oven canning technique

Are you tired of pressure canning? Make your life easy with this technique, which has served me well for 5 years. It only works for "hot pack" foods, which are the ones I cook on the stove before canning.

I use this technique for jam, applesauce, and tomato sauce.

Give it a try!

While jam/sauce is cooking, sterilize jars and lids by placing them in the sink, pouring boiling water over them, and draining them on a clean dish towel.

Separate oven racks so that a jar fits in between them and line the racks with cookie sheets.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

Ladle hot jam/sauce into hot jars. Make sure you leave 5 cm of head space from the top of the jar.

Remove air bubbles and adjust head space as needed.

Wipe any jam off of jar rims and put lids on jars.   

Screw bands down until tight. 

Turn off the oven. Place jars in oven and leave them in for 6 hours or so.

Test jars by pressing on the top to make sure that the lid is firm.

Repeat the oven canning process for any lids that are not firm.

Label jars with name and date, place on pantry shelves.