Q. What causes jars to break?

A. Several types of breaks can occur.Each break looks different and hasa specific cause.

Thermal shock is characterized by acrack running around the base ofthe jar, sometimes extending up theside. To prevent thermal breakage:

• Avoid sudden temperaturechanges, such as putting hot foodin a cold jar, putting a cold jar inhot water, or placing a hot jar ona cool or wet surface. Keep jars inhot water until filled.

• Use a rack in the canner.

• Avoid using metal knives or spat-ulas to remove air bubbles orsteel wool pads to clean jars.

An internal pressure break beginson the side of the jar. It is in theform of a vertical crack that forksinto two fissures. To prevent pres-sure breaks:

• Provide enough headspace in jarsfor food to expand when heated.

• Keep heat steady during process-ing.

• Avoid reducing canner pressureunder running water or lifting thepressure control or petcock beforepressure drops to zero.

Impact breaks start at the point ofimpact, and fissures radiate from

the point of contact. To preventimpact breaks:

• Handle jars carefully. Jars thathave been dropped, hit, orbumped break easily. Test newjars that may have been mishan-dled (to see if they break) byimmersing them in room-temper-ature water, bringing to a boil,and boiling 15 minutes.

• Avoid using metal tools toremove air bubbles.

• Avoid using old jars. Jars have alife expectancy of about 10 years.

Q. How can I know if a jar of cannedfood is sealed?

A. Cool jars for 12 to 24 hours,remove the screwbands, and testseals with one of these options:

• Press the middle of the lid with afinger or thumb. If the lid springsup when you release your finger,the lid is not sealed.

Home Canning: Questions and Answers

• Tap the lid with the bottom of a teaspoon. Ifit makes a dull sound, the lid is not sealed.If food touches the underside of the lid, itwill also cause a dull sound. If the jar issealed correctly, it will make a ringing, high-pitched sound.

• Hold the jar at eye level and look across thelid. The lid should be concave (curved downslightly in the center). If the center of the lidis flat or bulging, it may not be sealed.

Q. When should lidswith screwbands betightened on the jars?

A. Before placing filledjars in the boiling water-bath canner or pressure-canner, tightly screwdown screwbands andleave in this tightenedposition. Do not tighten

screwbands after processing. Tightening afterprocessing can break the seal.

Q. How tightly should screwbands be put onwhen closing jars with two-piece lids?

A. Put on screwbands firmly so they arehandtight. If you put them on too tightly, theflat may buckle.

Q. What causes lids to buckle?

A. The buildup of pressure inside jars causes lidsto buckle. This is a result of putting screw-bands on so tightly that air can hardly escapefrom the jars during processing. Buckling maycause tiny pinholes in the flat. For this reason,the food should not be stored on the shelf.Within 24 hours of processing, foods can berefrigerated and used within 1 to 2 days, orreprocessed.

Q. What causes lids not to seal?

A. Failure of lids to seal may be caused by one ormore of the following:

• A chip on the rim of the jar.

• Not following manufacturer’s directions forpreparing flats.

• Food particles on jar rim. Always wipe rimclean before putting on lids.

• Leaving too little headspace, letting pressurein pressure canner fluctuate, or lowering thepressure too suddenly. In all of these cases,food particles may be forced between the jarand lid, causing sealing failure.

• Leaving too much headspace may preventsealing because the processing time was notlong enough to exhaust all the air from theinside of the jar.

• Not removing air bubbles can have the sameeffect as leaving too much headspace.

• Putting screwbands on too tightly.

• Tightening screwbands after removing jarsfrom canner.

• Reusing lids. Use flat metal lids only once.

• Defective lids.

• Using commercial or one-trip jars, such asfor mayonnaise, peanut butter, or baby food.These jars have slightly different sizes ofsealing edges and are not recommended forhome canning.

