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Hello I'm Kathy Riggs.
Utah State University Extension professor,
for Family and Consumer Sciences.
Today, I'm reviewing the top ten major
canning mistakes, made by those who
participate in home food preservation.
"But I've done it this way for years and no one has died."
Is a common response University Extension
professionals may hear, when someone
has participated in home food preservation
for many years is asked to change or
update common practices that have worked
successfully for years.
However, some canning mistakes should
not be ignored.
Why?
Because eating low acid foods processed
incorrectly may not only cause serious
illness but could be deadly.
Especially for the elderly or
young children.
Let's take a closer look at the top
ten offenders and why it's important
to avoid them.
Mistake number one, making up your own
canning recipe.
Without scientific testing you will not
know how long the product needs to be
processed to be safe.
Mistake number two, adding extra starch,
flour, or other thickener to the recipe.
This will slow the rate of heat
penetration into the product and can
result in undercooking.
Number three, adding extra onions
chilies, bell peppers, or other vegetables
to salsa. The extra vegetables dilute
the acidity and can result in
botulism food poisoning.
Mistake number four, using an oven instead
of water bath for processing.
The product will be under processed
since air is not a good conductor of heat
as water or steam. The jars also may
break or explode.
Mistake number five, not making altitude
adjustments.
Since boiling temperatures are lower
at higher altitudes the products will
be under processed. Pressure canning
requires adding more pounds of pressure
while water bath canning requires more
processing time. Please note that under
processed canned meat, vegetables,
or salsa can cause botulism food
poisoning which can result in death.
Mistake number six, not venting the
pressure canner.
Lack of venting can result in air pockets
or cold spots, which will not reach as
high a temperature as is needed.
Mistake number seven, not having
dial-type pressure canner gauges tested
annually. If the gauges inaccurate the
food may be under processed and therefore
unsafe. If you chose to ignore this
recommendation, to test your dial type
gauge the safest alternative way to
process foods is to use the fifteen pound
counter weight included and listen for
the rocking sound.
Mistake number eight, failure to acidify
canned tomatoes.
Not all tomatoes have an adequate acid
level or pH, especially if the vine is
dead when tomatoes are harvested.
Processing tomatoes without added acid
such as citric acid, vinegar, or lemon
juice can result in botulism poisoning.
Mistake number nine, cooling pressure
canner under running water.
Calculations as to processing time include
the residual heat during the normal cool
down period, as part of the
canning process. Hurrying this process
will result in under processed food.
Siphoning of liquid from the jars and
jar breakage may also occur.
Mistake number ten, letting food prepared
for "hot pack" processing cool inside
the jars before placing them in the
canner for processing.
The heat curves are based on the food
being hot at the beginning of the
processing.
The product could end up being under
processed.
So there you have it, the top ten mistakes
that can ruin a season of food
preservation in a hurry.
If you now believe you have inadvertently
been an offender of one or more of these
mistakes, contact your local county
extension office to see if the food can
be salvaged.
And always play it safe, rather than take
a gamble. When in doubt, throw it out.
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