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Is canning worth the effort?

Posted at 9:13 AM on March 15, 2008 by Sareen Dunleavy Keenan (2 Comments)

In short, YES! Think of it this way. Next time you are making your marinara sauce. You can make the sauce, enjoy dinner and clean up. Or, you could make 3 times the sauce, really not that much more work if you think about it. Then, dump it into some jars and boil some water. Of course there is more to it, but really, this is how Brendan and I get a root cellar that our mothers and grandmothers can be proud of.

We do spend full days in the kitchen some times. I am putting restaurant style anti-fatigue kitchen mats on my wish list we are in there so often. But, that is our family activity. Some people watch TV, we process pounds and pounds of fruit in the summer. A little chop here, some peeling there, and we have the base of many meals. One of the items that we can that we couldn't live without is what I referred to in the chili debacle as 'salsa.'

It isn't really chips, guac and burn your face off salsa kind of salsa. It is more of a cooking base. We take the garlic, onions, peppers and tomatoes that we have so much of in July and combine them in a jar. How many dishes do you make that could use that combination? Well, it is there for us. In a jar, waiting patiently for it's turn in the pot. This week, it was used in a chili and another jar in some couscous. Next week, I think roast beef is on the menu as well as a marinara. This little jar of goodness is a time saver. I don't have to shop or chop. Just dump and everything I need is there for me.

We have a lot to learn and explore in terms of canning. We are expanding and challenging ourselves this summer. But rest assured, this is an easy art from. It is a time saver, and in my mind, it is just plain silly not to try.

Going to a dinner party? One trip to the cellar will produce pre-jarred bruschetta topping and a bottle of wine and we are good to go. Need dinner fast? Marinara is just a pop of the lid away. Oh, you are sick? Tomato soup to the rescue!

Comments (2)

Canning. Absolutely worth it. We used to do some every summer when mom was alive. My sister and I have sort of gotten out of the habit. We are both working on the locavore habit. Not so very hard here in Minnesota. This summer instead of just buying enough for the week at the Farmer's market we are both committed to doing some canning and freezing. Now I have to get the freezer emptied out.... always something. Speaking of your salsa..... did you pressure can it, or just boiling water bath?

Posted by Diane J Lorvig | March 16, 2008 8:52 AM

I intend to make my first major foray into canning this year. I'm pretty excited! Do you have a chest freezer or other extra freezer space? I think I need a chest freezer also for all the other food I'm going to put up.

I thought of this blog when I was at the Wedge yesterday because their receipts have this neat feature that tells you what percentage of your purchase was local or from local companies. VERY cool! Maybe you could request something like that from wherever you shop.

Posted by kate | March 18, 2008 9:06 AM