Q. Can lids and screwbands be reused?

A. Do not reuse flat metal lids with sealing com-pound. Screwbands in good condition may bereused.

Q. Can food be reprocessed if it was incorrectlyprocessed or if lids failed to seal?

A. If no more than 24 hours have gone by sincethe food was processed, do one of the follow-ing:

• Refrigerate the food and use it within 2days.

• Freeze the food. Adjust the headspace to 11⁄2inch and freeze in the jar or place in a recom-mended freezer container. Drain vegetablesbefore freezing.

• Remove the lid and check the jar-sealing sur-face for tiny nicks. If necessary, change thejar. Always use a new, properly prepared lidand reprocess using the same processingtime. The quality of reprocessed food ispoor. If more than 24 hours have passedsince the food was processed, discard it.

Q. When should jars be sterilized?

A. All jams, jellies, and pickled productsprocessed less than 10 minutes should befilled into sterile, empty jars. To sterilizeempty jars, put them right side up on a rackin a boiling-water canner. Fill the canner andjars with hot (not boiling) water to 1 inchabove the tops of the jars. Boil 10 minutes.Remove and drain hot sterilized jars one at atime. Save the hot water for processing filledjars.

Empty jars used for vegetables, meats, andfruits to be processed in a pressure canner donot have to be pre-sterilized. It is also not nec-essary to pre-sterilize jars for fruits, tomatoes,and pickled or fermented products that willbe processed 10 minutes or longer in a boil-ing-water canner.

Q. What is the best way to clean jars beforecanning?

A. Before every use, wash empty jars in hotwater with detergent and rinse well by hand,or wash in a dishwasher. Detergent residuemay cause unnatural flavors and colors.These washing methods do not sterilize jars.Scale or hard-water films on jars are easilyremoved by soaking jars several hours in asolution containing 1 cup of vinegar (5 per-cent acidity) per gallon of water.

Q. It is all right to let jars cool in the water inwhich they were processed?

A. It is important to remove jars from a boiling-water canner immediately when the process-ing time is up. The spores of certain ther-mophilic, or heat-loving, bacteria can surviveboiling-water processing. Because these bacte-ria thrive at high temperatures, they can mul-tiply and cause spoilage if canning jars are leftin the hot water to cool slowly. When process-ing foods in a steam-pressure canner, youremove the canner from the heat source whenthe processing time is up. You leave jars in thesteam-pressure canner until the pressurereturns to zero naturally. This period of time,after jars are removed from heat until thepressure reaches zero, is considered part ofthe processing time and is necessary fordestruction of microorganisms. Do not rushthis cooling by placing the canner under

water, or by using a fan. Remove the jarsimmediately when the pressure returns tozero, and cool at room temperature.

Q. Why do the undersides of metal lids some-times discolor?

A. Natural compounds in some foods corrodethe metal and make a brown or black depositon the underside of the lid. This deposit isharmless.

Q. What makes canned foods change color?

A. Oxidation may cause foods to darken at thetops of jars. Oxidation is from air in the jars ortoo little heating or processing to destroyenzymes. Overprocessing may discolor foodsthroughout the containers. Pink and blue col-ors sometimes seen in canned pears, apples,and peaches are caused by chemical changesin the coloring matter of the fruit. Iron andcopper from cooking utensils (or from waterin some locations) may cause brown, black,and gray colors in some foods. When cannedcorn turns brown, the discoloring may bebecause of the variety of the corn, the stage ofripeness, overprocessing, or copper or ironpans. Packing liquid may dissolve coloringmaterials from the foods.

Q. Is it safe to eat discolored canned foods?

A. The color changes noted do not mean thefood is not safe to eat. Spoilage, however, mayalso cause color changes. Before you use anycanned food that has an unusual color, exam-ine it carefully.

Q. Why is open-kettle canning no longer rec-ommended?

A. In open-kettle canning, food is cooked in anordinary kettle, then packed into hot jars andsealed without processing. Temperatures in

open-kettle canning are not high enough todestroy spoilage organisms that may be infood. Spoilage bacteria may also enter thefood when it is transferred from kettle to jar.Open-kettle canning is not recommended.

