Learned to can at my mom's side growing up.
She didn't have any daughters so she pressed us boys into service.
Picking veggies, shucking corn, shelling peas, prepping tomatoes, fruits, etc.
We learned to can and cook just about everything.
She gave us many things but teaching us to can, cook and do things for ourselves turned out to be some of the most important and the things I treasure the most.
Picking and canning was hard work in the summer when we would rather be running through the woods, but in the fall it was a satisfying to look at all those beautiful different colored jars lined up in the cellar pantry knowing we would have good food all winter long.
Although our heaviest canning days are behind us I still can some every summer and keep supplies on hand in case of hard times. I still have some of mom's wire bail jars - they must be 50 to 60 years old but are in good condition. We don't use them but have jar rubbers in case we ever need them.
I was finally able to buy an All American Pressure cooker and am looking forward to breaking it in soon.
I am also trying to talk my son and daughter-in-law into letting me teach them how to can. It's a skill I would like them to have and I believe it will pay off down the road.
But they are both busy and a can of veggies on sale are only 50 cents or so. But it's when there are no cans of veggies to buy that I am trying to get them prepped for.
Thanks for sharing. I think I’ll read more about the subject.
Spend a cold day at home baking bread once a month or buy a head of cabbage & make some sauerkraut once in your lifetime.
Can food just because once & while. Grow some potatos just to see if you can even though they are extremely cheap. Get the kids involved. My 10 year old grandson wanted to bake bread the other day. I got the recipe out & let him do everything, just pointed to where everything was in the kitchen. The loaves turned out beautifully, best bread he had ever tasted.
I have one and LOVE it.
Actually, my son is the one interested in canning. He loves to eat and eat well and so always appreciated the quality of the home canned goods.
I'm hoping his wife will become interested in it as well. They are looking at houses out in the country and he will likely end up the most self-sufficient of them all.
BTW, I have some good recipes for very low sugar jams.
I resemble that, though I also have a sister. Also meat cutting & wrapping for the freezer from my dad, with my mom helping: as likely to be a deer, or even an occasional bear, as a side of beef from the packing house.
60 years later, still growing, hunting, canning, etc.
The last couple of nights we had rabbit stew from home grown rabbit; it included home grown & canned carrots & corn, as well as home grown & stored potatoes & onions.
Last year, we finally bought an Excalibur dehydrator to replace our 35 year old small round one, and filled a lot of jars that way, too; as well as adding a food sealer to the mix the year before.
A set of life skills that can make a real difference.