August 11, 2010
6 Excellent Reasons To Can With A Pressure Canner
Canning has been a tradition for preserving food for a very long time. Since it’s not going away and is still an important routine in a household, the exciting thing is that the technology will always advance. That is why it’s beneficial to move from open water canning to using pressure canners, a device designed to make canning easy, efficient and safe. A pressure canner is a contained unit that you can place on your stove top that allows for a monitored temperature for your canning. It is basically a big pot with a very tight lid, that contains vapor and heat that is distributed more efficiently. You might be asking why you would need a contraption to do something so simple, but here are a few good reasons:
Safer and more sterile:
Because the water vapor and heat is contained and tightly sealed, there is heat on all sides of the jars and the temperature rises beyond that of boiling water. This ensures that all bacteria are killed, including clostridium botulinum, avoiding the risk of botulism. This is always a concern when canning, and should be taken very seriously.
Canning low acid foods:
As stated above, the temperature is hotter and so it is safe to can low acid foods that pose a risk of bacteria when using an open water method. This means that it’s time to get more creative with what you can and experiment with different things!
Simple and straight forward:
The pot comes with an internal rack, so you are able to can more at once, where as with an open water pot, you can’t stack your jars vertically.
Simple and easy:
With the racks it’s easy to stack jars and can more. It also helps you to take out the cans and not have to worry about burning your hands in hot water. You just leave them in the rack until their cooled and ready to store.
Better technology:
Since there are racks inside the pot, this ensures that the jars don’t sit against the wall of the pot and the vapor reaches all sides of the jar. This means that the heat is distributed evenly for all the jars and the process is very thorough.
Good investment:
You will only need to buy it once. These aren’t complicated machines and for sixty dollars, you will be able to can well into your golden years with ease. For the amount of food that you can preserve, it’s well worth the investment.
Canning can take a long time, and when using traditional methods, there is always the worry that your preserves might spoil as time passes because the jar wasn’t sterile, sealed properly, or cooked thoroughly. With pressure canners, those fears can be abated. It also makes canning very clean and easy. The racks help to keep your fingers out of boiling water, and arrange your jars in a manner that allows you to can more at once, and safely. This gadget helps you to monitor your canning temperatures and gives you the freedom to can whatever you want, including the risky stuff like red meat and sea food.
Searching for the best pressure canner for your home can be a tough job, but it does not have to be that way. If you are having a hard time deciding what to purchase, you really can’t go wrong with an All American pressure canner.
categories: pressure canners,kitchen appliances,home appliances,home improvement,appliances,cooking,kitchen,home,family,tools
Filed under Kitchen Appliances by Jerry Scotchman