Q. Why is headspace important in canning?

A. Headspace is the distance between the surfaceof food and the underside of the lid. Thisspace lets food expand as liquid bubbles upduring processing. If there is not enoughheadspace, some food in the container will beforced out, leaving food particles or syrup onthe sealing surface and preventing a seal.When there is too much headspace, some airmay remain in the jar after processing, caus-ing food at the top of the jar to darken.Adequate headspace allows a vacuum to formduring the processing of the food.

Q. Why is liquid sometimes lost from glass jarsduring processing?

A. The most common reasons for loss of liquidare packing jars too full, packing food tootightly into jars, changing pressure in a pres-sure canner, or lowering pressure too sudden-ly. If all air bubbles are not removed from jarsbefore processing, the liquid may be lower injars after processing.

Q. Should liquid lost during processing bereplaced?

A. No, never open a jar and refill with liquid(this would let in bacteria, and you wouldneed to process again). Loss of liquid does notcause food to spoil, though food above theliquid may darken.

Q. Is it safe to use home-canned food if liquidis cloudy?

A. Cloudy liquid may be a sign of spoilage, butit may be caused by the minerals in hardwater or by starch from overripe vegetables.If liquid is cloudy, boil the food. Do not tasteor use any food that foams during heating orhas an off-odor.

Q. How often should I check a pressure-cannergauge?

A. Check dial gauges each year. Check themmore often if the lid is dropped or submergedin water, if the gauge glass is broken, or any

parts are rusty. A weighted gauge does notget out of adjustment and does not need to bechecked for accuracy. It does need to becleaned.

Q. Can I use a pressure saucepan for home can-ning low-acid foods?

A. Pressure saucepans are not recommended forcanning.

Q. Can I use a microwave oven for home can-ning?

A. No. Low-acid foods must be processed at240 ºF. A microwave can reach only 212 ºF.Even acid foods must have the uniform heatprovided by a conventional water-bath can-ner. Because of its uneven heating pattern, amicrowave does not assure consistent heat toeach jar during processing. There also is adanger that jars will explode during heatingor as you remove the jars from the oven.

Q. Can I use a conventional oven to processfoods?

A. Oven canning is extremely dangerous anddefinitely not a recommended procedure.The risk of jars breaking during heating,when the oven door is opened, or when youremove jars from the oven is extremely great.The danger of inadequate processing can alsopose a health risk. Heat transfer in the oven isuneven, and the food does not reach highenough temperatures. Oven canning is dan-gerous and not recommended.

Q. Is a steam canner safe for canning foods athome?

A. A steam canner is not the same as a pressurecanner. Steam canners are not recommendedfor home canning because processing timesfor use with current models have not beenadequately researched. Because steam cannersdo not heat foods in the same manner as do

boiling-water canners or pressure canners,using them with boiling-water process timesmay result in spoilage.

Q. How can I safely dispose of spoiled, home-canned food and clean the jars?

A. Spoiled low-acid foods, including tomatoes,may show different kinds of spoilage evi-dence or very little evidence. Therefore, youshould treat all suspect containers of spoiledlow-acid foods, including tomatoes, as havingproduced botulinum toxin and handle themcarefully in one of two ways:

• If the swollen metal cans or suspected glassjars are still sealed, place them in a heavygarbage bag. Close and place the bag in aregular trash container or bury in a nearbylandfill.

• If the suspect cans or glass jars are unsealed,open, or leaking, you should detoxify thembefore throwing them away. To detoxify:Carefully place the suspect containers andlids on their sides in an 8-quart or largerstock pot, pan, or boiling-water canner.Wash your hands thoroughly. Carefully addwater to the pot. The water should com-pletely cover the container with at least1 inch level above the containers. Avoidsplashing the water. Place a lid on the pot,and heat the water to boiling. Boil 30 min-utes to ensure detoxifying the food and allcontainer components. Cool and discard thecontainers, their lids, and food in the trash,or bury in the soil. Thoroughly scrub allcounters, containers, and equipment, includ-ing can opener, clothing, and hands that may

have been incontact with thefood or contain-ers. Discard anysponges orwash cloths youused in thecleanup. Placethem in a plas-tic bag and dis-card in thetrash.

