When canning foods, a distinction must be made between high and low acid foods. Low acid foods, such as red meat, seafood, poultry, milk and fresh vegetables (not tomatoes), should be canned using a pressure canner. Pressure canners provide very high temperatures to destroy microorganisms that would cause spoilage in the food. These canners operate at temperatures from 240-250° F. On the other hand high acid foods, such as fruit, pickles, sauerkraut, jams, jellies, marmalades and fruit butters, should be canned using a boiling water canner. This type of canner requires temperatures near 212° F.

In order to ensure a high-quality canned product you must make sure to start with high-quality, fresh food. Make sure meat is fresh and canned soon after processing and that produce is not bruised or spoiled.

You have to options for preparing food for canning: Raw Packing or Hot Packing. When Raw Packing, the food is placed in the jars and boiling water is poured over the product. Hot Packing, however, requires that both the food and the water be brought to a boil and then poured into the jar together. Raw Packing is appropriate for low acid foods being processed in a Pressure Canner while Hot Packing is necessary for high acid food being processed in a Boiling Water Canner.

The following is the canning process for each of the canning systems:

Boiling Water Canners

• Hot pack product into jars.
• Fill canner approximately halfway with warm water. You will want the water to rise 1-2" above the top of the jars.
• Heat water to 180° F.
• Place prepared jars into the canner, adding more boiling water if necessary to attain the appropriate level.
• Turn up the heat to the highest setting and cover the canner.
• Add more boiling water throughout the process if necessary to maintain the appropriate water level.
• All water to boil for the appropriate processing time.
• After processing is complete, remove the canner lid and turn off the heat. Let the jars sit for 5 minutes.
• Remove jars from the canner and place on a rack or towel to cool. Do not allow the jars to touch each other during cooling.
• Do not tighten any of the lids until the jars have cooled completely.

Pressure Canners

• Raw pack product into jars.
• Fill canner 2-3" with water and heat to 140° F. (Some products may require a different amount of water.)
• Place jars into canner. Close the lid and leave the weight off of the vent port or leave the petcock open.
• Turn the heat to the highest position and allow the canner to steam for 10 minutes.
• At this point, close the petcock or place the weight on the vent port. Start timing once the canner has reached the desired pressure.
• Once the process is complete, turn off the heat and allow the canner to cool and depressurize naturally. Once pressure is at 0, remove the weight. After 10 minutes you may remove the lid.
• Remove jars from the canner and place on a rack or towel to cool. Do not allow the jars to touch each other during cooling.
• Do not tighten any of the lids until the jars have cooled completely.

Once the jars are cooled completely you will need to check for a proper seal on the lids. To do this you will look for one of the following:

• Lid shouldn't spring up when pressed in the center.
• The lid should make a high-pitched ringing sound if tapped with the back of a spoon.
• When held at eye level, the lid should be concave (curved down at the middle)

If jars are unsealed, the product may be placed in a new jar and reprocessed within 24 hours. The unsealed jar could also be stored in the refrigerator and consumed within several days.