Health & Household Tips
So Easy to Preserve
Avoid following home canning advice from untrained celebrities, TV chefs,
old cookbooks, “back-to-nature” publications and out-of-date
home canning leaflets. Some potentially dangerous instructions can even
be found in old official USDA publications. Be sure you have the latest
publications based on current research.
The US Department of Agriculture is the authority on home food preservation.
Research is ongoing as to the safest methods of preserving food at home
in today’s ever-changing world of microorganisms. Based on the
results of this research, recommendations may change. Currently the
University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service is the research
base for the USDA.
The latest publication is called ‘So Easy To Preserve”
fourth edition. It contains over 250 tested recipes and step-by-step
instructions for canning, freezing and drying. To order send a check
for $15.00 payable to University of Georgia to:
So Easy to Preserve
Attention: Kelly Lee
215 Connor Hall
University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602
Visit the National Center for Home Food Preservation at www.uga.edu/nchfp/
and check out the Extension site, Watch Your Garden Grow for information
on growing, selecting, storing and cooking with tomatoes at www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/
.
Homemade Canned Tomato Salsa Recipe
Canned Salsa (Hot Tomato-Pepper Sauce)
The type of tomato you use often affects the quality of salsas. Paste
tomatoes, such as Roma, have firmer flesh and produce thicker salsas
than large slicing tomatoes. Although both types make good salsa, slicing
tomatoes usually yield a thinner, more watery salsa than paste tomatoes.
Adding a few tablespoons tomato paste will thicken the salsa. Makes
about 7 pint jars.
10 cups peeled, cored, chopped tomatoes
5 cups seeded, chopped chili pepper (use mixture of mild and hot peppers)
4 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 cup white vinegar
3 teaspoons canning salt
teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
1.Drop tomatoes into boiling water for 30 seconds to loosen skin. Cool
in ice water. Peel, core and chop.
2. Chop remaining vegetables by hand or pulse in a food processor. Do
not puree. Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan. Heat to a boil
and simmer 10 minutes.
3. Ladle hot sauce into clean pint jars, leaving inch headspace. Prepare
canning lids according to directions on the box. Seal jars with canning
lid and screw band. Process in boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes.
4. Use jar lifters to remove hot jars for the canner. If you do not
have jar lifters, use tongs. Cool completely; check seals, label and
date. Use within one year.
Inspect Home-Canned Foods Before Using
Home canned food can be kept for up to one year for optimum nutritional
value and quality. Store in a cool place, away from direct sunlight.
Inspect the jars before opening:
1. Glass jars: metal lids should be firm and flat or curved slightly
inward. There should be no sign of leakage around the rubber-sealing
compound. If there is mold growth around the exterior neck of the jar,
there may be mold growth inside. Check for signs of “gassiness”
– floating food, bubbles rising in the food and swollen lid.
2. As the jar is opened, notice whether there is an inrush or an out
rush of air. Air rushing out or liquid spurting out indicates spoilage.
3. Smell the contents at once. The odor should be characteristic of
the food. An “off” odor probably means spoilage (acid, acrid,
sour, putrid, etc.).
4. Check the food carefully to see that it appears to have a characteristic
texture and color. Liquids in all foods should be clear. Any change
from the natural texture and/or color may indicate spoilage. Do not
taste any questionable food).
5. Discard canned food with signs of spoilage by detoxifying. This is
done to prevent pets and other humans from eating.
To Detoxify:
Carefully remove lid from jar. Place containers and lids in a large
pot (8 qt. or larger). No need to remove the food from the jar –
(removing it could contaminate other items.) cover containers with water
to at least 1” over them. Put lid on pot and bring to a boil.
Boil 30 minutes. Cool. Drain water and dispose of food and lid.
Jars may be reused. Scrub all counters, containers, equipment (can
opener), clothing and hands that may have had contact with the food.
Surfaces that come in contact with food should be cleaned with solution
of 1 part chlorine bleach to 5 parts water. Wet the surface with this
solution and let stand 5 minutes before rinsing.
Susan Brewer, Foods & Nutrition Specialist Revised: July 2002
Summer
2003
Hort Shorts | Hort
Tips | Did You Know… | Did
Winter Kill My Trees? | Unlocking the Medicinal
Secrets in Plants | Herb of the Year 2003: Basil
| Bug Bites: Carpenter Ants in Trees | Cybergarden
Sites | Lawn Care Calendar | Tomatoes:
Can, Freeze or Dry | Fruits With Bad Seeds
| Trans Fat on the Food Label | Health & Household
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