Q. How long willcanned foodkeep?

A. Properlycanned foodstored in acool, dry placewill retainoptimum eat-ing quality forat least 1 year.Canned food stored in a warm place near hotpipes, a range, a furnace, or in indirect sun-light may lose some of its eating quality in afew weeks or months, depending on the tem-perature. Dampness may corrode cans ormetal lids and cause leakage so the food willspoil.

Q. Can I process two layers of jars in a cannerat one time?

A. Yes, you can process two layers at one time, ineither the boiling water bath or pressure can-ner. Place a small wire rack between the lay-ers so water or steam will circulate aroundeach jar. Make sure the water covers the topsof all jars by 1 inch in a boiling water bathcanner. The pressure canner should have 2–3inches of water in the bottom.

Q. Is it necessary to exhaust a pressure canner?

A. Yes, it is very important to let steam escapefor 10 minutes before closing the valve orplacing the weight on the vent. If the canneris not exhausted, the inside temperature maynot correspond to the pressure on the gauge.

Q. Can I can bread or cake in a jar?

A. These products are not recommended for can-ning; choose recipes that you can freeze. Infact, most of these products are not really“canned.” The directions call for baking in thejar and then closing with a canning lid. Manyrecipes for quick breads and cakes are low-acid and can support the growth of a bacterialike Clostridium botulinum if it is presentinside the closed jar.

Q. How do I can oil with herbs? Is it possibleto can pesto?

A. Herbs and oils are both low-acid and togethercan support growth of the disease-causingClostridium botulinum bacteria. You may fla-vor oils with herbs if you make them up forfresh use, store them in the refrigerator, anduse within 2 to 3 days. There are no canningrecommendations. Fresh herbs must bewashed well and dried completely before youstore them in the oil. You must use the verybest sanitation and personal hygiene prac-tices. Pesto is an uncooked seasoning mixtureof herbs, usually including fresh basil, andsome oil. It may be frozen for long-term stor-age; there are no home canning recommenda-tions.

Fruits and Vegetables

Q. Why should I use a steam-pressure cannerfor canning vegetables?

A. Higher temperatures are required to destroybotulinum bacteria in low-acid food such asmeats, fish, poultry, and all vegetables excepttomatoes. The only safe way to can thesefoods is by using a pressure canner, whichprovides temperatures (240 ºF) higher thanthat of boiling water (212 ºF).

Q. Is it safe to can without salt and sugar?

A. Salt and sugar are not necessary for safe pro-cessing of fruits and vegetable. The salt inrecipes for pickled products and sugar injams, preserves, and jellies should not bereduced, since the measures given are neededto provide good quality.

Q. Why does canned fruit sometimes float injars?

A. Fruit may float because the pack is too looseor syrup too heavy or because some airremains in tissues of the fruit after heatingand processing.

Q. Is it a good practice to puree and home canfoods for infants?

A. If you have time and the food, this may be aworthwhile activity—except for carrots, beets,and spinach. These three vegetables are moredifficult to clean and sterilize than are others,and they may pick up soil nitrates. The intes-tinal tracts of infants are unable to handlethese soil nitrates properly. Procedures usedin commercial canning of carrots, beets, andspinach for infants make these foods unques-tionably safe.

Chunk-style or pureed fruit with or withoutsugar can be canned. Pack in half-pint (prefer-ably) or pint jars and process for 20 minutesin a boiling-water canner.

