Foods and home making

is filled with hot water. The fruit is not cooked, of course, directly in the boiler. It is placed in jars which are filled with sirup or water. Before placing the jars in the boiler or bath of hot water, the rubbers and lids must be placed on the jars. If the contents of the jar are not boiling hot, the lids should not be sealed tightly, but should be partly fastened, so they will stay on the jars during cooking. If the jar has a screw top, par- tially screw it on. If it has a bail top, put only the top bail in place. If the contents of the jar are boiling hot, seal it tightly. The filled and covered jars are then placed in the boiler of water. Often a wire or wooden rack is used in the boiler to hold the jars in place and to keep them from touching the bottom of the boiler. When one does not have a rack, strips of wood or a wire netting may be placed in the bottom of the boiler. Enough hot water is put in the boiler so that the water extends about an inch above the lids of the jars. The water surrounding the jars is heated until it boils. Then the cooking is continued until the fruit is tender. Time tables have been prepared to tell you how long to cook the fruit. (See page 518.) You should not begin to count the time until the water in the bath boils. When sufficiently cooked or processed, the jars are lifted out of the hot water. The lids are fastened tightly, the jars inverted and allowed to cool. Store the jars in a dark, cool place. In this method of canning, uncooked fruit may be placed in the jars. The jars are then placed in the hot-water bath and heated as just described. This process of canning is called cold pack. The fruit may be partly cooked in a kettle and poured while still hot into the jars. The jars are then packed in the hot- water bath and the cooking continued as in cold pack. This process is known as hot pack. When food cooks, it shrinks. In the hot pack method, the fruit is shrunk before it is packed in the jars. This makes it possible to pack more fruit and less sirup in the jars. 518 Food Preservation Either cold or hot pack is a more sure method of canning than the open-kettle. Not only the fruit but the jars and air bubbles which may be in the jars are heated or processed at the same time. Moreover, because the contents of the jars get hot, they expand and push the air out. Even if a few bubbles stay in the jar, they will do no harm because the bacteria contained in them have been destroyed by heat. Another advantage of water-bath canning is that foods keep their shape better than when canned in the open kettle. TIME TABLE FOR CANNING FRUITS1 The times given for processing in boiling water apply only to places with altitudes of 1000 feet or less. For all altitudes above 1000 feet, the time should be increased 20% for each additional 1000 feet. When half-gallon glass jars are used, add 5 minutes to times given for pint and quart glass jars. Fruit Preparation for Processing Wash all fruits very thoroughly. Time in Minutes for Processing Pint and Quart Glass Jars in Boiling Water Apples . . Slice, quarter, or halve. Precook by boiling 5 minutes in a thin sirup or steam until wilted. Pack hot. Cover with boiling sirup 15 Same as above but dry-packed . . 20 Or boil whole in sirup, or bake as for serving (400 F.). Pack hot. Cover with hot sirup S