Pressure canner.

DisreputableDog

Memory Girl- My Landlord spends half the year in the US... I need to butter him up! And then slowly work up the courage to ask him to bring something so heavy back lol.

Badrick

I may be missing something here, but wouldn't a pressure cooker such as the Prestige hi dome do the job?, it has a trivet to keep the jars off direct heat and the option to work at 10lb pressure, granted you'd only be able to process 3-4 jars at a time, but a lot cheaper. :money:

kizzie

Badrick wrote: »

I may be missing something here, but wouldn't a pressure cooker such as the Prestige hi dome do the job?, it has a trivet to keep the jars off direct heat and the option to work at 10lb pressure, granted you'd only be able to process 3-4 jars at a time, but a lot cheaper. :money:

Everything I have read says you cannot use a pressure cooker. Shame as I have one of those and can find them really cheap as well

nuatha

Badrick wrote: »

I may be missing something here, but wouldn't a pressure cooker such as the Prestige hi dome do the job?, it has a trivet to keep the jars off direct heat and the option to work at 10lb pressure, granted you'd only be able to process 3-4 jars at a time, but a lot cheaper. :money:

Low acid foods need 15lb pressure held for specific times to prevent botulism developing in the jars.
If you are only canning high acid foods eg tomatoes, then these can be processed in a pressure cooker or a water bath.
HTH

Badrick

nuatha wrote: »

Low acid foods need 15lb pressure held for specific times to prevent botulism developing in the jars.
If you are only canning high acid foods eg tomatoes, then these can be processed in a pressure cooker or a water bath.
HTH

The Prestige Hi Dome works at 15lbs pressure as standard with removable weights, but if as another poster indicates you can't use a pressure cooker, in which case it's a moot point.

kizzie

Just found this thread. Looks like it might be OK?

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=84073910

kizzie

Apparently this pressure cooker is sold in the USA as a pressure cooker/canner its a catering one.

http://www.chefline.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=1752&osCsid=cb6873aa1b55e292cce49a694a17eb1b

Seakay

While saving the oven method is a useful option. I have used it for fruit, tomato passata, and an Indian meat in oil preserve. All kept well and did not ferment or go off in any way. As long as you get a good vacuum seal when the jars are cold you are fine.

http://www.cottagesmallholder.com/still-laid-up-but-ive-been-bottling-foraged-fruit-3341/

The rubber seals go on the jars before they go into the oven (it is a very low temperature in the oven so they will be quite safe). If using Le Parfait just drop the lid and do not do up the clips until they have been processed in the oven. With Kilner style jars set the rubber seal on top with the metal screw top loosely fitted – this is tightened after processing in the oven.

maryb

Putting Food By is the American bible on pressure canning along with the Ball Blue book. What it says about pressure cookers is that they are not recommended because the warm up and cool down times are factored into the overall processing times and those would be less in a smaller pressure cooker. (although the actual processing times don't vary for different sizes of pressure canner from what I've seen) Having said that, it then goes on to recommend precautions if you do use a pressure cooker.

The advice not to use a pressure cooker derives more from the fact that it hasn't been tested and shown to be positively safe rather than that it has been shown to be positively unsafe IYSWIM.

Kuhn Rikon make very good pressure cookers and their American website confirmed they could be used for canning.

One thing that is very important is being able to vent the cooker for the prescribed period before bringing it up to pressure. You may not be able to do this with some cookers, though you would with the Prestige as you would just leave the weight off. I can also do it with my Kuhn Rikon automatic as I leave the pressure release valve turned to open, but I could not do it with the more basic model

The issue with most pressure cookers made for the European market is that they only operate at two pressures, 8 psi and 12 psi. 12 psi is adequate for canning at low altitudes as long as you are definitely reaching that pressure. My Kuhn Rikon almost certainly does - when it is up to pressure it is almost silent, it is so well sealed that virtually no steam escapes. Whereas my old Prestige pressure cooker rattled and jiggled away at 15 psi to the extent that I suspect it was only operating at 12 psi in practice. And that was one of the old British made models which were well engineered. Since the company went bust and was acquired by Meyer, production was outsourced to the Far East and reviews on Amazon suggest that the standard of manufacture is not as high these days - one of the reasons I went for my Kuhn Rikon, which I have to say is head and shoulders above.


After all my research I would feel fairly confident canning with a Prestige at 15psi or a Kuhn Rikon at 12 psi letting it run at a little bit above the indicated pressure, but in practice I don't because I splurged on an All American back when the dollar was weak against Sterling. But there are times when it would be useful to can just one jar of something eg chicken stock after boiling up a carcase, especially as I use the pressure cooker anyway to boil the carcase

Kevie192

I find it quite weird how canning is such a commonplace thing in the USA but here it is hardly heard of...

I've noticed even the jams they make over there they always can them in a water bath where we just don't do that here.

Anyone have any insight into why ?!