Do not attempt to can pureed vegetables, redmeats, or poultry meats, because proper pro-cessing times for pureed foods have not beendetermined for home use. Instead, can andstore these foods using the standard process-ing procedures; puree or blend them at serv-ing time. Heat the blended foods to boiling,simmer for 10 minutes, cool, and serve. Storeunused portions in the refrigerator and usewithin 2 days.

Q. Why do tomatoes need to be acidifiedbefore canning?

A. Tomatoes usually are considered an acid food,but the results of some growing conditionshave put pH values only slightly above thesafe pH level. If you are canning them as anacid food, you must acidify them. To acidify,add 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice or1⁄2 teaspoon citric acid per quart. Add aciddirectly to the jars before filling with product.Add sugar to offset acid taste, if desired. Youmay use 4 tablespoons of a 5 percent acidityvinegar per quart instead of lemon juice orcitric acid. However, vinegar may cause unde-sirable flavor changes. Do not use fresh lemonjuice, since its acidity varies.

Q. What are important factors in preparingtomatoes for home canning?

A. Use ripe, juicy tomatoes. Never use overripetomatoes, because tomatoes lose acidity asthey mature. Tomatoes with soft or decayedareas are not suitable for canning. Be carefulto remove all of the stem and green parts.Acidify each jar according to the procedureabove.

Q. Does ascorbic acid help keep fruits and veg-etables from darkening?

A. Yes. Adding 1⁄4 teaspoon of crystalline ascorbicacid (vitamin C) to a quart of fruit or veg-etable before it is processed retards oxidation,which is one cause of darkening. You can useascorbic acid preparations containing sugarwith fruits in proportions suggested by themanufacturer.

Q. There is mold on the surface of my home-canned tomatoes, applesauce, and jelly. Is itall right to remove the mold and use thefood?

A. Discard any home-canned food with mold onor in the food. It could be dangerous. It ispossible for mold growing on the surface tolower the acidity of the food. If the foodbecomes low enough in acid, botulism-pro-ducing bacteria can start to grow and producetoxin. Even if you scrape the mold off the sur-face, the toxin remains in the food. Molds,too, produce toxin, so you should discard thefood.

Q. Can fruit be canned with artificial sweeten-ers?

A. Canning with artificial sweeteners or sugarsubstitutes is not recommended. Artificialsweeteners may lose some of their sweeteningpower when heated and may become bitter.Can fruit in water orunsweetened juice, andadd the sugar substitutewhen serving.

Q. Can fruits and vegeta-bles be canned withoutheating if aspirin isused?

A. No. Aspirin should notbe used in canning. Itcannot be relied on toprevent spoilage or to give satisfactory prod-ucts. Adequate heat treatment is the only safeprocedure.

Q. Is it safe to can green beans in a boilingwater bath if vinegar is used?

A. No. You must use recommended processingmethods to assure safety. You cannot shortenrecommended processing times if you usevinegar in canning fresh vegetables (this doesnot refer to pickled vegetables).

Q. Should I precook all vegetables before can-ning?

A. For best quality, yes. However, some vegeta-bles can be packed raw or cold into jars beforebeing processed in the pressure canner.

Q. What vegetables expand instead of shrinkduring processing?

A. Corn, peas, and lima beans are starchy andexpand during processing. You should packthem loosely.

Q. What causes corn to turn brown during pro-cessing?

A. This occurs most often when too high a tem-perature is used, causing caramelization ofthe sugar in the corn. It may also be causedby some minerals in the water used in can-ning.

Q. Why is canning summer squash or zucchininot recommended?

A. Recommendations for canning summersquashes, including zucchini, have been with-drawn because of uncertainty about process-ing times. Squashes are low-acid vegetablesand require pressure canning for a knownperiod of time that will destroy the bacteriathat cause botulism. It is best to freeze sum-mer squashes, but you may also dry them.

Q. Can I can my own salsa recipe?

A. Salsas are usually mixtures of acid and low-acid ingredients; they are an example of anacidified food. The specific recipe, and some-times preparation method, will determine if asalsa can be processed in a boiling water can-ner or a pressure canner. A process must bescientifically determined for each recipe.

