Preserving food the right way keeps it fresh

University of Wyoming educator shows local shoppers how to can their food

A demonstration on how to use the Ball Easy Canner electric water bath canner was performed at The Market on Wednesday, April 30.  Shoppers came to The Market and asked questions about how to can their food and had their lids tested to check if they had the proper amount of pressure.

According to Food Network.com, canning and preserving are not challenging to do. However, it is recommended to plan and organize ahead of time before preparing for canning your food.

“I am sharing canning information for those who are already canners, so people can review the steps to both pressure and boiling water canning before the canning season begins,” said Melissa Cook, community vitality and health extension educator at the University of Wyoming Basin office. “Canning season can be any time of the year; however, summer is the busiest time as people harvest and preserve their garden produce. Other busy times of the year include hunting season for canning meat and the holiday season for gifts from the kitchen. I have a list of resources that the USDA and the extension office approve, and I have a slew of recipes for people to try.”

Cook said there are many great benefits to using the electric Ball canner, which can save time and space when doing canning preparations.

“The nice thing about the Ball Easy Canner is that you can get your jars heated up without an extra can on your stove,” Cook said. “The second thing it can do is get the jars to the right temperature before you load your product in them. Once the product is in the canner, the canner will count down the minutes for you and keep it at a nice, soft boil, not an overly hard boil or dropping, so you don’t have to start your time over, which is one of the things that can happen when you’re canning. When the boil stops, you must start your time over, and so with this it will be a nice steady, reliable boil.”

Cook said the Ball Easy Canner is a good way to make homemade jam or use ingredients from your home garden.

“When you are bringing in your garden produce and you want to make some jam, you can put it in the boiling water canner,” Cook said. “You can it for how long the recipe says, plus your altitude adjustment, and from there the canner will do the work for you.”

Cook will be hosting an event called “Keys to Embracing Aging” at the North Big Horn Senior Center this August and will be teaching eight classes with multiple topics such as nutrition, exercise, knowing your numbers for your health and sleep issues. This fall she will also take part in a Wyoming Walks event in Lovell.

To get additional information on these upcoming events or for any questions on canning food items, email Cook at mcook12@uwyo.edu. For additional information on nutrition and food safety, go to the website at https://uwyoextension.org/uwnutrition/category/food-preservation/ .