Canning was a way of preserving food back when there were no refrigerators to be found. The French were actually the first to preserve food (or “can” it) back in the 1800’s and hence the name “canning.”
People who lived on farms had to have a way of ensuring that what they grew in their gardens or in the fields would be able to sustain them for the winter and beyond. They had to have a way of preserving this food and hence canning was born.
Ironically, Canning is a process that does not involve using with cans. The correct way to “can” is in Mason jars which are made of glass. You cook and seal the food into these jars thereby ensuring that there are no bugs, pests or micro-organisms present that could grow and multiply in these jars and so significantly contribute to the eventual deterioration of the food.
This is the same concept employed by the major food makers today times except that they actually do use cans ! This goes a long way to explaining why canned foods have a long shelf life. The food industry applies this process to can things such as vegetables, soups, potted meats, fruits and beans to name a few examples.
If you grow a garden, or are fortunate enough to own a larger area of land with a variety of vegetables, you will learn how to preserve your cultivated products by Canning. The major benefit of this will be that you will reap all the good taste and quality of your home grown food.
It goes without saying that you will have to purchase a number of items such as the jars, the seals, a large jar boiling pot and other various supplies in order to start canning your products. More on this issue and excellent advice will be forthcoming in successive Parts of Canning Food for Survival. Once you can properly, the food is widely recognized to be edible for at least 12 months.
Even if you don’t have a garden / Prepper Garden, a field of vegetables or fruit trees, you can go to your local grocery store and buy these same items and can them as if you grew them yourself. The process of canning will be identical the only difference being you have bought the food instead of growing it beforehand.
Advantages of canning:
- Keeps food for a very long time (in many cases 2-3 years)
- Light and sturdy packaging, can take a beating
- Heating kills all bacteria
Cons of canning:
- The tin can rust if there is a hole in it. This is dangerous for food poisoning.
- Heating also destroys some vitamins in the diet.
- There is a protective layer on the inside against rust. This sometimes releases particles that are then in the food. This isn’t too bad as long as you don’t just eat canned food. It is also best to pour the juice away, because it also contains these particles.
Before moving onto Part 2 of Canning Foods for Survival, as a ‘newbie’ ie Beginner to this type of food preservation, I am sure you would not mind being introduced to a relevant amazon publication about this subject :
Beginner’s Guide to Canning: 90 Easy Recipes to Can, Savour, and Gift by DIANE DEVEREAUX
This is certainly one publication that would satisfy your immediate requirements, namely learning how to prepare and preserve the most common meals/recipes.
Diane is the official ‘Canning Diva’. Since 2010, she has used her knowledge about canning, preserving and safe practices to help educate people on this time-honored craft and bridge the generational gap of those who never were taught the art of home canning.
In doing so, she revamped family recipes and created new ones her family and friends would love. Her focus was to also create recipes demonstrating how to use home-canned good in practical meal creation. Today, she is proudly referred to as a valid resource for all things canning and preserving.
She has taught over 100 classes throughout West Michigan, created YouTube canning tips, had two radio shows growing listeners to over 2 million annually and kept working towards my first published cookbook.
- This is an all-around perfect book for the beginner or everyday canner!
- Includes a quick history, types of canners and equipment needed.
- Lots of advice and helpful hints for everyone.
- I personally have been a random canner for a few years and found quite a bit of information to learn and help me in here.
- Packed full of yummy recipes and quite a few I’ve never previously thought of canning food.
- The last part of the book lists gift canning ideas, a glossary, and index, ALL very helpful.
- Book pages are thick and heavy to withstand frequent use. This is a great gift idea for the canner lover in your life or for the newbie who wants to start! I got this from the publisher and this is an honest opinion.
From a total of 768 comments, Beginner’s Guide to Canning: 90 Easy Recipes to Can, Savour, and Gift by DIANE DEVEREAUX has a 4.5 out of 5 stars amazon rating.
Click HERE to read more details and latest amazon best offer for this popular edition.
CANNING FOOD FOR SURVIVAL : Part 2of 6 = The Benefits
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