Jellies, Jams, and Preserves

Q. Why does fruit float in jam?

A. Fruit was not fully ripe, was not thoroughlycrushed or ground, was not cooked long

enough, or was not properly packed in jars.To help prevent floating fruit, remove panfrom heat as soon as jam is cooked; then alter-nately stir and skim the jam for 5 minutes.

Q. Is it necessary to process jams and preservesin a boiling water bath canner?

A. Yes. This prevents growth of molds andyeasts that could cause food spoilage andquality changes.

Q. Why do crystals form in jelly?

A. Crystals throughout the jelly may be causedby too much sugar in the jelly mixture or bycooking the mixture too little, too slowly, ortoo long. Evaporation of liquid causes crystalsthat form at the top of jelly that has beenopened and allowedto stand. Crystals ingrape jelly may betartrate crystals. (Toprevent tartrate crys-tals in grape jelly, letjuice stand in a coolplace overnight,then strain throughtwo thicknesses ofdamp cheesecloth toremove crystals.)

Q. What causes jelly to be too soft?

A. One or more of these may be the cause: Toomuch juice in the mixture. Too little sugar.Mixture not acid enough. Making too big abatch at one time.

Q. What can be done to make soft jelliesfirmer?

A. You can sometimes improve soft jellies byrecooking according to the directions. It isbest to recook only 4–6 cups of jelly at a time.

To remake with powdered pectin: Measurethe jelly to be recooked. For each quart ofjelly, measure 1⁄4 cup sugar, 1⁄4 cup water, and 4teaspoons powdered pectin. Mix the pectinand water and bring to a boil, stirring con-stantly to prevent scorching. Add the jelly andsugar. Stir thoroughly. Bring to a full, rollingboil over high heat, stirring constantly. Boilmixture hard for 1⁄2 minute. Remove jelly fromthe heat, skim, pour into hot containers, seal,and process 5 minutes.

To remake with liquid pectin: Measure thejelly to be recooked. For each quart of jelly,measure 3⁄4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons lemonjuice, and 2 tablespoons liquid pectin. Bringjelly to a boil over high heat. Quickly add thesugar, lemon juice, and pectin and bring to afull rolling boil. Stir constantly. Boil mixturehard for 1 minute. Remove jelly from theheat, skim, pour into hot containers, seal, andprocess 5 minutes in a water bath canner.

Q. What makes jelly syrupy?

A. Too little pectin, acid, or sugar. Too muchsugar can also cause syrupy jelly.

Q. What causes weeping jelly?

A. Too much acid. Storage place was too warmor storage temperature fluctuated.

Q. What makes jelly too stiff?

A. Too much pectin (fruit was not ripe enough ortoo much pectin added) or overcooking.

Q. What causes fermentation of jelly?

A. Too little sugar or improper sealing.

Q. Why does mold form on jelly or jam?

A. Because an imperfect seal has made it possi-ble for mold and air to get into the container.

Q. What causes jelly or jam to darken at the topof the container?

A. Stored in too warm a place, or a faulty sealallows air to leak in.

Q. What causes jelly and jam to fade?

A. Too warm a storage place or too long storage.Red fruits (such as strawberries and raspber-ries) are especially likely to fade.

Q. What makes jelly cloudy?

A. One or more of these may cause cloudy jelly:

• Pouring jelly mixture into jars too slowly.

• Allowing jelly mixture to stand before it ispoured.

• Juice was not properly strained and con-tained pulp.

• Jelly set too fast, usually the result of using too-green fruit.

Q. What makes jelly gummy?

A. Overcooking.

Q. Can I use commercial canned or frozen fruitjuice to make jelly?

A. It is best to use commercially canned orfrozen fruit juice only in recipes with addedpectin. Because you use fully ripe fruit, theamount of pectin in commercial juice may betoo low to get a satisfactory gel withoutadded pectin.

