JustAnotherNut
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- Dec 31, 2015
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If you are considering learning how to can foods, you need to know the best methods to keep your family safe & well fed. Things like botulism can make you sick or even kill you. But don't let that scare you from doing it, you just have to be very careful, keep everything clean & sanitized before & during processing and that includes proper storage of canned foods after processing. Processing low acid foods (meats, fish, seafoods, & veggies) in a pressure canner to reach 240 degrees will kill any bot spores. High acid foods such as fruits, pickles and some tomatoes (though you can add some lemon juice, ascorbic acid, vinegar or high acid tomato varieties) are processed in a water bath.
One other note...…..there is also a bacteria that actually loves heat and causes what is called 'Flat Sour' that can happen with corn, beans, peas & asparagus. It is not a poison and will NOT kill you like botulism, but it sure does taste nasty. This can happen even in store bought canned foods, though it is rare.
Here are the links to 'USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning'. Each of the links have different information and you should read all of them before deciding whether you want to be taking on the task. It may seem overwhelming, but it's really not that hard.
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE02_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE03_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE06_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf
One other note...…..there is also a bacteria that actually loves heat and causes what is called 'Flat Sour' that can happen with corn, beans, peas & asparagus. It is not a poison and will NOT kill you like botulism, but it sure does taste nasty. This can happen even in store bought canned foods, though it is rare.
Here are the links to 'USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning'. Each of the links have different information and you should read all of them before deciding whether you want to be taking on the task. It may seem overwhelming, but it's really not that hard.
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE02_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE03_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE06_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf