Canning in the Winter

So lately I’ve been doing some canning.  Pinto Beans, Beef broth, Chicken Broth.  Canning this time of year is so much more relaxing!

Best things:

-No Pressure!  In the summer we are slamming through canning recipes.  There is so much food all at once and it’s a race to preserve before it rots.  In the winter things are so laid back.  The stuff I’m canning comes from the pantry or freezer and it doesn’t HAVE to be done that day.  I’m canning broth and beans before I run out and my supplies are already preserved, not rotting in containers on every surface of my home!

- It’s warm! When it is 90 degrees outside, it’s really hard to appreciate this by product of canning, but when it’s on 20 degrees outside it’s wonderful.

- It’s humid!  Like the temperature thing, it’s really hard to appreciate the humidity mid-summer.  Currently I have a cold and canning is pumping humidity into our very dry house (thanks to forced hot air).  The moisture really helps break things up.  Sounds gross when your also discussing food, haha, but it is really helpful.

Do you do any winter canning?

Leftovers

After the holiday dinners are over I only have one request.  Can I have the carcass!

 

I acquired 4 turkey carcasses, combined it with all the vegetable “garbage” I’ve frozen throughout the year (onion skins, carrot peels, leaves off of the celery and potato skins) and made 13 quarts and 1 pint of broth, along with a big pot of homemade soup.

 

The treasure after 6 hours of boiling…

 

Skimmed Broth:

Don’t forget to ask for the leftover bones at your next holiday meal!  It’s a great source of FREE food!!

How to clean canning jars

Going to bed after a day of canning is so rewarding, but the job really isn’t done.

Your jars should really be cleaned before heading into storage.  At our house, we have hard water so our jars always have mineral deposits on them.

 

Plus there is always the possibility of food or liquid residue from fluid loss.  I have more of a problem with this when it comes to pressure canning.  I rarely lose fluid while water bath canning.

 

If you don’t take the time to remove your lids and wash the lids and jars your likely to have a moldy mess in no time!

To clean the jars we find it is easiest to fill a sink of soapy water and put on some music.  This might take a while!

We wash the lids first, paying attention to each and every one.  All the ridges are perfect for holding sticky stuff that will get moldy!

 

We air dry the kids for a short time.

 

 

Air drying isn’t enough though.  Our lids usually rust before they dry thoroughly so we towel dry each lid.  The rust makes it much harder to use the screw top next time.  They just don’t spin on as easily after they rust!

 

Next up we wash the jars.  This water isn’t too hot and as long as all your jars were properly sealed this shouldn’t cause any problems.

 

 

The jars are air dried for a bit and then towel dried and after labeling, they are ready to be stored!

 

The feeling of all the sealed jars on the counter after a day of canning is wonderful, but it’s even better when the counters are cleared and the jars are stored away.  Then the job is really complete!