Written by Amy Campbell CHP
It’s that time of year again- do you have bucket loads of tomatoes harvested and you don’t know what to do with them? Preserving foods by home canning is a good way to enjoy ripe and tasty food year round. Invest in basic canning equipment for approximately $60 and get ready to learn the rules for safely preserving high acid foods including most fruits and tomatoes.
To can foods safely, the rule is: follow the rules! Canning is one kitchen activity where a beginner chef must follow the recipe directions precisely. Measuring the head space of filled jars and accurately timing the processing time is necessary. Then you will make a safe and sealed product that can be stored for later use.
You can cut down on the hard work of canning by hosting a community kitchen with 4 to 6 friends. All of you can spend the day together to prepare and process large batches of preserved food. Pool your purchasing dollars to buy produce in season to reduce costs. Use validated recipes from well known sources like Bernardin. If you can cut, measure and time, you can start to make delicious preserves for year round use.