Canning The Victory Crop (1943)

[Music] here they are America's answer to the wartime food problem Victory Gardens from coast to coast you and your neighbors have done a magnificent job of getting down to earth and coaxing out of it the very last vitamin and mineral vital to the nation's food supply America's next job is to gather all this garden goodness to capture and preserve the rich nourishing food our land has yielded up let's can the victory crop here's how here in one of the good housekeeping kitchens miss Chapman and mrs. Kendall are going to demonstrate the two most important methods of canning the pressure canner method for beans peas corn and other non acid vegetables and the boiling water bath method the recommended way for tomatoes and all other acid foods for a water bath canner any covered vessel will do if deep enough for a rack to keep the jars off the bottom and allow water to cover the jar tops and inch or two if you need to make a rack of wood or wire the first thing to know before you plan your canning is whether your foods are acid or non acid acid foods include tomatoes and fruits of all kinds and our best can in the boiling water bath these vegetables are non-acid foods in Canning them the United States Department of Agriculture recommends only the steam pressure method as being universally safe each state college publishes the methods it considers safe within its own state only by holding steam under pressure can you get the high temperatures needed to destroy heat resistant bacterial spores that may be present surviving they may cause spoilage in sealed jars one organism may develop the deadly bot you Linus poison often impossible to detect cases of this kind of food poisoning are comparatively rare and have occurred mostly though not entirely in the western part of the country although the germ is found in the soils of all sections boiling destroys the toxin hence non acid vegetables not processed in the pressure cooker can be made safe by bringing to a boil and then boiling for at least 10 minutes before serving or tasting several good types of home canning jars and caps are available many commercial food jars can be reused if fitted with original screw caps and new metal discs available in two sizes be sure to take out the old cap lining jar closures would separate rubber rings are only partially tightened before processing closures with metal discs with made on rubber gaskets are tightly sealed before processing examine each jar carefully make sure it is free from cracks and that the sealing edges are smooth wire clamps should fit tightly whether you're using new jars or old ones make sure they're absolutely clean lots of good soapy water and a thorough rinsing will do the trick let's start with Tomatoes they're one of the easiest vegetables to can and they fit into a million menus from soups and stews to salads and spaghetti sauce here's one of several ways of canning them miss Chapman puts the water bath canner on to heat another pot of water to loosen the tomato skins and a tea kettle just in case some of the water boils away since we're going to process the tomatoes and the jars after they are packed it is not necessary to sterilize the jars but they must be hot to speed the processing and to prevent cracking look over the tomatoes with an eagle-eye and discard all soft and damaged ones for one bad spot might spoil a whole jar now is the time to put a few small ones aside for making juice to fill the jars to make the juice all you do is heat the tomatoes enough to soften them strain bring to boil then use to fill the jars everybody knows the old trick of scalding tomatoes to loosen the skins a deep frying basket is a slick way to handle this job it only takes a minute a cold water spray or quick cold dip speeds up the job and makes the tomatoes easy to handle core and cut the tomatoes you can heat tomatoes and pack hot or you can pack raw tomatoes in the jar now we're ready for the actual packing tongs help in taking the hot jars from the bath and packing pack firmly one teaspoon full of salt to a quart is good rule here's the hot juice ready to fill up the spaces work out the air bubbles to ensure a full pack and safekeeping add more hot juice to cover wipe off the edges with a clean damp cloth dip rubber rings and lids in boiling water before putting them on the jars place the rubber on the jar flat put the glass top on evenly snap the upper wire into the notch on the cover but leave the lower clamp up jars with separate rubber rings should be only partially sealed before processing with a two-piece all-metal cap place the metal disc over the top of the jar then screw down the metal band as tight as it will go be sure the water is at least 1 inch above the tops of the jars now let's look at our timetable to see how long the tomatoes must be processed by processing we mean the time required to cook the food in the jars to prevent spoilage tomatoes when packed raw require 45 minutes but don't start to count the time until after the water is boiling done time to take out the jars careful those jars are hot now to seal the jars with separate rubber rings that were only partially sealed before processing all you have to do to seal the Lightning jar is to press down the wire clamp all this one needs is a firm twist