Canning 101: Hot Water Bath

There are two types of canning processes – hot water bath canning and pressure canning. We’re going to focus on hot water bath canning not because it is the easiest, but because it is the cheapest thing to set up for first time canners. And who wants to spend a bunch of money when you’re not sure if you like canning your own food? So…are you ready to make some jam? Me too!

*If you haven’t read the blog about canning safety and botulism toxin, I highly recommend you do before you begin. It is important to understand safety concerns when preserving food and this is a good explanation why.* The first thing you learn in that article is to follow the rules. Use fresh, clean produce. Use clean, intact jars and lids. Follow the recipe – making sure it’s an approved one. And process the jars for the recommended time and temperature or pressure.

Jam is the chicken flock of the canning world – it’s easy to do, everyone loves it, and it usually leads to more difficult endeavors (think pigs or salsa). Because it is high acid, botulism doesn’t like to grow in it. And it is usually done with a hot water bath.

Equipment
First we need to get the equipment. The easiest way to buy the right stuff is to buy a pot with a canning kit included. Generally this will have a large pot with a lid, a metal rack that fits inside the pot, a funnel, a jar lifter, a flat plastic stick, and a stick with a magnet on one end. We’ll talk about how to use the tools as we need them (and their fancy name if I can remember it). You can buy these items separately, but you really will use all of them so it’s easier just to buy the kit.

Norpro, 6 Piece Canning Utensil Set

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In addition to the canning pot and tools, we need jars. Most jars come with lids and rings. When you reuse your jars the next time, you can reuse the rings, but you’ll need new lids (to make sure you get a good seal). You can buy boxes of these separate from the jars. We are following a recipe that uses half-pint or pint jar, so choose a box of those. You can buy plain or decorated jars. Half-pint jars come as skinny, tall jars or short, wide jars. Pint jars come in “regular mouth” and “wide mouth” openings. Your choice. They are all the same volume and that’s what matters.

Ball, 1/2 Pint Canning Jars with Lids and Rings, 12 pk

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Ball, 1 Pint Wide-Mouth Canning Jars with Lids & Rings, 12 pk

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We’re going to go step-by-step through the process of making blackberry jam using the following recipe. We are using a recipe that is made with powdered pectin. There is a recipe that doesn’t use pectin, but it’s a bit trickier to get the right consistency for it to set. Pectin is what makes the jam thick instead of syrup. So, for beginners, the pectin recipe is perfect.

Ball RealFruit Classic Pectin Mix

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Ball RealFruit Low/No-Sugar Pectin Mix, 4.7 oz.

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Set Up Equipment
Before we start preparing the jam, we need to set up the equipment. Put the large pot on the stove. There are some concerns about using a glass stovetop, but let’s assume you have a standard electric or gas stovetop. Place the wire rack in the bottom of the pot.

Wash and rinse jars and lids carefully. If they are used jars, check to make sure there are no nicks or chips in the rim. This could keep the lid from sealing properly. Place jars on the rack in the pot and fill the pot (and jars) with water until the water reaches about two inches above the lid. You shouldn’t let the jars touch so placing one in the center and six around the edges is the traditional pattern. Bring the water up to about 140 degrees – hot enough you don’t want to stick your hand in, but not boiling.

Blackberry Jam (with powdered pectin) – from National Center for Home Food Preservation

• 6 cups crushed berries – strawberries, raspberries, blackberries (about 3 quart boxes of berries)
• 1 package full sugar powdered pectin – it doesn’t matter what brand you use, but this recipe is for FULL sugar, not low-sugar. (Mrs. Wages Home Jell Fruit Pectin)
• 8½ cups sugar, granulated – this looks like a LOT of sugar, but you cannot change the amount and stay safe.

Yeild: About 12 half-pint or 6 pint jars

Preparing The Fruit
Sort and wash fully ripe berries. Remove any stems or caps. Crush the berries. I use a potato masher. I also like to leave my jam a little chunky but you can crush it as much as you like. You can even use a blender if you want consistent jam. This is where the difference between jam and jelly can be seen. Jam leaves everything in – like pulp in orange juice. Jelly strains the jam through a cloth leaving only liquid. However, do not use this recipe for jelly. Find an approved recipe and follow the specific directions for jelly.

GUARDSMAN Cheesecloth, Cotton, 4-Yds.

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Making Jam

1. Measure 6 cups of crushed berries into a large saucepan. Use the rest for a fresh sauce over pancakes or ice cream.
2. Add pectin and stir well. Place on high heat and, stirring constantly, bring berries to a full boil (the whole surface is bubbling).
3. Add sugar, continue stirring, and heat again to a full boil. Boil hard for 1 minute stirring constantly. DO NOT WALK AWAY FROM YOUR JAM. It will boil over and make an incredibly sticky mess.
4. Remove from heat. Use a large spoon to skin the foam off the top of the jam. It’s not necessary to get all of it, but try to remove as much as you can.

Filling The Jars

1. Take a jar out of the hot water, pouring the water back into the pot. If the water is too hot to reach into, use the jar holder to pull the jar out. Place it on a towel on the counter. I do this for two reasons – one, you’re going to spill so the towel helps to keep things clean. And two, the wet jar doesn’t slip around.
2. Place the funnel in the jar and fill it using a ladle or cup. The recipe says to leave ¼ headspace. This means you need about a ¼ inch between the top of the jam and the lid. But before you check headspace, you need to make sure there are no bubbles in the jam. To do this, slide the plastic stick down the inside of the jar and run it around the sides. This should dislodge any bubbles that might make it hard for the lid to seal.
3. Now you can check the headspace. Using the same plastic stick, flip the stick around and use the notches. Each notch corresponds to a measurement, marked on the plastic. Setting the ¼ inch notch on the rim of the jar, check to see if it reaches the jam. Adjust the amount of jam until the notch just reaches the top of the jam.
4. Wipe the rim with a wet paper towel. I like to dip the paper towel into the simmering water. Make sure there are no bits of food left as the lid won’t seal properly.
5. Center a clean lid on the jar. Take a ring and screw it on finger tight. This is meant to keep the lid in place but doesn’t need to be overly tight as the lid will create a suction as it processes.

