Replies

“pasteurization”

Just had a talk with Louie Pasteur and know holding a substance, such as milk, at a certain temperature for a certain period of time eliminates bacteria. It follows that holding a food product in a jar at a certain temperature for a certain amount of time, kills bacteria.

Just had a talk with Louie Pasteur and know holding a substance, such as milk, at a certain temperature for a certain period of time eliminates bacteria. It follows that holding a food product in a jar at a certain temperature for a certain amount of time, kills bacteria.

That's the basis, but there's a catch. In order to kill the bacteria that causes botulism, you would need to bold those jars at a temperature higher than that of boiling water. No matter how long water boils, it will never get hotter than boiling water. If you're dealing with acidic foods, like tomatoes or pickles, you can use a boiling waterbath, because botulism cannot survive in an acidic environment. If you don't have that acidity, then boiling water won't be enough.

Pressure canners work because increasing the pressure also increases the temperature at which water boils. Making it possible to get it hot enough to kill off the botulinum bacteria.

Most canning books will have instructions for which foods need which kind of processing. But, make sure you get the most recent copy you can, because the information is constantly being updated as new safety information comes out.

Just had a talk with Louie Pasteur and know holding a substance, such as milk, at a certain temperature for a certain period of time eliminates bacteria. It follows that holding a food product in a jar at a certain temperature for a certain amount of time, kills bacteria.

Are you familiar with autoclaves? They use heat AND pressure to kill microorganisms dead, dead, dead.

Living things are tough; some bacteria form rugged little spores than can endure until conditions become favorable for life. Don't underestimate them. Research this thoroughly.