The
most popular canning method today is the "cold-pack" method of canning.
It is very efficient, economical and satisfactory
process for busy housewives to can everything that grows. This is the
method that we mostly refer to in this cookbook,
and even when we omit the phrase "cold-pack" and use simply canning you
will know that we are
referring to it.
The
phrase "cold-pack" simply means that the products are
packed cold in their fresh and natural state in the glass jars or
containers. To the fruits hot sirup is applied; to the vegetables
hot water and a little salt are added. The sterilization is done in
the glass jars or tin containers after they are partly or entirely
sealed, making it practically impossible for bacteria or spores to
enter after the product has once been carefully sterilized or
cooked.
In
following this method vegetables should first be
blanched in boiling water or live steam, then quickly plunged into
cold water and the skins removed. The products are then packed in
containers and sterilized according to the instructions and recipes.
When
we use the term sterilizing we simply mean cooking the
product for a certain period of time after the jar has been filled
with food. It is sometimes called processing. Sterilizing,
processing, boiling and cooking are all interchangeable terms and
mean one and the same thing.
By
this "cold-pack," or cold-fill, method of canning, all food
products, including fruits, vegetables and meats, can be
successfully sterilized in a single period with only one handling of
the product in and out of the canner.
All
the flavor is retained, the product is not cooked to a mushy
pulp, and the labor and time needed for the canning are less than
in any other method. The worst canning enemy, mold, is
eliminated and all bacteria and bacterial spores which cause
vegetables and meat to spoil are destroyed.
