One of my first blogs was about making jam, and I created it because it was one of those things that I learned how to do rather late in life and I wanted to share that knowledge with others. I found it intimidating until my sister Liz visited one time and we did it together. I have had several conversations with people lately who are interested in canning and wanted to know more about equipment needed, so I created this list and thought I'd share it here.
The most basic (and expensive) thing you need is jars. The good news is you are going to sanitize them as part of the canning process, so you can buy them used and not worry. Over time people have learned that I make jam, so they save jars and give them to me (or give them back after I give them jam), so that's great because it helps you AND them. The other place I've had some luck is at garage sales, especially when it's like an estate sale where people inherited a bunch of stuff and get rid of what they won't use, and canning supplies are often one of those things. I actually got my canning pot at a garage sale many years ago, so keep your eyes open. But be aware of what you would pay new, I have seen jars at garage sales and thrift stores priced at $1 each and I can buy them at Target for $10.99 a dozen. I don't blame people, they probably have no idea how much they cost new, but I expect to pay 50% or less of the new price when I buy something used.
For jam, I typically use 8 or 16 oz. jars, with some 4 oz. jars to use up the little bits of jam that are left. Since the jar needs to be almost full to properly seal, it's best to fill up a smaller jar than use a bigger jar but only fill it half full.
Sometimes when people hear you are canning they give you quart jars, which are useful for canning fruilt or vegetables but are too big for jam (at least for most people). I use them for other things, like vases or most recently, for solar powered lanterns. They work great for that!
While jars can be used over and over, you'll also need jar lids. If you buy a box of jars like that above, it comes with lids, but if people give you jars or you buy them used, they may or may not have a lid. The "ring" part of a canning lid can be re-used, but you are supposed to use a new "flat" each time so it properly seals. When I am washing jars I throw away the old flats so I don't accidentally re-use them. If you're not sure you can look closely at the inside of the rubber part of the flat lid and see where it's been indented from prior use. If the rubber is flat, it's likely a new flat lid.
There are two standard sizes of lids, "regular" and "wide mouth". Pay attention to the size of your jars when you purchase lids. I typically reserve wide mouth jars for non-jam canning, where you might need to get a larger spoon in the jar, but I do use them for jam because that's what I'm making most of the time.
You can buy lids in a package of 12 that includes the flat and the ring, but if you have rings to re-use you can also just buy boxes of the flats. Shop around and pick up jars and lids when they're on sale. I have ended up in high canning season not being able to find supplies, so best to not wait until the last minute.
In addition to jars, one of the other investments you'll want to make if you plan to do canning is a big canning pot, these are usually made of black enamel ware. They are used for boiling water to sanitize the jars and to give them a "heat bath" after you fill them. I know there are at least two sizes, the one I have is 12" in diameter which I believe is the smaller size. I got mine at a garage sale so it has no lid or rack but you definitely want a lid to make the process of heating water faster. You can get a rack that goes inside the pot and is used for lifting the jars, which is super handy. I don't have one but my friend Randy does and it saves a lot of tong use and is safer. Make sure you get one that is suited for your jar size though, I got one for free that was for quart jars by accident and my jam jars just slipped through it.
Besides the pot, the only "specialty" items are a special set of tongs and a special funnel. These are made especially to fit jars and are super-handy.
You might be able to buy them in a set, and if so it might come with a "magnet on a stick" that is helpful for picking jar lids out of the boiling water, and a "skimmer" for skimming foam (i just use a spoon for that). I don't have these but Randy does. I wouldn't buy them specially if they don't come in a set.
If you plan to make jelly you also need the contraption pictured below, plus some cheesecloth or clean porous cloth that you don't mind getting stained. After you cook the fruit down you will strain it through the contraption (with the cloth inside it) and capture the clear juice in a container. After it stops dripping you can use the pestle to push the fruit down and get more juice. The juice is what you use to make jelly (vs. jam which has the bits of fruit in it). I usually make jelly from grapes or plums, but jam from other fruits. I still remember my mom admiring the clarity and color of her pomegranite or grape jelly, now that I'm a jelly maker I appreciate that feeling! It's a lot of work to strain the fruit.
In addition to equipment, you'll need to buy pectin. The easiest thing is to buy it by the box, it comes with instructions for jam/jelly for all kinds of fruit. There is a special type for low sugar. If you end up making a lot of jam/jelly you can buy pectin in a jar that is a lot more economical (and flexible in terms of the amount of fruit needed). It also has a low-sugar version so you don't need to buy a special type.
You will also need to purchase sugar. It takes a LOT, even the low sugar kind is almost 1-1 sugar/fruit, so 5-7 cups is not an unusual amount to need. I remember one time I was literally stealing sugar from the sugar bowl to get enough to make jam, so I usually stock up to make sure I have plenty. The last thing you want is to have to make a trip to the store in the middle of jam-making!
Last but not least, you'll need canning labels. These are a bit harder to find, but my local Ace Hardware store has them. You can get these in a round shape to fit on the lid or an oval shape to fit on the jar. The "quilted" jars even have a smooth section just to fit the label. I try to find the dissolvable kind because the others are really hard to get off when you re-use jars. The only thing is you have to be careful how you handle the finished jars as I managed to smudge the dissolvable label bad enough I couldn't tell what was in it!
Besides the above, here are things I use that you probably already have: a large pot (like for soup). That's what you cook the jam in. I use a smaller sauce pot to boil water to sanitize the lids. I use a large strainer to pour the lids through once they have been in boiling water for awhile (thus I don't need the magnet). I use a large measuring cup (I use a 4 and 8 cup Pyrex for measuring fruit).
That's it! Hopefully your forays into canning are successful and you make many people happy with the fruits of your labor.
Comments