As backyard vegetable gardens start coming in, and keep coming in, we start getting calls about the best ways to preserve fresh fruits and vegetables. 

Canning is a popular way to preserve these foods, but our team has some best practices and rules to follow to make sure that your food is preserved safely and with high quality. No one wants their prized green beans to go from vibrant green to murky and cloudy. There are serious health risks if you don’t follow current, research-based canning practices. 

First, pressure canning with a tested and known good pressure gauge is the only safe way to can vegetables. Following the proper canning procedures and following the time and pressure guidelines ensures that you destroy all of the microorganisms and stop the enzymes that cause food spoiling. 

Please make sure you have a calibrated/tested gauge. We can help you test it at our office. If your gauge is old or broken, it can be inaccurate, which can lead to unsafe canning conditions. Please call our office to reach out for help. 

Freshly harvested vegetables that are cooled, thoroughly washed, cleaned, sorted and checked for bad spots is the first step in the canning process. Next, you can raw pack or hot pack. These are simply whether you’d heated the vegetables in water first or packed the jars with raw vegetables. 

Next you need to consider your canning containers. Use standard canning jars with the Mason on the side and the manufacturer's name. Do not use pickle or mayo jars or other jars not designed for home canning. These jars need to be super clean or run through the dishwasher just before you use them. Lids are also important. Two-piece lids are the best with the flat lid and the screw-down band. 

We have a lot more in-depth tips about the whole process of pressure canning vegetables and about following the USDA timetable to make sure that you have safe canned goods that I don’t have room for in this column. You can read more about this process and the importance of each step of this process at https://bit.ly/3OdQXs5. 

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Food Safety and Quality Regional Extension Agent Christy Mendoza, who is an expert on food preservation. 

If you have questions about the program or any other area under the Extension umbrella, please reach out or stop by our office at 3200A W. Meighan Blvd., call us at 256-547-7936 or visit us on Facebook at https://bit.ly/3otwUdl or online at https://bit.ly/3yniPCx.                 

The Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M University and Auburn University) is an equal opportunity educator and employer. Everyone is welcome! Please let us know if you have accessibility needs.                                         

Eric Wright is extension coordinator for the Etowah County Extension Office.