Getting Started with Home Canning and Preserving Food

I’ve been home canning fruits, vegetables, soups, jams and jellies, and sauces for over 30+ years. It’s a lot of hard work, but I really enjoy growing our own foods and then preserving them for later use. Home canning is a really easy process once you learn the basics and can be mastered by any home cook.

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You’ll need to invest in your home canning supplies but the good thing is that the majority of them are reusable, over and over again. Make your investment once and you’re done!

I recommend that all newbies start out by learning how to can fruits, sauces, pickles, relishes, etc. They’re the easiest things to preserve. You’ll need to purchase a large water bath canner with canning rack.

When you’re ready to move on to preserving meats, soups, stews, vegetables, etc. you’ll need to invest in a Steam Pressure Canner which is more expensive than the water bath canner.

Here are the 6 Must-Have Home Canning Accessories that you’ll need to go along with it.

Vinyl Coated Jar Wrench
Vinyl Coated Jar Lifter
Extra Wide Mouth Funnel
Bubble Popper and Measurer
Vinyl Coated Tongs
Magnetic Lid Lifter

To save money on the accessories I recommend purchasing them in a boxed set like the NORPRO 6 Piece Home Canning Set that I personally use. They’re quality-made tools that will last you for many years!!!

You’ll need to purchase your glass mason jars which are reusable over and over again. I keep several sizes on hand: jelly jars, pint-size jars, quart-size jars and half-pints. If you’re only going to preserve certain food items…you may only have to invest in one or two different sizes.

When getting started I recommend buying your glass mason jars by the case and buy them BRAND NEW! They need to be free of defects, contain no chips, cracking or crazing. Don’t use jars that are 10+ years or older as the newer jars are better made for safety reasons.

To go along with your mason jars you’ll need metal seals (disposable and non-reusable) and metal rings (reusable). If you’re purchasing your jars by the case they should come with seals and rings to get you started. Once you run out of seals, you’ll need to replace them every time you jar something new. You can buy seals by the box full for less than $2.00 a box at your local grocery store when you need them.

Personally I recommend that you invest in 2 great cookbooks that will teach you the basics of home canning and give you a slew of tried & true recipes that you can use. I recommend The Complete Book of Home Preserving and the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving. You’ll find a LOT of home canning recipes right HERE on the Two Classy Chics blog.

A few additional things that I recommend you have on hand:

* Old cotton kitchen towels and dish cloths. Canning can be messy and you don’t want to ruin your good kitchen linens!

* Bottle Brushes – I use 2 different ones to clean the insides of my jars. One has bristles and one has sponge tips. You can pick them up at the Dollar-Type of store.

* Old oven mitts and hot pads. Trust me, you’ll need them and they will get stained as you process your foods!

* You’ll want to wear old clothing or an apron when you’re home canning. I personally purchased a grilling apron that is made out of heavy duty material. It does a great job at protecting my clothing.

* Anti-Burn Gel like an Aloe Vera Based Lotion or Cream. You will get a burn from time to time…so have this on hand!!! (or grow your own Aloe in a pot).

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