Canning & Preserving For Dummies

Title Page......Page 3
Copyright Page......Page 4
Table of Contents......Page 11
About This Book......Page 19
Icons Used in This Book......Page 21
Where to Go from Here......Page 22
Part 1 Getting Started......Page 23
Chapter 1 A Quick Overview of Canning and Preserving......Page 25
Appreciating the Benefits of Canning and Preserving Your Own Food......Page 26
Introducing Your Techniques: Canning, Freezing, and Dehydrating......Page 27
About canning food......Page 28
About freezing food......Page 30
Holding the Keys to Canning and Preserving Success......Page 31
Keeping Basic Kitchen Tools at the Ready......Page 33
Essential tools and utensils......Page 34
Specialty equipment to make work easier......Page 38
Add as needed: Handy but nonessential items......Page 40
Must-have canning tools......Page 41
Required Tools and Equipment for Freezing Food......Page 47
Necessary Tools and Equipment for Dehydrating Food......Page 48
Chapter 3 On Your Mark, Get Set, Whoa! The Road to Safe Canning and Preserving......Page 49
Preparing your food properly......Page 50
Packing your jars with care......Page 51
Choosing the right canning method and following proper procedures......Page 53
Checking your equipment......Page 54
Adjusting for Your Altitude......Page 55
Meeting the spoilers......Page 56
Determining what you need to dispose of......Page 58
Part 2 Water-Bath Canning......Page 61
Chapter 4 Come On In, the Water’s Fine! Water-Bath Canning......Page 63
Foods you can safely water-bath can......Page 64
Key equipment for water-bath canning......Page 65
Step 1: Getting your equipment ready......Page 67
Step 3: Filling your jars......Page 69
Step 4: Processing your filled jars......Page 70
Step 5: Removing your filled jars and testing the seals......Page 71
Step 6: Storing your canned food......Page 72
Adjusting Your Processing Times at High Altitudes......Page 73
Chapter 5 Simply Fruit (Yes, a Tomato Is a Fruit)......Page 75
Identifying the proper degree of ripeness......Page 76
Raw pack and hot pack......Page 77
Lining your jars with liquid......Page 78
Fresh Fruit Canning Guidelines......Page 80
Chapter 6 Sweet Spreads: Jams, Jellies, Marmalades, and More......Page 101
Introducing Your Sweet Spreads......Page 102
Commercial pectin basics......Page 103
Types of commercial fruit pectin......Page 104
Setting Up without Adding Pectin......Page 105
Water-Bath Canning: The Key to Sweet Spread Canning Success......Page 107
Chapter 7 Condiments and Accompaniments: Chutney, Relish, Sauce, and Syrup......Page 117
Reveling in your relish......Page 118
Savoring syrup with a berry base......Page 119
Bring on the Brine......Page 127
Gathering the ingredients......Page 128
Following the appropriate brining process......Page 129
Keeping that crunch......Page 131
A Few More Prep Tips to Ensure Tasty Pickled Treats......Page 132
Picking Pickling Equipment and Utensils......Page 133
Part 3 Pressure Canning......Page 147
Chapter 9 Don’t Blow Your Top: Pressure Canning......Page 149
Choosing Your Pressure Canner......Page 150
Cover: With a gasket or without......Page 152
Gauges......Page 154
Rack......Page 156
Step 1: Gearing up......Page 157
Step 3: Filling your jars......Page 159
Step 5: Closing and locking the canner......Page 160
Step 7: Releasing the pressure after processing......Page 161
Step 9: Testing the seal and storing your bounty......Page 162
If your jar is still sealed......Page 163
Pressure Canning at Higher Altitudes......Page 164
Chapter 10 Preserving Your Vegetable Harvest......Page 167
Vegetables not recommended for pressure canning......Page 168
Cleaning your vegetables......Page 169
Raw packing versus hot packing......Page 170
Under Pressure! Canning Vegetables......Page 172
Using Canned Vegetables......Page 176
Preparing for Pressure Canning Meats......Page 205
Tips for safety and efficiency......Page 206
Selecting and preparing the meat......Page 207
Meat canning, step by step......Page 208
Preparing the meat......Page 209
Canning Ground Meat......Page 210
Canning previously frozen chicken: Hot packing......Page 211
