Canning Soup....kinda/sorta

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
In the past my family has done plenty of pressure canning. I’ve never used the water bath method.

I also have helped Dad “can” loads of tomato juice, diced/shredded tomatoes, salsa, and a few other things using a method where we get the food bubbling in a pot, sanitize the jars, and boil the lids. We have put the food into jars as hot as we can get it, sealed, tightened rings, then flipped them upside down. That is hundreds of jars and I think I have seen one not hold the seal in all of that time.

I tried canning soup this way last night. I can find very little information. I’m pretty sure the method is probably sketchy at best but I do know it has worked well on stuff in the past.

have any of you done this? The soup was vegetable beef with some smoked sausage in as well. About 4 gallons and simmered for a couple of hours. Still cooking when I was putting it in. The jars sealed well over night. I put them in the freezer this evening.

anyone ever done it?
 

firedawg60

Twelve Pointer
Since you are storing in the freezer it seems there shouldn't be an issue, especially if the meat was cooked throughout. Hopefully nothing bad germinated in a day. If they were not stored in a freezer I would be concerned. No first hand experience so take my opinion with a grain of salt.
 

bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
When I freeze soups (with meat always), I just let it cool and put it in plastic containers, then freeze. I fail to understand the work involved in canning in jars to turn around and freeze. I would be worried about the jars breaking from expansion. Then worry again during thawing.
 

QBD2

Old Mossy Horns
When I freeze soups (with meat always), I just let it cool and put it in plastic containers, then freeze. I fail to understand the work involved in canning in jars to turn around and freeze. I would be worried about the jars breaking from expansion. Then worry again during thawing.
This. Anything else is simply unnecessary.

If you’re gonna freeze it then just freeze it. If you’re gonna can it then can it by usda guidelines. Your method may have worked fine in the past, but it only takes once…playing with fire imo
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
This. Anything else is simply unnecessary.

If you’re gonna freeze it then just freeze it. If you’re gonna can it then can it by usda guidelines. Your method may have worked fine in the past, but it only takes once…playing with fire imo

so what happens if the method works? I have been able to find it commonly called inversion canning. The agencies have only negative things to say about it. It’s an old method used in days gone by and still used in other countries.

I don’t have a canning book and had no idea they existed until a long time after starting.
 

pattersonj11

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
so what happens if the method works? I have been able to find it commonly called inversion canning. The agencies have only negative things to say about it. It’s an old method used in days gone by and still used in other countries.

I don’t have a canning book and had no idea they existed until a long time after starting.

I wasn’t planning to freeze it.
 

acman

Four Pointer
We can about 80 qts of stew and about the same of spaghetti sauce every year. once it is finished cooking we pressure can it at 10 lbs for 1 hr. never had a problem. makes for a fast supper do not have to thaw.
 

Justin

Old Mossy Horns
so what happens if the method works? I have been able to find it commonly called inversion canning. The agencies have only negative things to say about it. It’s an old method used in days gone by and still used in other countries.

I don’t have a canning book and had no idea they existed until a long time after starting.
Because it’s proven to not be sound all the time where as the guidelines are
 

Eric Revo

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
usually anything that's not acidic needs pressure canned due to concerns over botulism, if you added anything to get the PH to 4.0 or lower you'd probably be fine but you may have some vinegar tasting soup.
 

Papa_Smurf

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Anything we can is either done in a pressure canner, or in a hot water boil style canner. Never done any of this "inversion canning".
 

specialk

Twelve Pointer
never have, we water bathed all our squash and green beens....made cuke and beet pickle....everything else got frozen.....
 

JONOV

Old Mossy Horns
So back to the original post.

has anyone ever canned this way?
All the time, not with meat though.

It's fine with tomatoes and vegetables and pickles and whatnot. Meat is different.

The water bath method, which you describe, is great for salsas and tomato juice, etc. No need to turn the cans upside down though, just set them on the counter.
 

QBD2

Old Mossy Horns
All the time, not with meat though.

It's fine with tomatoes and vegetables and pickles and whatnot. Meat is different.

The water bath method, which you describe, is great for salsas and tomato juice, etc. No need to turn the cans upside down though, just set them on the counter.
He wasn’t talking about water bath. If I follow correctly, he just ladled hot soup into a jar, then tightened the lid and flipped it over…
 

JONOV

Old Mossy Horns
He wasn’t talking about water bath. If I follow correctly, he just ladled hot soup into a jar, then tightened the lid and flipped it over…
I see.
All the same...inherently a lot less risky canning vegetables, especially food that's inherently a little acidic like salsa or tomoatoes.
 

todobien

Eight Pointer
The items you listed you had done with your dad are acidic which is what prevents botulism growth. Typically meat and vegetables are not acidic. To kill botulism there is both a temperature and amount of time at that temp that are both important.

My family canned all kinds of things from tomato juice to veg soups and how we did it depended on what the item was. I remember my mom and aunt's all having copies of the canning book in a kitchen drawer where it was easy to access. I also remember a story about my grandfather blowing up the pressure cooker when cooking collards. A piece of a stem got lodged in the vent. I heard there were collards from the ceiling to the floor in the kitchen.

As you said they are your drawers. I hope that you and anyone with which you may share this soup enjoy it and suffer no consequences from it. You invested your time and energy in to preserving the bounty of summer and thus deserve to enjoy it.
 

Dick

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
the ball book is what you need. any canning I've ever done was with this book. Vegetable juice recipe is awesome.
 
Top