off for next harvest and learn in the meantime. My major questions were about the sauce ingredients, danger factors, and other options. As much help as you can off is much appreciated, I don't want to die, or explode...

[tickle]

This is fairly simple, hunnybee. If you want to make anything to keep with meat in the recipe as in spaghetti sauce with meat, then I would suggest freezing in zip lock bags. Zip lock bags because they can be filled easily and flattened out if you don't overfill them and freeze nicely. Label, date and freeze.

Canning whole tomatoes for later use is easily done, quite messy, after washing immersing in a hot water bath to remove skins and core, but worth it to preserve a harvest. Here to, there are guidelines for how much salt to add to maintain acidity. Pickle canning is a joy!

The canning method I preferred and always employed was the hot water bath with proper canning jars that must be sterilized immediately before using and I always did this in the dish washer as that had the hottest water I could employ.

So... you can get a list on line anywhere of everything you need for the hot water bath method which is safe, only as long as EVERYTHING IS STERILIZED AND FRESH, which means you don't let a pot of salsa sit around for a day before canning (hot water bath is excellent for salsa).

Get yourself a good canning cookbook and go for it!

Apologies for not following your instructions of point system, but we are all volunteers here, some of us with permanent jobs as well, so my time was limited.

However, fire away and I will answer any further questions you may have.

Once you do your first batch, and carry through, you are already an expert.

Remember too, labelling jars with date and contents, and making sure the seal is secure on your jars is the key to enjoying your canned produce as long as you want to, safely.

[Warphead]

Hot water bath canning for tomatoes and or salsa works well. Why the tomatoes are safe to eat after being canned by the hot water bath as opposed to pressure canning is the acidity level. The tomatoes have a high acidity level where something like green beans, peas, meat etc do not and must be pressure canned to be safe. When employing the hot water bath method for canning tomatoes or salsa I always like to add about 1/2 tablespoon of lemon or lime juice. If it effects the flavor at all it is positive. The juice really bumps up the acidity level, and for me, gives me the extra assurance that I won't get botulism. Botulism is bad news. It paralyzes the muscles in your body. Sever cases have lead to people being put on ventilators to breath as their muscles to breath no longer work. If the victim lives he most likely faces debilitating injuries to his muscles and very lengthy physical rehabilitation. So all you wannabe rookie canners out their I highly recommend that you get some books and do some research before canning anything. Oh, another thing. If you can push the jar lid up and down and it makes plinking sound then something is wrong, don't eat the contents. The seal has failed and there is no longer a vacuum in the jar. If the jar lid looks as if it is pushing out and exhibits the characteristic of the jar being pressurized, DO NOT EAT THE CONTENTS. That pressure is gas that has built up as bacteria has stared consuming the contents. Eating this will make you sick or even kill you. The exception is Kimchee. Kimchee pressurizes the jar and will actually bubble when you open the lid. Home canning is safe if you educate yourself first. The way I see it, canning is about to get really popular as store bought products are going to be scarce and too expensive to buy if things continue as they are. Stock up on jars, lids and rings. I would highly suggest getting a big cooking pot and a pressure canner along with a propane burner in a stand and several bottles "gas grill size" of propane. You can get a set up really cheap around Christmas and Thanksgiving by purchasing one of those deep fry turkey kits from Walmart. Something easy to make is a thick stew like soup. I buy one of those cheapy hams at Walmart. One of those hams that look like a football and cost about $8.00 to $10.00. It is like five pounds of mystery meat. Chop the ham into 1/2" cubes and throw in the pot. Get about three bags of frozen peas, okra, cut green beans, lima beans, carrots and whatever else you might like and throw in the pot. As a prize you can add to the soup several pieces of country ham cut up or some sliced link sausages. Include the country ham fat if using country ham. Add water until it is about 2" above the ingredients. Season with salt, pepper and whatever else you like in soup. Stir everything well and then fire up the propane burner. Gradually bring the soup to a boil. While waiting for the soup to boil put a good sized pan on the stove and fill about half way with water. Bring the water to a boil then decrease heat until the water remains hot but not boiling. Then place the jar rings and lids into the hot water. In a separate big pan on the stove place as many jars as will fit. Fiil the pan with water as well as the jars. Keep the jars in boiling water. Add water to the jars as it boils off. When you remove a jar add another. Ladle the boiling soup "equal parts water with solid ingredients" into pre-heated and sterilized jars. A jar funnel is highly recommended as well as a good set of jar tongs. Fill each jar leaving about 1" space at the top. Clean away any soup that my have gotten on the jar rim with a cloth dipped into the hot water on the stove top. Wear protective gloves so you won't get burned as bad. I always get a few minor burns when canning. Now remove one lid and ring from the hot water with a set of tongs and place the lid on top of the jar. Take the ring and tighten it down securely. The lid and ring design allows for pressure to escape when heated but as the contents cool inside it creates a vacuum that seals the lid. You'll understand the first time you try to remove a lid form a canned jar. I use the back side of a butter knife to gently pry the lid for the jar. Fill as many jars as your pressure canner will hold and leave the rest for the next batch. Now place the sealed jars into your pressure canner and cook the length of time and at the pressure specified in the pressure canner instructions. Usually two or more hours. No instructions? Go on the net and search. You can find lots of guides and instructions that are free. While the pressure canner is cooking the soup in the jars "remember we only brought the soup mix to a boil but didn't actually cook it long enough to eat" keep the remaining soup in the pot with just enough heat to keep it too hot to touch but not so hot as it is boiling. About 10 minutes before the pressure canner time is up raise the temperature of the soup in the pot but it isn't necessary to boil. When it's safe to remove the jars from the pressure canner do so. Heat another batch of jars, lids and rings and repeat the process until you have canned all the soup. TIP: Start this in the morning and not in the evening like I did or you'll be watching the sun come up and still have another batch to can. There are several different ways to make the soup. Instead of all water you can use tomato juice, half water, half juice. Or all tomato juice. I like to make a small batch and try it to see if I like or make adjustments. Then I make the big batch to can. The soup is actually quite good and filling. If your really hungry you'll think it was prepared by the finest of chefs. Good luck. Wouldn't hurt to start sticking some home made canned goods away as I mentioned earlier. There is a chance that canned goods or anything else for that matter won't be available in abundance at the local grocery store. Just a thought. With a lot of home made canned food, a supply of propane, and a burner setup you are already miles ahead of most people should some calamity befall your area. Be careful and have fun. This will take a while unless you have multiple pressure canner/ propane rigs and a huge stove. So a good bottle of wine, a book or even a movie "as long as you can watch it in the kitchen" is highly recommended. Hope this helps. KPE
WARNING: Failure to follow instructions supplied by your Pressure Canner Manufacturer could and will most likely lead to sickness or death. Listed above is how I do it and does not necessarily mean, imply or guarantee it is the right way. Read the book before you cook! Learn the plan before you can!