7 Canning Tips You Need to Know Before Getting Started

I started canning well over 10 years ago, and it has been a learning process. You can watch a dozen videos and reels about making jellies or jams, but the only TRUE way to become proficient is to get your hands dirty. Over time, I came up with some canning tips I think everyone should know BEFORE they get started.

I remember thinking, “Why did no one tell me that this takes FOREVER?” I was sure I was doing SOMETHING wrong.

Or, do I REALLY need this lemon juice? Won’t my strawberry jam taste weird now?

Canning is one of my favorite things. I love creating shelf-stable food for my family, especially when I grow it myself. So, let’s look at what I learned along the way.

Canning Tips You Need to Know

Keep Your Canning Area CLEAN

Perhaps my most important canning tip to give you is this: keep your canning area clean.

You’re preparing food and storing it in jars; there is always a risk of foodborne illnesses. I’m not afraid of botulism; I use a pressure canner when it is appropriate to do so. However, there are still other bacteria present in your kitchen.

Before I start to can, I clean all of my countertops, and I scrub my sink well. While canning, I keep my cleaning spray nearby and wipe down surfaces as needed. Plus, it helps with the cleanup at the end.

Start With Water Bath Canning

Someone may suggest starting with pressure canning; that’s NOT one of my canning tips. Pressure canning, while quite easy, comes with a higher start-up cost AND it feels more intimidating (even if it isn’t). We’ve all heard stories about pressure canners blowing up, and while that rarely happens nowadays, it will crop up in your head at some point.

Start with water bath canning.

You can make more than jams and jellies with a water bath canner. Our family cans pickles, tomato sauce, salsa, pasta sauce, coleslaw, and condiments. That is a great place to start to get your feet wet and begin to build up a pantry of home-canned goods.

You DON’T Have to Grow Everything Yourself

We all see the influencers on Instagram or TikTok with a large garden and a pantry full of home-canned food. That may be the goal, but you don’t have to wait for your garden to start canning.

Watch sales at the store. I don’t grow all of our produce. Most of the time, I grab things that are on sale at the store at an affordable price.

You may have some u-pick farms nearby with good prices. One year, I decided not to grow cucumbers, so I bought all of the cucumbers I needed from a local u-pick stand. I made plenty of pickles, AND I didn’t have to grow them. That’s a win-win.

Visit local farmers’ markets and connect with the farmers. Many local farmers are willing to sell produce by the bushel, especially canning tomatoes. Canning tomatoes are perfect for sauce; they typically have some blemishes that make them an unlikely choice as a slicer tomato.

Don’t wait for your garden; start canning now. Trust me, once you have a large garden, you don’t want to LEARN how to can at the same time.

Lemon Juice – YES

I used to think lemon juice wasn’t important; could it change the flavor of whatever I created? It won’t! It’s safe to add to things like jam or jelly without concerns for the flavor.

We use lemon juice because it helps lower the pH level, increasing the acidity of the food. Water bath canning only works for acidic foods. You cannot use it for things such as green beans or chicken broth. However, some foods, like tomatoes, have a range of pH levels, some that get a little too close to being out of safety range than others.

So, keep a bottle of lemon juice on hand.

Build in Plenty of Time

Truth be told, canning eats up time. I know people SAY a recipe is “quick and easy,” but the quick is rarely true.

I use the Ball Easy canner for water bath canning, and it does reduce time because I can walk away. I never feel comfortable walking away from the stove, BUT it takes time to heat the water to a rolling boil. I’ve never been able to can something in under an hour.

You end up making a disaster in the kitchen as well – EVERY TIME!

Frozen or Fresh – Usually Either Works

Did you find a great deal on strawberries but have NO time this week to can them? Freeze them.

Did you see a roadside stand selling canning tomatoes? Freeze them.

Don’t let the canning naysayers tell you that frozen isn’t as good for canning. They’re wrong.

Summertime is busy for our family. We spend a lot of time gardening, but we also go swimming, camping, and overall enjoy the nice weather. I don’t have the time for canning, and on really hot days, I may not want to heat the kitchen up.

I harvest my veggies at peak freshness, and I toss tomatoes into the freezer. I may blanch and freeze green beans first; if I want to put them on the shelf as canned green beans later, I can do that.

You can do the same thing with store-bought food.

Canning Costs Money

I often think that the homesteading space on social media makes everyone believe they can eliminate the need to grocery shop by canning food. They act like it’s so much cheaper, and over time, it IS cheaper, but the initial upstart COSTS money.

Years ago, canning jars were only $8-9 a case, but the average in my area is $13-15 per case, depending on the size of the jars. A water bath canner costs around $90; I always suggest getting the set with a jar lifter and rack. I use all of the little accessories.

You’re already in the hole for $100 before you started to can ANYTHING.

Those jars are reusable, so over time, you will reduce the cost per use, but that takes time.

Pressure canning is MORE expensive. A Presto Canner costs around $180. If you decide to go with a digital pressure canner, those are closer to $350-400.

So, if you want to can food because you grew it and want to preserve it, then I suggest getting started. If your ONLY goal is to save money, that may take longer than you anticipate. Look for jars at yard sales, ask your friends for any they have leftover, and search Facebook marketplace!

My canning tips are quite simple. Keep your space CLEAN, freeze foods when you get overwhelmed, use sales and local growers to your advantage, and skip pressure canning for the first year (or longer). Those veggies freeze awesome anyway. Become confident with a water bath canner before progressing further.

7 Canning Tips You Need to Know Before Getting Started