Garden/Canning ‘22

bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Been putting up corn, okra, squash, zucchini and peppers so far. Tomatoes are getting stronger so may be able to get some of them done. Then I'll get on the jellies and hit sauces.
 

bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Picked two 5 gallon buckets of green beans in the dark tonight with a headlamp after the baby was asleep. That was interesting. Glad it’s done.

Your post reminded me of the 42 quarts of string beans we've put up... I think we're done with them other than to pick some to just cook...
 

Zach's Grandpa

Old Mossy Horns
My string beans are done, plowed it up and planted Oct beans that were up and growing in five days. Getting lots of tomatoes, okra, and zucchini. First yellow squash is done, did another planting and seeds were out of the ground within a week.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Canned 12-1/2 pints of blueberry preserves/jam....whatever it turns out as. Not sure if enough pectin was used. Had some recipes that said you dont need it for blueberries. Another recipe said 1 tablespoon per 4 cups when doing blue berries. The Ball label said 1-1/2 tablespoons for each 1-1/3 cups of berries. I used the middle recipe and threw in a couple extra tablespoons for safety......it hasnt set yet and I dont know if it will. May end up with blueberry syrup.

Also, had a jar blow a lid and ring off in the canner. This was open bath and within a few seconds of being put in the water. We hadnt even finished loading the basket. I dont know what caused that.
 

Justin

Old Mossy Horns
Canned 12-1/2 pints of blueberry preserves/jam....whatever it turns out as. Not sure if enough pectin was used. Had some recipes that said you dont need it for blueberries. Another recipe said 1 tablespoon per 4 cups when doing blue berries. The Ball label said 1-1/2 tablespoons for each 1-1/3 cups of berries. I used the middle recipe and threw in a couple extra tablespoons for safety......it hasnt set yet and I dont know if it will. May end up with blueberry syrup.

Also, had a jar blow a lid and ring off in the canner. This was open bath and within a few seconds of being put in the water. We hadnt even finished loading the basket. I dont know what caused that.
I didn’t use any pectin and I think it’s about the consistency of a jam/preserve. Spreads nicely on toast or a biscuit.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Anyone have a link to a good canning basket for the canner. Today it was almost impossible to load the jars because they kept falling over. That may have had something to do with the one that popped.
 

Justin

Old Mossy Horns
Been on vacation. Talked to the neighbor about watering and picking. He said he gladly wood. Came home to an almost dead cucumber with 5 cucumbers about 12” long on it 🤦🏼‍♂️.

Had a bell pepper plant that I figured would have bell peppers ready to pick when I got back. Staked them but they were too small to tie off…. And forgot to tie them when they got big. I came home to a plant on its side with 4 big juicy bell peppers and all with a sun scald rotted into the upward side. Whooops. The others are putting on.

Havent had a chance to check the peppers thoroughly. Noticed some red cayennes. Trying to get enough at once to ferment. Tabascos are coming along nicely. Jalapeños are putting on really well. Once they start turning red by the dozens, I’ll make some candied jalapeños. Need to save a few jalapeños and cayennes for another quart of pepper vinegar. Might make some pepper jelly too, but not a priority if I don’t have enough to spare.
 

Justin

Old Mossy Horns
Anyone have a link to a good canning basket for the canner. Today it was almost impossible to load the jars because they kept falling over. That may have had something to do with the one that popped.
Cold/room temp jars into hot water? Or were they preheated?
 

LR308

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Anyone have a link to a good canning basket for the canner. Today it was almost impossible to load the jars because they kept falling over. That may have had something to do with the one that popped.
Do not buy this one! Same thing happend to my wife yesterday canning tomatoe sauce. What a mess! I have been struggling with it too.

Canning Rack Securely Holds 8 Pint or 7 Quart Mason Jars – Sturdy Stainless Steel Canner Rack Rests Perfectly on Your 12.5" Canner Pot for Easy Loading of Canning Jars https://a.co/d/2dIxRmp
 

LR308

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Been on vacation. Talked to the neighbor about watering and picking. He said he gladly wood. Came home to an almost dead cucumber with 5 cucumbers about 12” long on it 🤦🏼‍♂️.

