Well the question before bed is - do I take them out of the canner or wait until morning? I’m letting them stay in till morning because I’m not going to use the canner again tonight and I thought I remembered you or Cottonball or someone saying to let them cool slowly. I’ve already heard them ping inside the canner. The directions that came with the canner says you can take them out to cool and I would think if it were earlier in the day, you could do another batch or two. So what’s the word from my canning mentors regarding future batches?
>>> do I take them out of the canner or wait until morning? <<<
I usually take mine out after the canner pressure drops but I have a couple of times been late night and fall asleep and take them out in a.m. but once after canning meat will break that habit..ha...
congrats , when you hear them seal it’s music...job well done
Sorry for being too late for a helpful answer...
My suggestion - FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS...
"Open the canner and remove the jars at once to a clean, dry place, out of drafts, padded by folded dry towel."
Is it OK if I just pull the canner off the burner when it is "done", and let it cool down on it's own overnight and just take the jars out in the morning? Or do I really need to open it once it is depressureized and cooled?
My understanding is that you're not supposed to do this because you can end up with a flat sour.
"Flat sour spores are not directly pathogenic to people. These organisms only cause spoilage in canned foods if the product is not cooled properly. If not cooled properly, the organism has the potential to grow and decrease the shelf life of the canned foods. A food spoiled by flat sour organisms will produce a sour smell and taste. Flat sour spore testing is of most interest for food processors that want to ensure a long shelf life of a product and to prevent early spoilage." [Environmental Microbiology Laboratory]
I have done it as I am sure lots of others have - ONCE... Was treated with 40% unsealed jars and 60% overcooked. But fortunately no flat sour.
I know - 2:30 or 3:00 in the morning after lots and lots of canning and it is sooooo tempting to do, but PLEASE don't...
Besides, why deprive yourself of that final satisfaction of seeing all your splendid canned food all lined up!
You can tough it out for just those few minutes more.. Really you can.
This ONLY applies to glass canning jars - with tin cans it is entirely different - Pop that valve - Drop that pressure, cool 'em down as quick as possible. BUT DON'T EVEN THINK OF IT WITH GLASS JARS!!!