Q. If I am making jelly or jam with liquidpectin, when do I add it?

A. You add liquid pectin to the cooked juice orfruit and sugar mixture immediately after youremove it from the heat.

Q. If I am making jelly or jam with powderedpectin, when do I add it?

A. You add powdered pectin to the unheatedfruit juice or crushed fruit.

Q. How do I prepare paraffin for sealing jelly?

A. Paraffin is no longer recommended for seal-ing jellies or any other sweet spread becauseof the potential for mold growth. All sweetspreadsshould besealed withtwo-piece, self-sealing lidsand processedfor 5 minutesin a boilingwater canner.

Q. Can I double a recipe for jam or jelly?

A. Never double a jelly or jam recipe. If you cooka double batch of jelly or jam for the usualtime, it will be undercooked, which means thejelly or jam will be soft and runny. If boiledlonger, it will have a caramelized flavor anddark color.

Pickles and Relishes

Q. What kind of container should I use formaking pickles?

A. Use utensils of unchipped enamelware, stain-less steel, aluminum, or glass for heatingpickling liquids. Do not use copper, brass, gal-vanized, or iron utensils. These metals mayreact with acids or salts and cause undesirablecolor changes in pickles or form undesirablecompounds. Do not store pickling liquid instainless steel or aluminum utensils. Pittingwill occur.

Use a crock or stone jar, unchipped enamel-lined pan, or large glass jar, bowl, or casserolefor fermenting or brining. Stainless steel con-tainers are not recommended for brining pick-les because pitting of the container will occurover time because salt in the brine is corro-sive.

Q. Can I safely change a pickle or relish recipe?

A. The level of acidity in a pickled product is asimportant to its safety as it is to taste and tex-ture. Do not alter vinegar, food, or water pro-portions in a recipe or use a vinegar withunknown acidity. Use only recipes with testedproportions of ingredients. There must be aminimum, uniform level of acid throughout

the mixed product to prevent the growth ofbotulinum bacteria.

Q. What causes pickles to taste bitter?

A. There are several possible causes for bitter-tasting pickles, including these:

• Growing conditions.

• Variety. Some varieties are more bitter thanothers. Use a variety specifically for pick-ling.

• The short soaking in a salt brine, called forin many recipes, will help draw out bitterjuices.

• The bitter taste is usually more concentrat-ed at the stem end of the fruit rather thanthe blossom end and in the skin or directlybeneath the skin, not in the fleshy areaaround the seeds. Taste a small portion ofthe stem end before preparing cucumbers.If bitterness is present, often you canremove it by cutting a larger portion off thestem end and by peeling more deeply thanusual. Although you cannot use peeledcucumbers to make pickles, you could chopthem and use them to prepare relishes.

• Using a salt substitute for pickling couldalso cause bitterness. Use only canning orpickling salt.

Q. What causes pickles to be hollow?

A. Hollowness in pickles usually results frompoorly developed cucumbers, keepingcucumbers too long before pickling, too rapidfermentation, or too strong or too weak abrine during fermentation.

Q. What causes soft or slippery pickles?

A. These generally result from microbes, whichcause spoilage. Once a pickle becomes soft, itcannot be made firm. Microbes may becaused by too little salt or acid, cucumbersnot covered with brine during fermentation,

or scum scatteredthroughout the brineduring fermentation.Other causes are notenough heat, a seal thatis not airtight, andmoldy garlic or spices.Blossoms, if not entirelyremoved from thecucumbers before fer-mentation, may contain fungi or yeastsresponsible for softening of pickles.

Q. Why do some pickles turn dark?

A. Using ground spices, too much spice, iodizedsalt, overcooking, using iron utensils, andminerals in water, especially iron, may causedarkness in pickles.

Q. What causes shriveled pickles?

A. Shriveling may result from using too strong avinegar, sugar, or salt solution at the start ofpickling. In making very sweet or very sourpickles, you whould start with a dilute solu-tion and increase it gradually to the desiredstrength. Overcooking or overprocessing alsocauses shriveling.