Had a bell pepper plant that I figured would have bell peppers ready to pick when I got back. Staked them but they were too small to tie off…. And forgot to tie them when they got big. I came home to a plant on its side with 4 big juicy bell peppers and all with a sun scald rotted into the upward side. Whooops. The others are putting on.

Havent had a chance to check the peppers thoroughly. Noticed some red cayennes. Trying to get enough at once to ferment. Tabascos are coming along nicely. Jalapeños are putting on really well. Once they start turning red by the dozens, I’ll make some candied jalapeños. Need to save a few jalapeños and cayennes for another quart of pepper vinegar. Might make some pepper jelly too, but not a priority if I don’t have enough to spare.

I feel ya on the vacation blues. July is not a good month to take time away from the garden. We are still catching up. Some plants may be too far gone. All this rain isn't helping my tomatoes. Dealing with bacterial wilt.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I didn’t use any pectin and I think it’s about the consistency of a jam/preserve. Spreads nicely on toast or a biscuit.

you wouldnt have to spread this. It may set more overnight. We shall see.
Cold/room temp jars into hot water? Or were they preheated?

Did not preheat. Jars stay in the shop and its been averaging about 85 degrees in there. They were washed, air dried, then filled with bubbling blueberry stickiness. Lids put on, lids finger tight. They even had to sit out for a few minutes while the canner finished heating up. Started loading the basket. Had maybe 6 fall over and one of the six popped a ring and lid off.

it wasnt instantly when it fell. I was trying to stand the other up without getting scalded and then it popped. The only thing i can figure is the air bubble from the top moved to the bottom/side when it fell. The blueberry couldnt push out and the pressure drove the lid/ring off? Idk. Thats a new one on me.

i do know a woman that was canning tomatoes and had one explode when she took it out of the water.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Any of you guys have a good tomato canning recipe? Im looking for something that can be used as a base for pretty much anything. In the past we have taken skins off, cored, quartered, simmered, and put them in jars with some salt.

we have also cored them, cut them, and simmered them with the skins then canned them. That worked pretty well and is much easier.

there is always juice, but i dont think i have the right tomatos. We went from dry to wet. If it goes back to a dry spell, ill get into the juice. Need some dry weather for good juice.
 

bwfarms

Old Mossy Horns
Any of you guys have a good tomato canning recipe? Im looking for something that can be used as a base for pretty much anything. In the past we have taken skins off, cored, quartered, simmered, and put them in jars with some salt.

we have also cored them, cut them, and simmered them with the skins then canned them. That worked pretty well and is much easier.

there is always juice, but i dont think i have the right tomatos. We went from dry to wet. If it goes back to a dry spell, ill get into the juice. Need some dry weather for good juice.

You talking paste or sauce? You will have better luck with meaty tomatoes like Roma and San Marzano. The slicers tomatoes are like sponges and contain so much water it takes a long time to evaporate them.
 

bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
you wouldnt have to spread this. It may set more overnight. We shall see.


Did not preheat. Jars stay in the shop and its been averaging about 85 degrees in there. They were washed, air dried, then filled with bubbling blueberry stickiness. Lids put on, lids finger tight. They even had to sit out for a few minutes while the canner finished heating up. Started loading the basket. Had maybe 6 fall over and one of the six popped a ring and lid off.

it wasnt instantly when it fell. I was trying to stand the other up without getting scalded and then it popped. The only thing i can figure is the air bubble from the top moved to the bottom/side when it fell. The blueberry couldnt push out and the pressure drove the lid/ring off? Idk. Thats a new one on me.

i do know a woman that was canning tomatoes and had one explode when she took it out of the water.

Don't know if it'll help, but I boil my jars, remove and fill them while hot. Get seals and rings on a bit loose (barely snug) and put back in the hot bath for required time. Then remove, place on towel and cover jars with another to slow the cooling.
 

bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Canned 12-1/2 pints of blueberry preserves/jam....whatever it turns out as. Not sure if enough pectin was used. Had some recipes that said you dont need it for blueberries. Another recipe said 1 tablespoon per 4 cups when doing blue berries. The Ball label said 1-1/2 tablespoons for each 1-1/3 cups of berries. I used the middle recipe and threw in a couple extra tablespoons for safety......it hasnt set yet and I dont know if it will. May end up with blueberry syrup.

