02-09-2003, 08:02 PM
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Re(2): tomato acidity
writes:
Open kettle i.e the tomatoes are cooked before placing in the can, Hot
water
bath usually refers to cold pack. Open kettle was the favorite method of
the
older generation (my mother was born in 1894) and I still prefer them.
Interesting.
Hot water bath referred to both, packed cold and packed hot, and then the
finished jars processed in a hot water bath for a specified period of
time. That would include such things as peaches/pears which are packed
cold and tomatoes/tomato juice which are packed hot or warm. There are,
of course, many other items processed in that manner. (It is referred to
in the Ball Blue Book as Boiling-Water Method with the one using pressure
referred to as Steam-Pressured Method. Both methods involve placing hot
or cold foods in the jars initially but require certain processing times
with no difference listed as to beginning temperature.)
Open kettle referred to cooking the ingredients in an open kettle (hence
the name) and then poured into jars hot and placing seals on the jars
immediately with the cooling causing the lids to seal. This was used for
things that were perceived as needing no further processing, such as
pickles, jams, etc. The sealant could be lids and rings
(pickles/jams/jelleies/etc.) or wax as in the case of jellies/jams.
Open kettle, as I understood and listed in the previous paragraph, is
described in the Ball Blue Book the same way. It is also listed as to be
avoided and potentially dangerous.
I've never heard of hot water bath canning referred to as open kettle when
the finished jars are processed in the hot water bath.
While it makes no difference to an individual who is processing the food
correctly, it can make a huge difference to others who understand
different definitions for the terms. If someone had told me that
something could be canned by the open kettle method, I would have done it
as I had been taught as a child (and the old canning books described) and
as it is currently defined. The life-saver would be checking a current
reliable source for specific directions, which, of course, should always
be done.
So, in your family, what was it called when the ingredients are cooked and
placed in the jars immediately with no further processing?
Glenna
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