Worth the Effort: Canning Fish......Page 212
Filling the jar......Page 213
Including Meats in Other Canned Mixes......Page 214
Chapter 12 Combining the Harvest: Soups, Sauces, and Sides with Beans......Page 225
Choosing the appropriate processing method......Page 226
Tips for a successful meal......Page 227
Stocking Up on Soup......Page 228
Rounding Out Your Meals with Beans......Page 229
Part 4 Freezing......Page 243
Defining Freezing......Page 245
Bacteria, molds, and yeast......Page 246
Freezer burn and oxidation......Page 247
Knowing what should (and shouldn’t) be frozen......Page 248
Evaluating your freezer......Page 249
It’s a wrap! Choosing a container......Page 250
Tracking your frozen food trail......Page 253
Thawing Out Your Frozen Food......Page 254
Unplanned thawing......Page 255
To refreeze or not to refreeze thawed food......Page 256
The Whys and Wherefores of Putting Up Prepared Food......Page 257
Removing the guesswork with meal planning......Page 258
Keeping the keys to quality in mind......Page 259
Soups, stews, sauces, and stocks......Page 260
Bread, buns, muffins, and rolls......Page 261
Cookies......Page 262
Pies......Page 263
Freezing Dairy Products and Nuts......Page 264
Thawing tips......Page 265
Chapter 15 Freezing Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs......Page 267
Selecting mighty fine fruit......Page 268
Preparing your fruit for freezing......Page 269
Considering syrup concentrations......Page 270
Freezing Vegetables Like a Pro......Page 271
Taking a closer look at the blanching process......Page 272
Packing your vegetables......Page 273
Properly prepping your herbs for freezing......Page 274
Adding creative flare to your frozen herbs......Page 275
Part 5 Dehydrating and Storing......Page 301
Chapter 16 Light and Nutritious: Dehydrating Food......Page 303
Understanding key food drying factors......Page 304
Putting suggested drying strategies in play......Page 305
Quick and consistent: Investing in an electric dehydrator......Page 306
Getting results with a conventional oven......Page 308
Setting your trays in the sun......Page 309
Storage Solutions: Protecting the Life of Your Dried Food......Page 311
Chapter 17 Dehydrating a Variety of Delicious Fresh Fruit......Page 313
Making time for pretreating......Page 314
Drying fruit step by step......Page 316
Evaluating dryness......Page 317
Rehydrating and Enjoying the Labors of Your Drying......Page 318
Chapter 18 Dehydrating Vegetables for Snacks and Storage......Page 337
Following some basic rules......Page 338
Signs of trouble: Good food gone bad......Page 339
Drying Common Vegetables......Page 340
Mixing It Up for Soups, Stews, and More......Page 343
Selecting, Drying, and Storing Common and Not-So-Common Herbs......Page 371
Chamomile......Page 374
Marjoram......Page 375
Mint......Page 376
Oregano......Page 377
Sage......Page 378
Tarragon......Page 379
Thyme......Page 380
Herbs for Teas......Page 381
Chapter 20 Helping Your Food Keep Its Cool: Cold Storage Spaces......Page 389
Cold Storage Must-Haves......Page 390
Tried and true: The traditional root cellar......Page 391
DIY storage spaces......Page 392
Following Simple Cold Storage Rules......Page 396
Apples......Page 397
Cabbage......Page 398
Garlic......Page 399
Potatoes......Page 400
Turnips......Page 401
Part 6 The Part of Tens......Page 403
Chapter 21 Ten (Plus) Troubleshooting Tips for Your Home-Canned Creations......Page 405
Jars That Lose Liquid During Processing......Page 406
Jelly with the Wrong Consistency......Page 407
Moldy Jelly......Page 408
Hollow, Shriveled, Discolored, or Slippery Pickles......Page 409
Food That Floats in the Jar......Page 410
Food with an Off Color......Page 411
Chapter 22 Ten Common Food Storage Problems and How to Solve Them......Page 413
My family doesn’t want to eat the food......Page 414
I don’t know which preservation technique to choose......Page 415
I used up all the food that I stored......Page 416
I don’t know where I’ll store food if I start preserving it......Page 417
Appendix: Metric Conversion Guide......Page 419
Index......Page 423
EULA......Page 451