Earthgrown Plastic Canning Funnel

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Canning Ladle

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Processing The Jars
As you complete each jar, use a jar lifter (the weird clamp-type thing), place them back into the canning pot. Make sure to always keep the jar upright. Tilting the jar can cause food to spill into the sealing area of the lid.

Repeat this until all jars are full – placing them back in the water as you fill them. Only fill the number of jars you can fit in the pot at one time. If you fill all the jars at once, they will not be kept hot enough and you risk breaking the glass when it hits the hot water. Nothing is more disheartening than to hear a loud pop as the bottom of your jar cracks off and jam floats to the surface of your pot.
Make sure there is at least one inch of water covering the tops of your jars. Bring the water to a full boil. When it reaches a boil, start your timer. The amount of time for processing depends on the size of the jar, the contents, and the altitude (altitude affects boiling). There is a chart below that explains the processing times. Follow the timing that best fits your situation.
You’ll notice it also mentions the “Style of Pack.” This refers to a hot or cold pack. Like the names suggest, there are some things you fill jars with while they’re cold and some, like this jam, you fill jars with while it’s hot.

Cover the pot and keep it on high, maintaining a rolling boil for the entire time. If, for some reason, your processing time is interrupted, you have two choices. The first is to restart the timer and process the entire length. The second is to put the jar in the fridge and use it within the next week.

Removing, Cooling, & Storing Jars
When the timer goes off, turn off the stove and wait about five minutes before removing jars from the water. Put a towel out on the counter. Using the jar lifter, lift each jar carefully out of the water and onto the towel. Do not tip the jar. It will be hard to resist because there will be water on the lid. Trust me. Just put it down and leave it alone. Don’t even take a towel and wipe it off. Touching it at this point can endanger the sealing process.

As the jars cool, you’ll hear this quiet “pop.” That’s the final sound of the vacuum sealing the lid. Let the jars cool for 24 hours. When they are cool, press down in the center of each lid. If the lid moves up and down, the jar isn’t sealed and should be refrigerated and used within the next week. If it doesn’t move, it is sealed.

Remove the rings from the jars and wipe down any residue on the jar. Do not leave the rings on the jars during storage. This will prevent accidental resealing if for some reason a lid lifts in storage. Label each jar with the kind of jam and the date of processing – either a sticker or on the lid. Find a cool, dark, dry place to store the jars. Rule of thumb is you can keep canned goods for about a year. After that, while it’s still safe to eat, the contents will have degraded and may not be as tasty.

That’s it! Honestly, it isn’t much different than a regular recipe. And once you get the hang of it, the process will come easier. Soon, you’ll be handing out homemade jam to friends. I’m even willing to bet after you’ve had your own jam, you’ll never buy jam again. And don’t forget jam is just the jumping off point. Use this method to preserve other fruits like apples, pears, and cherries. Just follow the rules.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t share my second favorite recipe. Apple pie filling. You can pour it into a pie shell and have instant pie, or like my children, eat it straight out of the jar.

Apple Pie Filling Recipe – from the Ball Blue Book Canning Guide

INGREDIENTS
makes 7 pints
12 cups sliced, peeled and cored apples
2-3/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup ClearJel^® cooking starch
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2-1/2 cups unsweetened apple juice
1-1/4 cups cold water
1/2 cup lemon juice

Progressive Apple Parer/Slicer/Corer, with Clamp

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SET UP EQUIPMENT
Put the large pot on the stove. Place the wire rack in the bottom of the pot. Wash and rinse jars and lids carefully. Check for nicks or chips in the rim. Place jars on the rack in the pot and fill the pot (and jars) with water until the water reaches about two inches above the lid.

PREPARE FRUIT
Blanching just means putting something in boiling water for a minute and then taking it out. In a large pot of boiling water, blanch apple slices in two batches. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm in a covered bowl.

MAKE THE FILLING

1. Combine sugar, ClearJel^®, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large stainless-steel saucepan.
2. Stir in apple juice and cold water.
3. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Cook until the mixture begins to thicken.
4. Add lemon juice and boil for one minute. Continue stirring – sugar burns easily.
5. Remove from heat. Add apple slices to the mixture and heat until the mixture just starts to boil again.

FILL THE JARS

1. Remove jars from hot water.
2. Ladle hot apple pie filling into hot jars, leave one inch of headspace. Remove bubbles with the plastic stick. Measure headspace with notched end of plastic stick.
3. Wipe rims with a damp paper towel.
4. Place lids on the jars and tighten rings finger tight – just until you feel resistance.
5. Process in boiling water according to the chart below.

REMOVE, COOL, AND STORE
As above, remove jars from water after five minutes. Don’t tip them. Let cool. Check that they are sealed. Remove rings. Store in a cool, dark, dry place.

For more resources, check out the OSU Extension publications on canning at https://extension.oregonstate.edu/mfp/publications.

We would love to see your canning projects, use #mywilcolife on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and tag Wilco Stores.

ROBYN ROGERS, THE AUTHOR OF THIS BLOG IS LOCATED ON THE KITSAP PENINSULA IN WASHINGTON AND HER ADVICE IS CONSISTENT WITH THE CLIMATE THERE.