Foods and home making

4. Let the jars and lids remain in the hot water until just before using them. 5. Grasp the jars and lids only on the outside. Do not touch the inside with the fingers or with a towel. Any utensils used in canning, such as cups, spoons, or skewers (for testing food) should be dipped first in boiling water. Just before placing rubber rings on the jars, dip them in the boiling water. The lids of automatic seal jars should also be dipped into boiling water before using. Remember that any utensils used in canning may have organisms on them, so they should be boiled, or at least dipped in boiling water, before using. How are simps prepared for canning ? In studying about the cooking of fruits, we learned that fruits are less likely to be broken up if cooked in a sirup rather than in clear water. In canning fruit, we usually prepare a sirup in which to cook it. The quan- tity of sugar used in making the sirup depends upon the kind of fruit and also upon how sweet we like the fruit. 5 1 6 Food Preservation Sirups commonly used for canning are : 1. Thin sirup — i cup of sugar to 3 cups of water 2. Medium sirup — 1 cup of sugar to 2 cups of water 3. Thick sirup — 1 cup of sugar to 1 cup of water 4. Very thick sirup — 1 cup of sugar to £ cup of water Thick sirup made of equal measures of sugar and water is satisfac- tory for fruits of average sweetness such as peaches and pine- apples. In making a sirup, heat the sugar and water until the mixture boils vigorously. The quantity of sirup used in jars depends upon the size of the fruit and the way the fruit is packed in the jar. For each pint jar, it takes about one cup of sirup ; for each quart jar, about two cups. What is the open-kettle method of canning? One way of canning is to cook fruit in a kettle. Usually sirup is first made in the kettle and the fruit added to the hot sirup. When the fruit has cooked until it is tender, it is poured into scalded jars. After the jar is filled, the rubber is adjusted and the lid screwed on or clamped on. Then the jar is inverted (to detect leakage) and allowed to cool. This method has been used for many years. However, it is not so satisfactory as some other methods for this reason: When the fruit and sirup are poured into the jar, bubbles of air may get into the jar. If these air bubbles are left in the jar, the fruit is likely to spoil. To be sure, in open-kettle canning, the jar is filled to “ overflowing ” with sirup so as to push out the air. But often a few bubbles of air are left in the jar. This method of canning is often used for small fruits containing much water, such as berries. Since fruit and sirup are boiled, some of the water evaporates during cooking. When very thick sirups are used, fruit is not so difficult to keep. Preserves, jams, and conserves are made with much sugar. These preserved fruits are usually cooked in the open kettle. How is fruit canned by means of the hot-water bath ? A wash boiler is often used for one method of canning fruit. The boiler Canning Fruits 517