to seal it completely the third type is already sealed and should not be touched now place the jars to cool away from drafts after 24 hours test label and store in a cool dark place now we're going to can pears all fruits are acid and therefore can be processed in the boiling water bath proof that is just ripe enough to eat raw is also ideal for canning the first thing to do is to make the syrup for juicy fruits a delicious syrup is made from the juice or 3 cupfuls of water to 1 cup full of sugar is a light syrup satisfactory prepares allow about one cup of syrup for each quark if you want to stretch your sugar supply corn syrup or honey may be used in place of some of the sugar we've already put the boiling water bath and jars on to heat one of the little tricks prize-winning Kanner's use to keep Paris from turning dark is to put them in a solution as soon as they're peeled two tablespoonfuls of salt and two tablespoons of vinegar to a gallon of water makes a good solution try this and see how much whiter your pears look now to peel have and core the fruit and put it into this solution if the pears are very large you may have to quarter them when the pears are ready wash off the solution to get rid of the salty taste put the pears in the syrup one or two at a time so they don't break or mash turn up the heat and cook for four to eight minutes cooking fruit shrinks it and makes it easier to pack there's real art to packing fruit handle carefully so the pieces won't break and lose shape pack hollow side down to within one half inch of the top of the jar cover fruit with boiling syrup leaving a half-inch headspace just before sealing jiggle the jar gently so that the syrup fills up the air spaces add more syrup if necessary with this type jar screw the band on tightly then give it a quarter turn back to allow steam to escape during processing into the counter for 20 minutes as you can see fruits are not difficult to can and it's going to be a mighty satisfying thing to have your own reserve of home canned food now we come again to non acid vegetables which we will process in a pressure canner there are several designs a larger model is useful for big families or neighborhood groups all these types have gaskets to make a steam tight seal between body and cover this one locks with a twist some are closed with metal bands one cover is a flexible steel and closes like this for registering pressure some use dial gauges others use weights to control pressure as well as indicated now we're going to can string beans have them tender freshly gathered don't try to can stale withered vegetables kitchen shears are handy for snipping off the stem end of beans and a sharp knife and the board make cutting them easier cut them in pieces or pack small ones hole you need not only a big kettle of water in which to heat the jars but also a tea kettle of water with which to blanch the beans as soon as the beans are cut and the tea kettle boils you're ready for pre cooking pre-cooking should heat the beans thoroughly and shrink them so they will be easier to pack cover with hot water and bring quickly to a boil then boil five minutes to pack piping hot let's take a hot jar from the pot and put it down on a cutting board or any surface that isn't too cold a funnel and a ladle are a great help in filling a jar but if you haven't got them a cup will do when the jar is packed it should be filled within 1/2 inch of the top with a cooking liquid add 1 teaspoon full of salt per quart be sure that there are two to three inches of water at the bottom of the pressure canner clamping the cover is very important fasten opposite clamps two at a time make sure they are completely tight now be sure the petcock is open and turn the heat on full the petcock must be kept open until a steady flow of steam has been coming out for a full seven minutes now the processing time for snap beans is 10 pounds pressure for 40 minutes at sea level after 7 minutes close the petcock keep your eye on the gauge just before it reaches 10 pounds turn the heat low especially important on electric ranges when the 40 minutes are up move the counter off the heat and let it cool do not under any circumstances open the petcock or canner until the gauge drops to zero let's look inside the cooker and see how the liquid is sucked out of partially sealed jars by the sudden drop of pressure irregular pressure during cooking will do the same just as soon as the pressure is fallen open the petcock gradually and remove the cover take out the jars this type needs no tightening after processing place them on a cloth away from drafts to cool after 24 hours jar seals should be tested if the seal is perfect the vacuum holds the lid on if not the content should be eaten while still fresh jars with one piece screw caps are tilted to see if they leak and now comes the final touch after testing putting on the labels store your jars in a cool place where they are not exposed to light and remember every time you use one you can take pride in two great tasks well done first increasing your hungry family and keeping them well nourished and second in knowing that by so doing you have released one more precious can of food that will go to build health and strength for our fighting men and for the hungry nations of the world [Music]