A relative gave my family these as a Christmas gift. While I really do appreciate the thoughtfulness of the gesture, I know truly very little about home canning, and I don’t really have any reason to believe this relative knows all that much either.
From left to right are:
– Pickled Bell Peppers w/Onion
– Tomato Zucchini Chutney
– Apple Maple Preserves
– Nectarine Jam
– Strawberry Mango Jam
The relative explicitly told us these didn’t require refrigeration until opening, so I have to assume they haven’t been refrigerated since they were sealed. There are obviously varying levels of liquid in the first three jars, with solids rising up out of the liquid. I can tell the 4th jar, the Nectarine Jam, has an air gap at the top if I tip the jar a little, but it’s not obvious when looking at the jar if held level. The contents of the last jar do not appear to move at all if tipped. The rings on the jars were loose, but my understanding is that doesn’t really mean anything. Labels are loosely pasted on top of the lids, so I can’t really tell if the lids are flat, etc, without removing them – though I’m not opposed to removing the labels if there’s a test I can do or some knowledge to be gained by observing the lids.
Any advice would be welcome, and thank you in advance!!
by Pondercr
7 Comments
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The only way to know if the person who processedq these used safe and tested methods is to ask that person.
No one can really tell you. Honestly the best thing to do would be to ask how they canned them. Not sure why you don’t think they know about canning. If you have an actual reason for that then maybe just don’t eat them if you aren’t comfortable asking.
Alternatively, you can Google to see if the recipes come up on nchfp, ball, or healthycanning. Of course you won’t know if they actually used the recipe if you don’t ask but if you can’t even find one that matches then you can probably guess it might not be a tested recipe.
We cannot really say for sure. We would need to know the recipe used, and how they were processed. I can say that with a quick search online I didn’t see a reliable recipe for tomato zucchini chutney so I am already suspicious. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any but me searching the big trusted sites didn’t yield a recipe. I think it might be best to ask the canner in question about them. Ask the recipe and how they were canned. You’re probably pretty safe with the jam but again not knowing how they were processed I can’t say for sure. Also the space at top is called headspace and will vary with recipes, the jars not only don’t need to be but shouldn’t be stored with the rings on them, if the center of the lid is pushed in it is sealed, you really should be able to pick up the jar by the sealed lid (without the ring), and the jam really shouldn’t move when you turn the jar if it set properly.
You can tell them you’re interested in getting into canning and ask if they could share their recipe. Once we know the recipe and process we could better let you know if it’s safe.
I don’t like that they’re all the same color but that’s just me.
Are they recently canned?
No bc the rings are still on them…looks like improper canning storage and preparation.