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Home Canning Mistakes

Many resources show home canning methods that are not safe. Here are a few:

  • Canning in the oven—Canning jars may not withstand the thermal shock and can break. Also, oven heating filled jars of food is slow and can encourage potential bacteria growth.
  • Open kettle canning—This is filling jars and closing them without further heat processing. This also includes inverting jars or setting the jars in the sun. Without water bath canning or pressure canning, spoilage will likely occur and food will be lost or people may become sick.
  • Electric multi-cookers — While some electric multi-cookers have a “canning” button, no research is available to back up this function. Use these appliances for cooking only!
  • The jar sealed, it has to be safe! – What happened prior to putting a lid on the jar is critical to canned food safety. Just because a jar seals does not guarantee safety.

Learn more about safely canning foods at https://www.rrc.k-state.edu/preservation/index.html

About Karen Blakeslee

The Rapid Response Center was formed in 1995 as a resource for Kansas State University Research & Extension Agents. Resource topics included Food Science, Human Nutrition, Food Service, Textiles, Home Care and other consumer topics. Since that time, the Center has grown to be of valuable assistance to Kansas State University Extension Specialists in those areas.

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