National Center for Home Food Preservation

[Pholley526]

So if I am reading this correctly, if the bacteria has already reproduced and given off the neurotoxin, boiling will not kill the bacteria 100%? I am guessing this is why in every YouTube video I see everyone adding lemon juice or vinegar... I will be investing in the ball blue book just for good measure

 

[dixieammo]

i always buy fig preserves by the quart, too!

Luckly i have a fig tree the size of a house and grandma is still turning out preserves.Really simple to make but hers tastes best for some reason......

 

[DinkyDau]

I love brown Turkey Figs!

 

[Horsehat]

So if I am reading this correctly, if the bacteria has already reproduced and given off the neurotoxin, boiling will not kill the bacteria 100%? I am guessing this is why in every YouTube video I see everyone adding lemon juice or vinegar... I will be investing in the ball blue book just for good measure

Boiling will completely kill the bacteria. But the bacteria, depending on the type, may have given off toxins, poison, that is not living but chemical in nature, it will not destroy the toxin. If the bacteria is killed during canning, there is no problem as it will have not produced toxins in a significant way. If not killed during canning, it will produce toxins as it multiplies during storage, boiling will then kill the bacteria but not affect the toxin it has produced.,

 

[Pholley526]

I gotchya, is there any way of telling if these toxins are present? Taste, smell, visual? Appreciate all the useful information from everyone. Didn't mean to hijack a thread...

 

[Miatadude]

I don't know how to detect toxins. In all my years of canning, I only had 1 bad jar of green beans due to a seal failure. It was very evident upon opening the jar. They did not look or smell normal.

 

[meghan]

Great info already shared on here. I'd recommend starting off with basic water bath canning to get the hang of it first: your acidic (read:safe) jams and jellies and pickles and salsas. You'll love it! Then move on to pressure canning and shop around for a good price on a pressure cooker. The All American is widely regarded as the best and safest, but there are smaller, less expensive options!

A woman named Lyn Deardoff teaches a great class, one for each method (http://preservingnow.com/workshops-canning-parties) using the UGA (National Center for Home Food Preservation) recipe books.

I'm one of the afore-mentioned "basic white girls on Pinterest" but I love me some healthy canning!

Also, here's my favorite water bath recipe. Pickled okra and a Bloody Mary? Yes, please! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pickled-okra-recipe.html

 

[fireman]

Couldn't find where this has been discussed recently, so I thought I'd share.

National Center for Home Food Preservation

I was trying to find some real information on canning, not "how to can in 5 minutes while updating your Facebook status" recipes by wannabe pioneer woman basic white girls on Pinterest. Anyway, found a link to this site from Mother Earth news. There's a wealth of information here. Someone could follow all the links and read for days.

Does anybody have any canning/preserving experience, successful or otherwise? I know I'm going to follow some of the guides from the above site on vegetables from this year's garden. Last year's "quick easy dill pickles" turned out to be a waste of resources.


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We have a Food processing center - Canning Plant in Dooly that is run by the Agricultural Education Department of Dooly County High School. We assist patrons with processing and canning a variety of vegetables and meat items. Other services include pea/bean shelling and blanching. Fees are very reasonable. For a can with a shelf life of a couple years, we charge $0.80. You get about 12 from a bushel of peas. PM me if you want more information.