Also, had a jar blow a lid and ring off in the canner. This was open bath and within a few seconds of being put in the water. We hadnt even finished loading the basket. I dont know what caused that.

Preserves and jams are not supposed to gel much and I can't offer anything on doing blueberries but have found a couple of things that may be of interest.
Powdered pectin doesn't gel really well unless you maybe cook the product a bit longer than suggested. Makes better jams.
Liquid pectin gels better and works great for jellies.
 

LR308

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Any of you guys have a good tomato canning recipe? Im looking for something that can be used as a base for pretty much anything. In the past we have taken skins off, cored, quartered, simmered, and put them in jars with some salt.

we have also cored them, cut them, and simmered them with the skins then canned them. That worked pretty well and is much easier.

there is always juice, but i dont think i have the right tomatos. We went from dry to wet. If it goes back to a dry spell, ill get into the juice. Need some dry weather for good juice.

Not recipe related, but we bought a food mill this year. Wow what a time saver for sauce type bases. We did an Italian style sauce this week. Roasted the tomatoes whole (Amish paste, and San Marzano) then cored the big ones after roasting but the average sized ones we tossed straight into the mill and made sauce. All skins and most of the seeds were reserved in the mill. What a time saver compared to last year.
 

ctsnow

Six Pointer
you wouldnt have to spread this. It may set more overnight. We shall see.


Did not preheat. Jars stay in the shop and its been averaging about 85 degrees in there. They were washed, air dried, then filled with bubbling blueberry stickiness. Lids put on, lids finger tight. They even had to sit out for a few minutes while the canner finished heating up. Started loading the basket. Had maybe 6 fall over and one of the six popped a ring and lid off.

it wasnt instantly when it fell. I was trying to stand the other up without getting scalded and then it popped. The only thing i can figure is the air bubble from the top moved to the bottom/side when it fell. The blueberry couldnt push out and the pressure drove the lid/ring off? Idk. Thats a new one on me.

i do know a woman that was canning tomatoes and had one explode when she took it out of the water.
We always preheat and we only take one jar out at a time and that seems to help keep all the jars upright.
 

bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
My string beans are done, plowed it up and planted Oct beans that were up and growing in five days. Getting lots of tomatoes, okra, and zucchini. First yellow squash is done, did another planting and seeds were out of the ground within a week.

I got a case of dang squash bugs that have killed a bunch of my stuff before I realized it. Replanted squash due to them and now have dead, or dying, tomatoes and peppers. Sprayed them all again this afternoon.
 

LR308

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
You talking paste or sauce? You will have better luck with meaty tomatoes like Roma and San Marzano. The slicers tomatoes are like sponges and contain so much water it takes a long time to evaporate them.

Maybe he is talking stewed tomatoes or whole Tomatoes? Not sauce or paste....
 

bwfarms

Old Mossy Horns
Maybe he is talking stewed tomatoes or whole Tomatoes? Not sauce or paste....

Used the word juice and said wanted something as a base. I don’t consider whole or chopped a base. To me a tomato base is concentrate or sauce-like consistency. Wife will make a seasoned sauce which technically falls under base as well.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
We always preheat and we only take one jar out at a time and that seems to help keep all the jars upright.

i was putting them in one jar at a time. It fell over when putting them in. One jar tipped and it was like dominos from there. The quarts have been fine, but the pints were a pain. I wish i could find a better rack for the canner. It looks like the newer canners have a rack with more wire.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Don't know if it'll help, but I boil my jars, remove and fill them while hot. Get seals and rings on a bit loose (barely snug) and put back in the hot bath for required time. Then remove, place on towel and cover jars with another to slow the cooling.

i think this was a ring failure. Ill check the jar and ring better tomorrow. I didnt notice anything broke on the jar. Right now the ring and lid are still in the bottom of the canner.
 
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