Canning Jars
The most obvious of home canning supplies needed to get started are the canning jars. There are a variety of jar sizes, but not every jar was made for canning (we’re looking at you, vintage jars). Depending on what food you’re planning to can, use these guidelines for selecting the right jars. Quart jars: Use these for large foods, such as whole tomatoes, or for a generous amount, such as spaghetti sauce or soup for a crowd. The jars come in wide-mouth and regular-mouth styles. Pint jars: The most versatile-size jar, these containers can hold nearly anything: smaller amounts of sauces, vegetables to serve a few people, pickles, and relishes. The jars come in wide-mouth and regular-mouth styles. Half-pint jars: These jars have straight interior sides that allow you to get every last bit out of each jar. Wide-mouth half-pint jars are shorter than regular-mouth jars. Some have a quilt or other design on the exterior. 4-ounce jars: These small jars hold amounts you’ll use up quickly or wish to can in small portions. If you’re making a big batch of jam to give to friends and family, these jars are a great choice. Decorative jars: For refrigerator-pickled foods that don’t require heat processing, decorative glass jars work fine. Just make sure you clean the jars in hot, soapy water and rinse well before filling them. Vintage jars: Old canning jars with colored glass or spring-type lids are pretty collector pieces but they shouldn’t be used in modern canning. They have irregular sizes, might crack, and don’t seal properly. Skip using them for canning and instead display them on a shelf to enjoy. Be sure to use only standard canning jars. They are tempered to withstand the heat inside a canner, and their mouths are specially threaded to seal with canning lids (you don’t want to find your canned produce spoiled later on). Before using, inspect them carefully and discard any that are cracked or chipped. To remove mineral deposits or hard-water film, soak empty jars in a solution of 1 cup vinegar per gallon of water. Look for canning jars in hardware, discount, or grocery stores, or order them online.
Wide-Mouth and Regular-Mouth Canning Jars
Wide-mouth canning jars ($14 for 12, Target), pictured on the left, make it easier to pack whole fruits and vegetables into a jar. They’re also great for foods like pickles because the wide mouth makes it easy to use a utensil (or your fingers) to fish out just one pickle at a time.
Screw Bands and Canning Lids
Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions when you’re using screw bands and canning lids. Screw bands are crucial for securing lids to the jars during processing. Removing the bands after processing is up to you—while they’re technically no longer needed, the bands do provide some cushioning between jars when stacked on shelves. Screw bands can only be reused if they’re not bent or rusty. Look for bands and lids in hardware, discount, or grocery stores, though they’re often sold with their matching canning jars.
Boiling-Water or Water-Bath Canner
A boiling-water canner ($29, Ace Hardware) heats jars to 212°F, which is enough to kill microorganisms found in high-acid foods (pH 4.6 or lower). The rack allows water to flow beneath the jars for even heating and has handles that allow you to lower and lift jars easily into the hot water. Canners come in different sizes and finishes. A traditional speckled enameled finish may chip and rust over time; if you plan on making canning into a hobby, high-end boiling-water canners are also available in sleek polished steel. If you have a large stockpot that has a tight-fitting lid and holds several jars a few inches deeper than their height, you can use that as a canner. You’ll still need a rack to set jars up off the bottom of the pot to allow water to flow under them and heat the jars evenly. This can be a good solution if you aren’t planning to do much canning. Use a boiling-water canner for fruits, tomatoes (if lemon juice or other acidic ingredient is added), pickles, relishes, jams, jellies, and marmalades. Because these foods have a higher acidity than vegetables, you don’t need to process them in a pressure canner.
Pressure Canner
Want to can some extra garden veggies? A pressure canner ($150, Ace Hardware) is just the tool you need. Use this type of canner for low-acid foods (pH 4.7 or lower) like vegetables and meats. It will include a heavy pot with a rack, a tight-fitting lid that has a vent or petcock, a dial or weighted pressure gauge, and a safety fuse. Pressure canners allow foods to be heated to 240°F or 250°F and to be held at that temperature for as long as necessary. Each type of pressure canner is different, so always review the manufacturer’s directions before you start using one. Look for pressure canners wherever cooking equipment is sold.
More Canning Tools
Jar-Lifter
Safety first! This tool lifts jars firmly and securely in and out of hot water. Use two hands and squeeze firmly. You can also use kitchen tongs, but they are not as secure. A jar lifter ($4, Walmart) is essential not just for taking your jars of food in and out of the canner, but it’s also helpful when you’re sterilizing the jars before getting started.
Jar Funnels
Not just any funnel will do for canning. Much wider and shorter than other funnels, these come in both wide-mouth and regular-mouth versions. They’re invaluable for preventing spills when filling canning jars, and they make it much easier to guide your food inside the jars (particularly for sauces or crushed fruits and veggies).
Combination Ruler/Spatula
When you want to get the most out of each jar, a canning spatula ($2, Ace Hardware) will help you do it. The notched end of this tool is calibrated to match the most common headspace in jars. It’s somewhat flexible and has a tapered end, making it the ideal tool for slipping in along the sides of filled jars to release air bubbles.
Magnetic Lid Wand
A magnetic wand ($2, Ace Hardware) enables you to drop lids and rings into the canner’s hot water to sterilize them, soften the sealing compound, and easily lift them back out. With this tool, there’s no need to heat lids and bands in a separate pan. It saves you time and makes adding the lid to each jar easier. It’s a piece of canning equipment that may not seem essential, but you’ll be very happy to have.
Important Canning Tips
Always follow the directions exactly, processing foods according to the recommended time and pressure.To time processing correctly, start timing when the water has returned to boiling in a boiling-water canner or when the required pressure is reached in a pressure canner.Keep food safety in mind! Always inspect each home-canned jar carefully before serving. If the jar has leaked, shows patches of mold, has a swollen lid, or contains food with a foamy or murky appearance, discard the food and the jar.The odor from the opened jar should be pleasant. If the food doesn’t look or smell right, don’t use it.As a further safeguard, boil pressure-canned vegetables at least 10 minutes before serving.
Additional Items Needed
You may not need to use all of these items when you’re canning, but they can certainly come in handy. Here a few extra tools you might want to have at the ready:
Kitchen scaleCutting board, sharp knife, vegetable peelerLarge kettle or Dutch oven and saucepanColander, sieve, food mill, jelly bag, cheeseclothWide-mouth funnel and ladle or large spoonRubber scraper, plastic knife, or wooden spoonClean cloths or paper towelsJar lifter, magnetic-tip lid wand, rulerKitchen timer, hot pads, wire rack
