Almost all foods can be home-canned. The most popular foods for home-canning include fruits and tomatoes, as well as preserves like chutneys, jams, jellies, pickles and relishes.
It is also possible to can fresh vegetables, meat, milk, poultry, fish and prepared foods such as soups and stews, but they need to be done in a pressure cooker because their acidity levels are too low to safely can in a hot water bath.
Before you start canning, ask yourself these questions. What will my family eat? What was popular last winter? What is still sitting on shelves now? What was the family’s least favourite canned item last year? What was a pain in the neck to put up? Canning, freezing, pickling, jamming, and freezing foods for the winter season brings a true sense of accomplishment.
Last winter at a hockey game a fan offered me a pickle recipe which turned out to be a real winner, and I’ve included it below along with my favourite salsa recipe. And since many local gardens are still full of green tomatoes, I offer a delicious, tangy relish perfect with sandwiches, potatoes, cheese and lots of other entrées. For people who can’t get enough heat from salsas, chilies etc., try the flaming hot pickled pepper recipe; just chop a few to add to your favourite dish and watch the flames steam from your mouth. Any of these jars will make a great gift.
Hungarian Dill Pickles
(a Marvin Hennig recipe)
11 cloves garlic
Sliced onions
22 dill heads
Small cucumbers, washed and trimmed, (enough to fill 11 pints)
Pinch red pepper flakes
4 cups water
4 cups vinegar
4 cups sugar
8 tbsp. pickling salt
Place a clove of garlic, several slices of onion, and a head of dill into bottom of each jar. Slice cucumbers into jars and top with more onion slices, another head of dill, and a pinch of red pepper. Fill only to 1/2-inch from top. Turn oven to 350 F.
Mix water, vinegar, sugar, and pickling salt in a stainless steel pot and bring to a boil. Pour over vegetables in jars. Seal. Place jars into oven, turn off the heat and leave in oven overnight. Check seals in the morning, wash jars and put away. Delicious!
My Favourite Salsa
8 cups peeled Roma tomatoes, chopped
4 cups green and yellow bell peppers, chopped
1 cup red pepper — hot or sweet, depending on choice of heat
1 cup seeded jalapeno peppers, chopped
3 cups onions, chopped
1 cup rinsed black beans
1 cup blanched fresh corn niblets
2 cups cider vinegar (white works too; I use half and half)
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 cup tomato paste
2 tbsp. white sugar
1 tbsp. pickling salt
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 cup chopped cilantro (lightly packed)
In large non-aluminum pot, bring all ingredients to a boil, stirring often. Simmer 1 hour or until thick enough to coat a spoon. Fill hot pint jars with sauce, seal and process in boiling water bath for 20 minutes. Delicious.
Green Tomato Relish
24 large green tomatoes
3 red bell peppers, halved and seeded
3 green bell peppers, halved and seeded
12 large onions
3 tablespoons celery seed
3 tablespoons mustard seed
1 tablespoon pickling salt
5 cups white sugar
2 cups cider vinegar
In grinder or food processor, coarsely grind tomatoes, red bell peppers, green bell peppers and onions (you may need to do this in batches). Line a large colander with cheesecloth, place in sink or in large bowl, and pour in tomato mixture to drain for 1 hour.
In a large, non-aluminum stockpot, combine tomato mixture, celery seed, mustard seed, salt, sugar, and vinegar. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Sterilize enough jars and lids to hold relish (12 one-pint jars, or 6 one-quart jars). Pack relish into sterilized jars, making sure there are no spaces or air pockets. Fill jars to 1/4 -inch from the top. Screw on lids.
Place rack in bottom of large stockpot and fill halfway with boiling water. Carefully lower jars into pot using a holder. Leave a two-inch space between jars. Pour in more boiling water if necessary, until tops of jars are covered by 2 inches of water. Bring water to full boil, cover and process 30 minutes.
Remove jars from pot and place on cloth-covered or wood surface, several inches apart, until cool. Once cool, check seals. Relish can be stored for up to a year.
Pickled Hot Peppers
1- 1/2 pounds banana peppers, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 lb. jalapeno peppers, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 pound serrano peppers, cut into 1 inch pieces
6 cups vinegar
2 cups water
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, chopped
Pickling spice, optional
Using gloves, wash and cut peppers. Place banana peppers, jalapeno peppers and serrano peppers into large pot. Add vinegar, water, garlic and onion. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, simmer 5 minutes.
Ladle peppers into sterile jars, and add 1 tsp. pickling spice (pint jar) if using. Fill jars to the top with the liquid, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Place two piece lids on the jars. Place jars in the rack of a large canning pan, and fill with enough hot water to cover the jars completely. Bring to a boil, and process for 10 to 15 minutes.
Note: If you’d prefer less heat in this recipe, remove seeds and membranes from the peppers before slicing them. For extremely hot peppers to add to dishes, I canned a whole bag of various, multi-coloured, hot peppers from Swan Lake Nurseryland — they were very pretty and extremely hot.
Cathi Litzenberger is The Morning Star’s longtime food columnist, appearing every Wednesday and one Sunday per month.