Q. Why should I process pickles in a boiling-water-bath canner?

A. Pickle products require heat treatment todestroy organisms that cause spoilage and toinactivate enzymes that may affect flavor,color, and texture. There is always danger ofspoilage organisms entering the food whenyou transfer it from kettle to jar. Adequateheating is best achieved by processing in aboiling-water-bath canner.

Q. Why does sauerkraut turn dark?

A. Darkness in sauerkraut may be caused byunwashed and improperly trimmed cabbage,no enough juice to cover fermenting cabbage,uneven distribution of salt, exposure to air,high temperatures during fermentation, pro-cessing and storage, and long storage period.

Q. What contributes to an undesirable softnessin kraut?

A. Softness in kraut may result from not enoughsalt, temperatures too high during fermenta-

tion, uneven distribution of salt, or air pocketscaused by improper packing.

Q. When making quick process pickles, can Istore any leftover pickling solution forfuture use?

A. If the pickling solution is fresh and you havenot used it to make pickles, cover it and storeit in the refrigerator to use later. If you haveused the pickling solution, you can store it inthe refrigerator and reuse it in 1 or 2 days forbarbeque sauce, coleslaw dressing, or mari-nade. If mold growth occurs, throw it out.

Q. Why did the liquid in my dill pickles turnpink?

A. Using overmature dill may cause this. If so,the product is still safe. However, yeastgrowth could also cause this. If yeast growthis evident, discard the pickles. Yeast growthmay also make pickles cloudy or slimy.

Q. I don’t have the type of dill my recipe callsfor. How can I substitute what I have?

A. For each quart, try three heads of fresh dill or1–2 tablespoons dill seed (dill weed = 2T).

Q. Can I use burpless cucumbers for pickling?

A. Burpless cucumbers are not recommended foruse in fermented pickles. This is because attheir normal mature size, they produce a soft-ening enzyme that causes the pickles to softenduring fermentation. However, if you usesmaller burpless cucumbers (those with smallseeds), they may be suitable for making freshpack pickles. The skins on burpless cucum-bers may be tough.

Q. I have an old recipe that calls for adding agrape leaf to each jar of pickles. Why?

A. Grape leaves contain a substance that slowsthe enzymes thatmake pickles soft.However, removingthe blossom ends(the source of unde-sirable enzymes)will make addinggrape leaves unnec-essary.

Q. Why did the garlic cloves in my pickles turngreen or bluish green?

A. This reaction may be because of iron, tin, oraluminum in your cooking pot, water, orwater pipes reacting with the pigments in thegarlic. Or, the garlic may naturally have morebluish pigment, and it is more evident afterpickling. Immature bulbs should be cured 2–4weeks at 70 ºF. The pickles are safe to eat.

Q. I accidentally limed my pickles in an alu-minum pan. Will they be safe to eat?

A. Aluminum is not recommended for use withlime because the lime can pit the container,increasing the aluminum content of the fin-ished product. This is not a procedure youwould want to do each time you made pick-les. However, one batch of pickles should notcause health problems. If the container, how-ever, is badly pitted, the best option would beto discard it.

Q. I would like to make sweet pickles, but I amdiabetic. Can I use an artificial sweetener?

A. The best approach is to take dill pickle slices,rinse to remove the salty flavor, and sprinklewith artificial sweetener. Allow these to sit inthe refrigerator at least 30 minutes before use.Substituting artificial sweeteners for the sugarin sweet pickle recipes is not recommended.

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Extension Service of Mississippi State University, cooperating with U.S. Department of Agriculture. Published in fur-therance of Acts of Congress, May 8 and June 30, 1914. GARY B. JACKSON, Director

Publication 993 (POD-01-16)

Distributed by Brent Fountain, PhD, RD, LD, Associate Extension Professor, Food Science, Nutrition, and Health Promotion.