How do you manage...

[HSmom]

...handling all the big batches of (frequently messy) stuff that are a part of canning?

 

I tend to get frustrated when ALL my bowls are full of applesauce, and then I have to heat the sauce in batches in my saucepans, then put in jars and repeat with other batches, and finally WB the whole mess.

 

Or I have a hardtime pouring the boiling liquids without making a mess.

 

Or I don't make enough syrup for the jars of fruit I've prepared.

 

- - - -

So what are your tips and tricks to make things go smoothly?

 

I have a couple, but I definitely need more!

 

1)Put dinner in the crockpot. Clean the kitchen, set up supplies for canning, bring produce out of fridge to warm up a bit. Then make and eat lunch. Prepare & process food after lunch. Rest a bit, then serve dinner from the crockpot.

 

2) I keep a 12" table top fan on the kitchen floor blowing on my legs. I can be more patient, if I'm not so hot.

 

3) If I only need boiling water to pour into my jars, not stock or fruit juice, I use my tea kettle. Somehow, I still spill a bit, but it's easier than pouring from an open pan.

 

4) I have a few Pyrex measuring cups. Sometimes I'll pour my stock, juice, etc in the measuring cup and then into the jars. The spout on the measuring cup makes it a bit easier.

 

5) Have on hand at least three kitchen towels. And wear an apron.

 

- - - - -

 

Please share your hints!!

[Necie]

I use my ladle for all liquid or thick 'stuff' (like applesauce). A canning funnel is a MUST. Makes things so much easier to get into jars. I use a slotted spoon to pack all solids into jars and then ladle the brine, syrup or water in.

 

The bigger the bowl, pan, or kettle the BETTER. If you don't have ones large enough, see if you can barrow from family or friends.

 

Believe me, if there's an easier way to do things, I'll find it. (I washed 2 buckets of small potatoes in my clothes washer at 8:00 this morning...I DON'T necessarily recommend it-but, it WORKED.)

 

I'm not sure if this is the kind of advise you're looking for-if not, please ask more.

[goatherder]

1. BIG bowls and pans

2. Canning funnels

3. Work in managable batches (even if it takes a little longer)

4. Clean as you go

[Darlene]

I've always cooked big which is why when I got back into canning after a few years, I looked for a huge canner to go with my already huge pots and stuff.

 

I wish I still had my other computer that had some pictures I took one time. I had a bushel of green beans and a bushel of corn on my kitchen table. I was in the process of canning a couple hundred pounds of tomatoes, and making a 20qt pot of conch chowder to can also. My dishwasher broke and it was probably one of the best jobs I've ever done trashing my entire kitchen. I didn't have time to clean as I go, I was multi tasking big time and I just had to take a picture of it, cause it even shocked me lol...

 

If I had to go down to a small kitchen with very few accessories, what would I do...hmmmmmmmmmmmm...

 

I'd buy a big pot...even a cheap one will work, you just hafta sometimes make adjustments in how you cook in them. The canning jar funnel is a must also, pm me your address, I have 3 or 4 of them and I'll send you one of mine.

 

With a big pot, a big bowl and the jar funnel, I could do the same volume of canning as I do now with all the gadgets I have...it would take more time and a little more work, but I love canning, so it's a labor of love that I don't mind.

 

As far as having more broth than ingredients for soup, or more juice than fruit, etc...that all part of canning. Use creativity! I frequently have more broth than I have chicken and other ingredients...not alot mind you, but maybe a quart or two. Like I wrote in the chicken soup canning thread, I just throw the broth into jars and can that right along with the complete soups. I either use those broths for soups or for other cooking things. If I have more juice, depending on what kind of juice it is (syrup is not a juice to me lol), the kids either drink it or I'll thicken it and serve it over some kind of dessert, or I'll can it to be used later.

 

When I'm getting something read to start putting into jars and start that process, I don't care the mess I make...I don't have time to worry about that. I'm focused on getting the stuff in my jars, the rims cleaned and lidded, and into the canner to be processed. Once that has taken place, I can turn around and clean up my mess. Other people clean as they go, everyone's different. All I know is I just don't stress about any of that...it's all part of the process to me.

 

I tend to start my canning process in the mornings. Once I've had my coffee and woken up, I'm full of energy and am ready to pound it out. Yesterday was a PITA day for canning cause I ran outta carrots, went to the grocery store and bought everything BUT CARROTS, had to argue with a couple of the children to finally get my carrots, and didn't finish taking the jars outta the canner till 11pm last night. I wasted about 5 hours waiting for stupid carrots, but that was my own lazy fault...I coulda just gone back up and get some more. Today was a breeze making the salsa...from start to finish it was less than a couple of hours, but then again I only made a single batch and usually with something like that I would quad the batch. Some people enjoy doing a little at a time, some like me, go for the gusto and pound it out over 1 or a few days time and then they're done.

 

Anyway, like I said, pm me your address and I'd be happy to share one of my jar funnels...it will make your whole life a lot easier and make your canning process much more enjoyable.

[HSmom]

Thank you for the offer of a funnel - I have a good one.

