Karen Ward

Canning and preserving methods are simple and safe, and can produce food that’s nutritious and delicious. Mastering the techniques and becoming a successful food preserver takes time, effort, and knowledge of the rules.Follow these tips for achieving success as a home canner and preserver: Start with the freshest, best products available.

You can preserve foods inexpensively by using canning, freezing, or drying techniques. Modern-day food preservation methods, such as water-bath canning, help you can and preserve with ease. After you understand the basic procedures for a food preservation method, you'll just need to concentrate on preparing your recipe.

Knowing the acidity level of the food you’re preserving is important because the pH, the measure of acidity, determines which of the two canning methods you should use: water-bath canning or pressure canning. For canning purposes, food is divided into two categories based on the amount of acid the food registers: High-acid foods include fruits and pickled foods.

You can use canned raspberries and blueberries to make smoothies or pies, and they make a sweet addition to oatmeal. When canning and preserving berries, you want perfect whole berries that aren't soft or mushy. Canned Raspberries With soft berries, like raspberries, boysenberries, and blackberries, you don’t have to cook the berries before canning.

Most of the tools and equipment you'll need for freezing or drying foods (except an electric dehydrator) are probably waiting for you in your kitchen. These items will make your preserving tasks more efficient. The faster you process your fresh ingredients, the better the quality and flavor of your final product.

Pickle relish is a staple in many kitchens. Use this pickled treat anytime you’d use a pickle relish, on a hamburger or hot dog, in tuna salad, or when you want to add flavor to a sandwich. One advantage of homemade relish is mixing flavors you don’t find in commercially produced relishes. Sweet Pickle Relish This recipe is ready to eat as soon as you’re done precooking it.

Onions are a staple ingredient in many recipes. Their savory flavor often is the finishing touch to your favorite meal. Canning and preserving onions leaves them soft but flavorful. Keep these onions in your pantry as an important ingredient for your favorite recipe. Canning and preserving low-acid foods — such as onions — requires pressure canning to kill microorganisms that are harmful if not destroyed before ingesting the food.

Before you prepare corn for canning, start with corn that has the husks on and the silk attached. This allows you to assess the corn's freshness. Choose ears with brightly colored husks that are free of spots and moisture; silks should be golden, not matted or brown. Here’s a surefire way to select corn that is sure to be juicy and tender: Slightly peel back the husk to check for any pests.

When canning foods, the chances of food spoilage are greatly reduced when you follow the precise guidelines for preserving methods. You can detect food spoilage by visually examining your jars. If you suspect, for any reason, that your food is spoiled or just isn’t right, don’t taste it. Also, just because your food doesn’t look spoiled, doesn’t mean that it’s not.