My family loves home canned produce.  We have a large garden and process many hundreds of jars every year.  Over the years I have learned what they like best and what may sit there for too long.  My canning has become streamlined, with my time being better spent as I concentrate on what items are most popular in our kitchen.

I have also realized that we are not going to get a bumper crop in everything every year.  On the years we do, I need to be prepared to put up more than we need so that there may be enough for the next year.  I would have a hard time going without certain things in my food storage, such as applesauce or raspberry jam.

The first thing to think about is the garden.  What will you raise?  Does it can well, or is it better frozen or dehydrated?  I personally really like canned green beans, but I don’t bottle corn any more.  We freeze it instead.  My family doesn’t eat a lot of beets, but I still do some every year or two because they are so nutritious.  Think about your diet, and what you would like to do differently in it, and then plant what you think you will need.

Also try to decide what you want to purchase.  Do you like peaches but don’t have a mature tree yet?  It is important to plant trees and other perennial plants as soon as possible to give them time to grow.  We eat a lot of canned fruit every year, and also use quite a bit in applesauce cake, crisps, pies and other things.  Plan for those too.

I also watch for specials on meats.  When it is a good price, I will often take the time to cook and can chicken, stew meat or hamburger.  It saves money, and it is so convenient.  I love being able to pull out a few jars from my pantry, such as hamburger, potatoes, carrots, beans, and tomatoes and pouring them all into a pot, boiling for 15 minutes, and serving soup for dinner.  Fast food at its best!

Jars can be purchased new, but if money is short, check the local thrift store.  Also ask friends and neighbors if they know of anyone that is wanting to find a home for theirs.  Will you put everything in pints or half-pints?  For small families, they are ideal.  For my larger family, I put many things in quarts, including beans, jam, and others.  I even use half gallons for grape juice, peaches, applesauce and raspberries because we can down a whole jar worth in one meal.

Lids need to be new every time.  There are two sizes - regular and wide mouth.  The wide mouth lids are easier to work with, but they cost a little more.  Decide what is more important to you.  I have some of both, and I save the wide mouth jars mostly for peaches and hamburger.  The rings can be used over and over again.  In fact, they aren’t necessary once the jar is sealed.  They can be removed, washed and used again, or saved until the next year.  That way only the lids need to be purchased each year.

I found that there are a few items that make my job so much easier that it’s worth spending the money on them.  My time is worth something.  In fact, it’s worth quite a lot.  If I spend four hours doing something that would only take two hours with the proper equipment, then that item is a necessity to me.  I don’t have a lot of fancy kitchen equipment, but my canning tools are worth much more to me than I paid for them.

One of these is an applesaucer, such as a Victorio Strainer.  For about three hours I tried to make applesauce with one of those cone shaped colanders.  They do work for small amounts, but for the amount I do every year, I needed the real thing.  Besides, my smaller children compete for the chance to turn it and “punch” it, which frees up my time even more!

I also use my cherry pitter for all the cherries I do.  There is no way that I am going to pit all of those cherries by hand with a knife.  However, I don’t use a strawberry huller, the thing that pods peas, or a lot of other things.  Sometimes the same job can really be done just as quickly with a plain old knife.  And I actually have several pea shellers around my house.  They each have a name, and love to shell the peas while watching a movie together.  I don’t complain about that.

If canning soup is on the calendar, it might be wise to consider investing in a good quality food processor.  They can make fast work of slicing, grating, and otherwise preparing vegetables for the jars.  Remember that having the time to can twice as much means that the equipment is paying for itself.

Don’t go out and spend a huge amount of money right away on every item in the store.  See what you need as you go, and see what you plan to do more of in the coming years.  Ask friends what they use and why.  Then you will be prepared to make wiser decisions in the future.  Those same friends can also be a valuable source of tips and ideas.  Ask one to help you learn how to can those green beans.  The vast majority of them would be delighted to help you out!

Also, don’t plan to suddenly be canning all summer and try to fill up all 600 jars that you bought at a local yard sale or thrift shop.  It’s probably not going to happen, and in the process you will become burned out and exhausted.  Even a few jars of jam the first year is a good goal.  Next year consider doing two items.  Eventually you can work up to processing more, but all in good time, and all with a good attitude. 

Enjoy the journey, and don’t consider it a burdensome chore.  Canning can be fun!  Or, at least, it will be worth it in the deep winter when you are able to open your pantry and pull out some strawberry jam or vegetable soup for your next meal..