Home Canning for Beginners: Tools and Tips for Success

There are few things more pleasant and rewarding than opening an aromatic jar of freshly preserved tomatoes or pickles. When you make the effort to set aside some produce during the growing season, you can turn an otherwise dreary winter meal into a taste of summer and the best part is, it's not that hard to do. Canning your produce at home requires minimal investment, a little bit of effort and some basic know-how. Click through the gallery to see everything you'll need along with the four basic steps to help you get started.

Canning at home is one of the best ways to preserve the flavors of the growing season and keep your pantry stocked through the winter months. We're going to focus on water bath canning, which is the most basic of home canning processes and can be easily accomplished by even a novice. While it doesn't require sophisticated tools, there are some basic tools that will make the job safer, easier and more enjoyable. The biggest obstacle to home canning processes tends to be the handling of wet and scalding hot glass jars. Click through the gallery to see some of the tools we recommend, followed by a basic step-by-step guide to canning at home.

When you read about canning and pickling, there's a lot about non-reactive surfaces and non-reactive pots. If that has you scratching your head, you're not alone, but in basic terms it refers to a pot made from a metal that doesn't react with your food. Foods cooked in pans made from aluminum, cast iron and copper can sometimes react with the metals and leave foods with a slight metallic taste. While that might not be noticeable in your everyday meals, it will be very noticeable in anything preserved in a jar for a period of time. So, what kinds of pans are non-reactive? Enameled cast iron like a Le Creuset or a Staub Dutch oven are good options, and clad stainless-steel pans are also ideal for canning preparations. Always avoid cast iron and aluminum for canning recipes. Copper pans can be OK sometimes as long as they're truly copper, and not an inexpensive composite.

When it comes to jars for canning, there are lots of options but the jar you'll choose typically depends on your specific recipe. All canning jars have one thing in common: they're specifically designed for home canning. Avoid trying to repurpose jars from things you bought at the grocery store. They're not designed to be resealed and typically don't hold up well in a water bath canner. Jars that are purpose-built for home canning resist cracking, have the ability to create a sterile seal and can even withstand being put in the freezer. There are also many kinds of jars that are built for short-term preserving projects like refrigerator pickles. These have an airtight seal, but come with a heavy latch that keeps the jar airtight when not in use.