Smelly preserve jar rings.

russetred

Last year I went pickling mad and bottled loads of different preserves.Most of them are now finishing and I'm finding it impossible to get certain smells like onion or garlic out of the plastic rings that give a tight seal.Others are stained by tomato based sauces.Can I get these out or do I need to replace the rings?I dont have a dishwasher and I dont know where to source replacement rings if I need them either.I've tried soda crystals but wasn't too sure about trying bleach.Thoughts anyone?

carriebradshaw

milton sterilising fluid is pretty good for getting rid of smells and stains.I'd give them a soak in that overnight and then rinse in plain water

tomterm8

If that doesn't work (and it should), you can make a bicarb paste with water, and just rub it around the smelly bit for an hour or so. Wash the bicarb away with water. That should get rid of any smells.

powershopper

If you are using the jars and rings for bottling fruit,you really should be using new ones each time.
I re-use old ones for jams and pickles, because they won't make a real airtight seal more than once.
Have a look at the seals at Lakeland, or the Kilner Jar website, or Google 'Le Parfait', they make seals of good quality,
Good Luck!

Ju st as an aside, today I used Le Parfait seals in Ikea jars, and bottled some lucious yellow plums in Elderflower presse. Yummy!!:j