How do you open canning jars?

[aczlan]

Neither of us ever heard of storing the jars without the ring on them, but my wife said that she might do that the next time she cans.

We used to do hundreds of jars of canned fruits and veggies every year, we never left the rings on. My wife never takes off the rings, but we only can 50-100 jars per year.

Aaron Z

 

[California]

I've found that re-using the discs year after year isn't a problem. (so long as any that fails inspection is discarded!) I average less than one per year where the disc fails to suck down indicating a good seal. If that occurs, it goes into the refrigerator for family use before anything else. A bigger nuisance is friends who return jars without discs and rings.

 

[aczlan]

I've found that re-using the discs year after year isn't a problem. (so long as any that fails inspection is discarded!) I average less than one per year where the disc fails to suck down indicating a good seal. If that occurs, it goes into the refrigerator for family use before anything else. A bigger nuisance is friends who return jars without discs and rings.

We ALWAYS replaced the lids (discs), any with the red "rubber seal" on the underside need to be replaced. If they have a white "rubber seal" you can reuse them as long as you don't bend the lid when opening it.

Rings can be reused as long as they aren't dented, a metal coathanger makes a great ring storage device (untwist the wires at the neck and bend the short one to loop around the hook that you hang it by), looks like this:


Aaron Z

 

[Jstpssng]

I haven't done any canning in a long time... the last thing that I made was maple syrup. Yet I still remember that satisfying sound when several dozen lids start "clicking", one after another as they seal.

 

[goeduck]

but we only can 50-100 jars per year.
Aaron Z

That are is a pretty good sum! I have gotten lazy and have not been canning, I freeze quite a bit but not can. I am going to try to start that back up.

 

[Jstpssng]

That are is a pretty good sum! I have gotten lazy and have not been canning, I freeze quite a bit but not can. I am going to try to start that back up.

Most vegetables taste better when frozen rather than canned. Since I bought my vacuum sealer, both of my pressure canners have rested in the shed for so long that I have to order new gaskets.

 

[Molalla1]

That are is a pretty good sum! I have gotten lazy and have not been canning, I freeze quite a bit but not can. I am going to try to start that back up.

Growing up back in the 40's-50's thats all we did was can . . . did not freeze much . . . probably because nobody had a freezer back then . . . the freezer that a refrigerator had was the size of maybe a shoe box at best.

 

[MossRoad]

Most vegetables taste better when frozen rather than canned. Since I bought my vacuum sealer, both of my pressure canners have rested in the shed for so long that I have to order new gaskets.

We use our pressure canner as a pressure cooker, too. Corned beef, chicken, roasts, etc.... :licking:

 

[Jstpssng]

We use our pressure canner as a pressure cooker, too. Corned beef, chicken, roasts, etc.... :licking:

I do that with my small one. It also does a good job with baked beans. My big 24 (?) quart unit though, not so much.
Besides replacing the gasket, I also would need to have the gauge tested. The last time that I canned string beans and corn was somewhere around 1994...

 

[California]

We use our pressure canner as a pressure cooker, too. Corned beef, chicken, roasts, etc.... :licking:

My wife won't go near a pressure cooker, something about it scares her.

But ... recently I bought an Instant Pot for when I go to the ranch alone and have to cook for myself. It's great! These are basically a pressure cooker with a computerized control panel that some techie invented, no doubt for his simplified dorm cooking. It has buttons labelled Rice, Beans, Meat Stew, Saute, Yogurt etc which start different cooking sequences, and for the more experienced cook Pressure Level, Timer, Delayed Start, Keep Warm After Cooked so you don't need to monitor it like you would an pressure cooker.

Wife is fascinated with my cooking. Now she insists I make beef or chicken stew, rice, etc for both of us whether we are at the ranch, or at home using the second Instant Pot. I like the simplicity, speed of cooking, and the ability to make a couple days meals in one batch. All without monitoring it, so I don't need to stay indoors while it cooks. Recommended.