I’ve never had moldy jam! I noticed it in the pantry, brought it inside and the seal made an angry pop when I opened it. What could have caused this?
I followed Ball’s raspberry jam recipe, in sept 2023.
by Crystalcaterpillar01
7 Comments
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Temporary_Level2999
It looks like there is jam on the rim of the jar. Did you store it without the ring and check that you had a strong seal before storing?
marstec
Was it properly heat processed to make it shelf stable? Was the ring left on? Did you press down the lid when checking for it to seal shortly after canning? Sometimes there’s a failed seal during storage in the pantry that isn’t apparent. Luckily it’s just the one jar.
bigalreads
I had a batch of peach jam go moldy like that when I was using a “clean damp cloth” to wipe rims. I use bleach when laundering kitchen towels, but apparently not enough. After I switched to a fresh paper towel dampened with vinegar, no problems with mold.
Egoteen
Life finds a way
Own_Papaya7501
It’s hard to tell from this angle, but is it possible there was too much headspace?
Bertrandization
You say you followed the Ball raspberry jam recipe. That’s a water / steam canning recipe.
Unlike bacteria, where a 4.6 pH is protective, mould can happily survive much more acidic environments than 4.6. It’s the heat that kills mould.
Therefore, either: 1. Not heat processed properly, allowing survival of some mould spores. Ie. not at a high enough temperature over a long enough time. 2. Not sealed properly, allowing ingress of some mould spores post-processing.
There isn’t any other feasible explanation. The Ball recipes have massive safety margins built into their processing instructions. If they’re followed, it will kill all relevant pathogens.
So, are you sure it was properly up to temperature from the start to finish times of processing? It’s only 10 minutes in that recipe, if I’m looking at the right one. If it’s not fulling boiling when you start the timer, that may explain the mould.
Are you sure the jam was hot when it was processed? If it cooled before you processed it, that may also explain the mould. Did you do multiple batches, letting some of the jars cool down as you processed other batches?
7 Comments
Hi u/Crystalcaterpillar01,
For accessibility, please reply to this comment with a transcription of the screenshot or alt text describing the image you’ve posted. We thank you for ensuring that the visually impaired can fully participate in our discussions!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Canning) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It looks like there is jam on the rim of the jar. Did you store it without the ring and check that you had a strong seal before storing?
Was it properly heat processed to make it shelf stable? Was the ring left on? Did you press down the lid when checking for it to seal shortly after canning? Sometimes there’s a failed seal during storage in the pantry that isn’t apparent. Luckily it’s just the one jar.
I had a batch of peach jam go moldy like that when I was using a “clean damp cloth” to wipe rims. I use bleach when laundering kitchen towels, but apparently not enough. After I switched to a fresh paper towel dampened with vinegar, no problems with mold.
Life finds a way
It’s hard to tell from this angle, but is it possible there was too much headspace?
You say you followed the Ball raspberry jam recipe. That’s a water / steam canning recipe.
Unlike bacteria, where a 4.6 pH is protective, mould can happily survive much more acidic environments than 4.6.
It’s the heat that kills mould.
Therefore, either:
1. Not heat processed properly, allowing survival of some mould spores. Ie. not at a high enough temperature over a long enough time.
2. Not sealed properly, allowing ingress of some mould spores post-processing.
There isn’t any other feasible explanation. The Ball recipes have massive safety margins built into their processing instructions. If they’re followed, it will kill all relevant pathogens.
So, are you sure it was properly up to temperature from the start to finish times of processing? It’s only 10 minutes in that recipe, if I’m looking at the right one. If it’s not fulling boiling when you start the timer, that may explain the mould.
Are you sure the jam was hot when it was processed? If it cooled before you processed it, that may also explain the mould. Did you do multiple batches, letting some of the jars cool down as you processed other batches?