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Getting Started with Home Food
Preservation
Getting Started with Home Food
Preservation
Take a minute to consider…
Why do we preserve foods?
Canning, Freezing & Drying
• Which method will you choose?
• Our aim: safe, high quality food.
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Methods in Food Preservation
• Refrigeration & Freezing• Fermentation or Acidification• Control of Moisture:
– Drying– Adding sugar or salt
• Heat Processing: – Blanching, pasteurization, canning
Two Types of Canning
• Boiling Water Canning (212°F) – fruits and acidified foods
• Pressure Canning (240°F or above) – meats and vegetables
• Remember…adjust for elevation!
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Getting Started…Equipment
Boiling Water Canner with rack Inspect jars, rims & lidsSupplies – measuring cups/spoons,
spatula, jar/lid lifter, funnel, other “nice to haves”
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Don’t Forget
• Process at the correct temperature
• Follow an up-to-date, research tested recipe
• Adjust for elevation
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Making Jams, Jellies and Fruit
Preserves
Making Jams, Jellies and Fruit
Preserves
Jams and JelliesAs Easy As 1, 2, 3, 4….
1. Fruit – adds flavor!
2. Pectin – natural carbohydrate that causes fruit to gel
3. Acid – needed for gel formation
4. Sugar – preserves jellied fruit, helps form a gel & adds flavor
Fruit
• Fresh, Canned, Frozen, Dried
• Use just-ripe fruit for best flavor and quality
• Mix ripe and unripe fruit if you don’t use added pectin
• Overly ripe fruit will taste great, but may fail to set
Freezing Fruits
• Freeze unsweetened for greatest flexibility
• Individually quick-freeze on trays• Thaw almost completely before
making jam• Or freeze juice for making jelly
Preparing Fruit
Jam:• Rinse – don’t soak• Remove stems, pits, or cores• Prepare fruit according to recipe:
crush or chop (with skin on)• Pack tightly into measuring cup
Preparing Fruit
Jelly:• Juicy berries – Crush without heating• Firm fruit – Crush, boil, then simmer
– Apples: add water only to cover, cook until soft (20-25 minutes)
– Grapes: only enough water to prevent scorching, until soft (10-minutes)
• Strain in jelly bag or cheesecloth
Pectin
• Can use natural pectin in apples, plums, grapes, currants
• Add pectin to other fruits (plus canned & frozen) to ensure a good gel
• Add pectin to fully ripe fruit
More about Gels
• Liquid and powered pectin are not interchangeable
• Low-methoxyl pectins for low- or no sugar products
• Powdered gelatin for refrigerator products
Acid and Sugar
• Added acid for gelling
• Measure sugar carefully
• Use honey or corn syrup sparingly
• Sugar substitutes can be used only in special recipes (refrigerator jelly–www.uga.edu/nchfp OR www.splenda.com/index.jhtml)
Water Bath Canning…
A Must for jams and jellies
• Helps form a seal
• Destroys yeast and mold
• Is required for
the Fair!
Basic Steps• Wash ½ pint jars in warm, soapy
water; then boil for 10 minutes (until filled)
• Prepare jam/jelly and pour into jars leaving ¼ inch headspace
• Remove bubbles between jam/jelly and jar
• Wipe jar rims and put on lids/bands
Basic Steps• Place jars in canner – boiling water
1-2 inches above jar lid• Start counting processing time when
water returns to a boil• Process in boiling water 5+ minutes• Cool jars for 12-24 hours then check
for seal, remove bands, wipe jars
• Mold – imperfect seal, too large jar
• Failure to set – too large a batch, incorrect proportions of ingredients
• Fading – storage place too warm or too light; stored too long
• Fruit floats – Stir fruit mixture for 5 min. before ladling into hot jars
When things just don’t work…
When things just don’t work…
• Use for syrup
• Refrigerate up to 3 weeks
• Freeze – ½ inch headspace
• Re-process- darker, cooked
When things just don’t work…
Re-make Instructions• Work in small batches• Carefully measure all
ingredients• Add pectin to product while
re-cooking
For Goodness Sake
• Jams and jellies are shelf stable for at least 1 year
• Store opened jars in the refrigerator
• Don’t consume product that has molded or that appears spoiled
Resources• USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning
(1994 or later), National Center for Home Food Preservation: www.uga.edu/nchfp
• Wisconsin First:www.wisc.edu/foodsafety/ (see Making Jams and Jellies)
• So Easy to Preserve – University of Georgia (1999 or later)
• Ball Blue Book (1997 or later)