 

Thank all of you for your thoughts. They've given me some good ideas.

 

One thing that became apparent is that I need another spoon. My 'big' cooking spoons are too wide to be useful in canning. Another thing is my stupid kitchen has so little counter space - in the future, I'll pull the table over close to the stove, so I have another work surface. I think that will help.

 

I do have a question. I have a large metal pressure canner - I think it's aluminum, so I hesitate to ever put food in there - just jars & water, KWIM? I also have (from before) a WB canner. It's very lightweight metal, black with white speckles. Enamel, maybe? I don't know. Anyway, question being: can I cook food in that WB canner, such as tomato sauce or applesauce? The metal is so thin that I think the bottom would tend to scorch, but I could watch that carefully.

[Jewlzm]

I used my WB canner today to make salsa. The way you discribe it its just like mine. I had no problems with scortching but I dont cook in it on high temps and of course you have to keep an eye on it.

 

I have a tip. While I can.. my kids are doing the cleanup

I know.. Im evil but it works.

[Darlene]

After my house fire, and after I had been out of it for a year, I decided it was time to come home. I was tired of the contractors adding months and months every time I asked when I could come home.

 

As Christmas approached I decided there was no way I was going to spend that holiday anywhere except my home.

 

I went and bought a Christmas tree and plopped it in the middle of my living room. When the contractor saw the tree, he remarked that it was apparent I was moving back in. I said yes, now get this stuff done NOW.

 

Needless to say, I ended moving back home with no kitchen. No cupboards, no counters, no nada, but I didn't care. They installed a makeshift sink with 1' of counter on each side of it. I plopped my new stove against the wall, borrowed the refrigerator my mother kept in her garage and moved back home. I used the folding tables to hold the microwave and cupboard staples and that's how I lived for a couple of months. I didn't care cause I was home.

 

As Christmas rolled around, I invited all the family (15-20 people) to come over for my traditional Christmas dinner. It is one of the most labor intensive meals I make, and takes hours upon hours upon hours just to put together.

 

I ended up pulling that dinner off. It was the hardest meal I've ever made because I had no working space with which to do all these things, but the point is, I DID IT. After it was all said and done, I sat back in amazement that I was ever able to accomplish it but I had achieved my goal...Christmas in MY home.

 

Where there is a will, there is a way...it's not always the way we choose it, but it can be doable with a little creativity and perseverance. Putting a folding table next to your stove is a great idea and will provide you with that little extra counter type space that you need.

[HSmom]

Wow, thanks for sharing that story Darlene. Makes my four feet of counter space seem luxurious. I actually had in mind to pull my kitchen table over, but - now that you mention it - I do have a folding table that would be easier to move and would take a bit more abuse than my maple table.

 

Many minds are great for solving problems.

[Jewlzm]

I have one of those half card tables I use when I need extra counter space. I use it outside next to the BBQ or inside when canning. (I dont like running from one side of the kitchen to the next for something forgotton) It comes in handy and it doesnt take up alot of space either. I dont have a big kitchen or alot of counter space.

[Shawna]

My tip is to think outside the box LOL!!! For example, not having a container large enough to hold all of your *cooked* stuff until it's ready to heat and can....well, just to give an example, I have been canning pears. I can only can 7 quarts at a time in my WB canner, but prefer to have them peeled, etc at the same time. So, all of my peeled pears went into a trash can. It's not one I use for trash (I had been using it about a year ago for cat food)...I washed it out REALLY well and used it to hold my pears until I was ready to pop them in the jars.

 

I have very little counterspace too....I use my table alot. I do agree that cleaning as you go is so helpful....nothing is more overwhelming than having a day's worth of canning mess staring at you!!

 

For pouring liquids....I find it easier to have them good and boiling hot and pour the liquid from the pan into a pitcher....from the pitcher I can easily pour into mny jars. I don't let it sit...when I pour it into the pitcher it immediately goes from there to the jars...without a chance to cool.

 

Another thing is to pay attention to the first bath (esp with water or syrup added). Notice how much you use to do a canner full....For example, if I am canning pears (again, I can do 7 quarts at a time in my WB canner) I have a pot for my sugar syrup. I boil it while I am boiling my jars (I always boil my jars/lids for 10 minutes). When batch #1 is canning, I make up the next batch of syrup and throw it on the stove (or if it's something that takes a bit of time to process, I just wait until batch #1 is out and I am getting ready to boil my next 7 jars to start the syrup). But by paying attention to how much syrup I needed for batch #1, I can pretty well figure each batch is going to be about that much and use that as my guide for making the syrup (or boiling the water, whatever).

 

And you know what? Some days none of this matters and I still make a giant mess and such LOL!

 

Have fun!

Shawna

[alldoneandready]

We put our lids and rings in the crock pot to save burner space on the stove we load the crock with the rings and lids put together and start it off on high when it hot we put it on low while the jars and being boiled by time they are filled the lids are ready. We take them out with hot dog thongs.

alldoneandready

[mom11]

I just wreck the place...Tonight literally! I dropped a hot lid on my glass cooktop and took two big chips out of the corner of it! Dag-Nab-It!!!