Got A Question On Using New CAnning Jars

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jazzy

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i used to do alot of canning, all sorts of foods. when i got my jars out to get ready for a batch id wash throughly and then serilize before adding any foods.
i have a friend whoe says nah, that not necessary cause it will be sterilized inside and out while in the pressure canner.. he even uses new jars out of the box, doesnt wash otr rinse, but just adds food, puts on sterile lids--he does the lids right-- then puts in canner. and says thats all it needs

i thinbk this is creepy and taking alot of risk. just cause the new canning jars are with lids, in the boc doesnt mean it is CLEAN and sterile and safe to add food too. who knows what dust or stuff floating around landing in the jars and factory. but he insisits im wrong, being fussy and doing more work than necessary.

they also save glass food jars from the store with metal lids and cans with them but just hot water bath.

not washing and sterilizing jars seems unsafe. he is kind of on the lazy side always looking for short cuts so i think thats whaats going one--eliminate a step or 2 and get it done sooner kind of thing.

does anyone have info, experience or do i need to turn him in to jackie clay for a talkin to.
 
i used to do alot of canning, all sorts of foods. when i got my jars out to get ready for a batch id wash throughly and then serilize before adding any foods.
i have a friend whoe says nah, that not necessary cause it will be sterilized inside and out while in the pressure canner.. he even uses new jars out of the box, doesnt wash otr rinse, but just adds food, puts on sterile lids--he does the lids right-- then puts in canner. and says thats all it needs

i thinbk this is creepy and taking alot of risk. just cause the new canning jars are with lids, in the boc doesnt mean it is CLEAN and sterile and safe to add food too. who knows what dust or stuff floating around landing in the jars and factory. but he insisits im wrong, being fussy and doing more work than necessary.

they also save glass food jars from the store with metal lids and cans with them but just hot water bath.

not washing and sterilizing jars seems unsafe. he is kind of on the lazy side always looking for short cuts so i think thats whaats going one--eliminate a step or 2 and get it done sooner kind of thing.

does anyone have info, experience or do i need to turn him in to jackie clay for a talkin to.
Could be ok or not. Depends.

If it smells funky don't eat it.

Ben
 
When I get jars, new or used, they get sterilized. After that, if I know that they’re clean, just hot water, soap, and maybe a drop of bleach. You really don’t know what happened to them before you got them.
If jars that came from the store really do properly fit a lid and band then yes, by all means they’re good for water bath. I wouldn’t pressure can either.
Lids carefully opened could be reused if you had no others. New is first choice, but with caution lids can be reused.
Glad to hear there’s another Jackie Clay fan. I love to read and reread her columns from the ‘’80s on. She has definitely walked the walk. I think about all the major canning that she still does, and all that she and her husband does. Let nothing go to waste, if you can help it. Did you hear her story about canning truckload(s) of potatoes one year that were going to be tossed? And not relying on your freezer that might let you down? A good idea that she has, freezing when you’re busy, then canning that when you have time.
And I’m going on more than I should. May we be more like Jackie Clay, and an encouragement to all as she is.
 
I wash new canning jars.

I do not sterilize my other jars just wash them and put a lid on once they are dry. They are sterilized during the canning process.

If the food inside the jars is sterilized by the canning process, the jars are are as well.
100% agree.

One sterilization is enough.

Disclaimer
I am not qualified in this area and all of my thoughts are questionable.

Ben
 
When you heat the jars up before dumping hot liquid in they get sterilized anyway. Maybe a quick rinse first but essentially they are sterile at filling just because of the nature of hotpacking the jars. New jars=Wash first!!! Take the lid off a new in the box jar and smell it. You smell that?? IDK what it is, but I don't want it in my food!
 
I run mine through the dishwasher first and put on heated dry. Actually, that is the only time I use the dishwasher.
This is what I do, run them through the dishwasher and use the heat dry cycle.

One time I got a car full of canning jars that had been in a home that someone purchased. I ran all of them through the dishwasher. Some were glass mayonnaise jars that people used to can in. I used them for dry canning with things like sugar, salt, and rice and more. There were still cases of actual canning jars, Ball and more.
 
I'm a purist, I always wash first and then sterilize all my jars and lids in boiling water immediately before packing them with food and putting them in the processor. That's regardless of if they're new and never before been used or if they're many years old and already been used multiple times.

I sterilize. Doesn't take much time. Heats the jars if you're doing a hot pack anyway.
When I helped with a lot of canning we always thoroughly washed, and hot water rinsed jars before use.. This for used or new jars..

My experience has been there was a time when store ..mayonnaise.. jars were safe to can in.. Today I wouldn't trust the quality of the glass to pressure can.. Maybe water bath of things that will be ..presents, give aways.. where I'm likely to never get the jar back.. About the only ..store bought.. product in a jar that is canning quality seems to be a brand of pasta sauce that is in a Ball jar.. Actually the 24oz jars work well for many 1 or 2 person meals..

In todays world, I would be EXTREMELY picky about the quality of jars I used and how I prep jars for use.. This given today jar and lid quality compared to not that many years ago now..

Yes.... Jackie Clay was a pioneer in the craft of preserving.. But I always felt you needed to be just a bit careful with her information and confirm against the Ball Blue Book or USDA information as she leaned real close to a bit of a ...rebel canner... streak in some ways..

My 5 cents of opinion..
 
My canner holds 24 pints. It takes me a few extra minutes to prep the first batch. The subsequent batches I clean and boil the jars while I’m waiting for the current batch to cook. It might be overkill but it was how I was taught and it takes very little extra time.

I do reuse lids, and store jars if they have good lids. If a jar breaks then I loose the food, that has yet to happen. If a seal doesn’t hold I run it through again with a new lid or I eat it, just like I do when jars don’t seal. When someone gives me home canned food I always return an equal amount of jars and lids. The gift of food is generous but not replacing their jars and lids is rude.
 
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