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Canning & Preserving
The harvest doesn’t wait, and neither should your gear list. Water-bath canning for high-acid foods, pressure canning for everything else — know which one you need before you buy, because they’re not interchangeable and the wrong one is a food-safety issue, not a preference.
A note on safety, up front
Home food preservation is safe when you follow tested recipes — published by university extension services or the National Center for Home Food Preservation — exactly as written. Don’t improvise processing times or acid levels. This page covers gear; the recipes you can should come from tested sources, not vibes.
The four methods
- Water-bath canning — for high-acid foods: tomatoes (with added acid), jams, jellies, pickles, most fruit. Needs a deep pot, rack, jars, and lids.
- Pressure canning — for low-acid foods: green beans, corn, carrots, meats, soups, stocks. Needs a real pressure canner (not a pressure cooker), jars, and tested recipes.
- Dehydrating — fruit, herbs, peppers, jerky. Low effort, small footprint, and forgiving for beginners.
- Freezing — the easiest win of all: blanch, bag, freeze. Great for berries, corn, peppers, and greens.
The pressure canner
Why we flag it: the one tool that unlocks low-acid canning — and the one most worth buying from an established maker with a real gauge and gasket support.
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The dehydrator
Why we flag it: the gentlest entry point to preserving — apple chips and dried herbs build the habit before you ever touch a canner.
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What makes good preserving gear
- Jars you can find lids for, forever. Standard mason jars in common sizes — wide-mouth quarts and pints cover most jobs.
- A canner with support. Replaceable gaskets, readable gauges, and a maker that still answers the phone in five years.
- The small stuff in a kit. Jar lifters, a funnel, a headspace tool, and a magnetic lid wand — buying them together beats improvising with tongs.
- Labels and a marker. Contents and date on every jar. Mystery jars from 2024 are a tradition nobody wants.
Good to know
Can I water-bath can green beans?
No — green beans are low-acid and need pressure canning to reach temperatures that destroy botulism spores. Water-bath is only for high-acid foods. When in doubt, follow a tested recipe for that exact food.
Do I need a pressure canner or will a pressure cooker do?
A pressure canner. Cookers are smaller, heat and cool differently, and aren’t validated for canning processing times. They’re different tools for different jobs.
How long does home-canned food keep?
Properly sealed jars stored cool and dark are generally good for about a year of best quality; check seals before eating and discard anything that looks or smells off. When in doubt, throw it out.
What’s the cheapest way to start preserving?
Freezing — bags, a marker, and blanching knowledge. Dehydrating is next. Canning has the most gear but the biggest payoff for a big garden.
23-Quart Pressure Canner and Cooker (Stock No. 01781)
Why we picked it: The industry-standard dial-gauge pressure canner, big enough for 20 pints and a gauge you can get tested at your extension office. Buy it from Presto direct and it ships free.
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7-Function Canning Kit (Stock No. 09995)
Why we picked it: Every fiddly tool canning demands — funnel, jar lifter, bubble remover, lid lifter, tongs, jar wrench — plus a timer. Don’t discover you’re missing the jar lifter with a boiling canner.
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Ball Wide-Mouth Quart Canning Jars (12)
Why we picked it: The wide-mouth quart is the workhorse jar — tomatoes, peaches, pickles, broth. Ball’s the name every tested recipe assumes, and a dozen jars lasts decades if you don’t drop them.
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Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving
Why we picked it: The safety manual every canner should own — tested times, pressures, and headspace for everything from jam to green beans. If you buy one preserving book, this is it.
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Stainless Steel Canner/Stockpot – 20 Qt
Why we picked it: A 20-quart stainless stockpot that doubles as your water-bath canner for high-acid foods. Stainless beats enamel here: no chips to rust, and it works on any stove.
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