Well, I have been telling myself for a couple years now - gotta get into canning! Kept putting it off. Today, I finally took the plunge - stopped by the local Tractor Supply and got a 16 qt. pressure canner. Not the biggest, but it'll do to get me into the process. Picked up two dozen pint jars - decided I want to do 'one meal' per jar. They had a good price on the pot - best I had seen, including online. I plan to try my hand at this on the Labor Day Weekend.
my wife and I had a good time making pickles this summer My cucumber plants took over the small garden and we had easily 50-60 cucumbers. Not bad for a 2ft X 4t spot for cucumbers. Now my beans are growing like crazy so we'll a bunch of those to store for the winter too. I never was one for gardening, but I actually like it a lot more than I used to.
I planned on canning my tomatoes this season but I got too distracted and never really harvested a sizable crop even though I had 12 plants going. With the strange weather we have had (extreme heat, no rain, then sudden deluges) it made my watering regimen difficult and the tomatoes split a lot. It just sucked, essentially. Next season: beans and veggies. I love home canning. I make chicken and rice in large batches and beef stew in the crock pot, eat a meal and can the rest.
Good for you Seawolf! I'll give you a hint cousin: look for canning jars at garage sales, that's how I got about 200 of them at cheaper than dirt prices.
Also auctions, estate sales, moving sales. I came up with almost 3 pallets of canning supplies for under $100 or so. Check second hand stores, thrift shops, church rummage sales. My last (i have 3) pressure canner cost me $15 at a thrift store.
Got into canning for the first time this year. Like UGRev, we are having such a good cucumber crop that we had to do something with the extra or feed it to the chickens. Just completed canning 21 quarts of pickles yesterday (they better be good). I have always been the hunting type and left the gardening to the wife. This year I started helping much more with the gardening, also have my Amaranth crop mixed in with it, and enjoy it.
I found it quite relaxing. It was nice to just go out in the garden... poke around, pull a few off, water them at night and pull a few more off 3 days later. They grew so damned fast! When I only got the occasional 1 or 2 cucumbers and didn't have any jars left, I'd give them to my neighbors. Only had to toss 1 out so far. Alas, I do believe they are coming to an end and so I'm going to pull the plant tomorrow and make sweet gherkin's from the small ones that are left on the plant.
Thanks for the good info! Got my minivan, might as well get into 'garage saleing'......... Dang, I'll blend right in with the sheeple........ For some years, I have been getting the "Classico" brand spaghetti sauce - I like it, and they use genuine Mason jars! Got quite a few saved back now. Got the two dozen at Tractor Supply 'cause "they were there...". Will look for cheaper ones for sure!
I am sure you know this, but it never hurts to say it, and by your own admission you are new at canning.... run your finger carefully around the top rim of each used canning jar. Even a tiny nick will cause it to fail to seal. I have had one garage seller trying to sell off 2 cases of defective canning jars. I told him he was not a gentleman, and asked him also if he knew that his parents were not married.
My wife just picked up her Mother's pressure canner. Our little "experimental" garden has turned out quite good. I've learned a lot and even had some vegetables to eat. In about another 2 weeks, I am going to make some pepper sauce from some Tobasco Peppers I've got planted right now. Beans are just starting to produce after a late planting. Hopefully I can get a couple harvests from them before the cold weather comes. Next year will be even better with all we've learned. This year we have enjoyed a small amount of fresh produce. We will likely can some organics from the farmer's market here in town this fall. I see the majority of my food stock coming from my garden inside of 1-2 years. Little steps.
If you've got a Walmart close by, they've got much lower prices on canning jars than Tractor Supply. For more canning lids, check on eBay. If it's winter time, and your local grocery store doesn't have any jars, see if your local hardware store will order them. I've got them this way through Ace Hardware. With a pressure canner, you can pack meat. It's VERY easy to can chicken/beef/pork/deer/... Beef stew is also very easy to do in the pressure canner. It's one of my son's favorite meals, and having a few dozen jars of stew in the pantry makes it a very simple, hassle free dinner. Don't forget to pick up a spare gasket for your pressure canner. After you've got all your jars washed, lids in hot water, veggies/meat/whatever ready for packaging, then is NOT the time to have your canner "down" due to a torn gasket. Enjoy your new toy!
Best lids around they are expensive but are worth it you buy a few each year and new seals are cheap . JMHO Good luck with new experience ,I'm sure you'll enjoy it !!!
The beautiful gal I happened to marry is a canning genius...canning everything from fruits and vegetables to meats...well she's got me canning now and we just socked away a load of applesauce.
WOW...beautiful AND canning genius!...You lucky dog, you!... I suck at canning...my wife too...but basically she does all the sucking...
Just done some green veggies so far. Still need to try the meat. Need to get into drying too - gotta find a good dehydrator.
Check out the Excalibur units in the link below. We use the 9 tray w/o the timer and it works great. Commercial Food Dehydrators for dehydrating beef, fruits & other food from Excalibur
