Methods of Home Bottling / Canning

• Bottling


  A method of preserving that involves applying heat to food in a closed-glass canning jar and removing air from the jar to create a seal. This process stops the spoilage, thus making it shelf stable.
• Home canning methods


  • Water bath canning
  • Pressure canning
• Methods of home bottling/canning


  • Depend on what produce you are bottling and your own preference
  • For bottling vegetables with low acidity and risk of botulism, pressure method must be used to ensure safety
• Preparing jars and lids for bottling


  1. Ensure they are scrupulously clean

  2. Run through dishwasher on hottest/sterilize cycle if available

  3. Wash by hand in soapy hot water, rinse and scald with boiling water
• Packing contents into jars


  1. Pack soft fruits tightly in layers, adding syrup or water every 4-5 layers

  2. Press down hard fruits with wooden spoon handle and gradually pour in syrup or water down sides to cover

  3. Twist bottle and gently agitate to remove air bubbles
• Tomatoes


  • Most varieties are fairly acidic which assists in the preserving process
  • Some newer sweet varieties with low acidity are best pressure bottled
• Oven dry pack bottling method


  1. Pack fruit into sterilized jars and heat in oven prior to adding boiling syrup or water

  2. Not suitable for light-coloured fruits that discolour in air or tomatoes
• Oven wet pack bottling method


  1. Pack fruit into heated sterilized jars and add boiling syrup, brine or water before returning to oven to process

  2. Can be used for all types of fruit and acidic tomatoes
• Slow water bath bottling method


  1. Pack fruit into jars, pour in cold syrup, put on lids

  2. Place jars on rack in pan, slowly heat to correct temperature and hold for prescribed time

  3. Benefit is fruit doesn't float, energy efficient but requires skill and thermometer
• Fast water bath bottling method


  1. Same as slow water bath but use hot syrup and start water at 40°C rather than cold

  2. Quicker but may have issues with loosely packed fruit rising
• Pressure bottling method


  1. Most energy efficient as higher pressure increases boiling point and processing temperature

  2. Only safe method for bottling low acid vegetables and tomatoes to kill botulism bacteria
• What is Bottling?


  It's a method of preserving that involves applying heat to food in a closed-glass

  canning jar and removing air from the jar to create a seal. This process stops the

  spoilage, thus making it shelf stable. There are two home canning methods: water

  bath canning and pressure canning.
• With all methods, ensure the jars and lids are scrupulously clean before you start. If you have a dishwasher, running them through it on the hottest cycle or even a sterilize cycle which some have is a real time saver. Otherwise, wash by hand in soapy water as hot as you can, rinse and scald with boiling water
• Packing the contents in when the jars are wet will help things slide in, using your wooden spoon to pack tightly. Soft fruits should be packed as tightly as possible in layers without squashing and adding syrup or water every 4 or 5 layers.
• Hard fruits may be pressed down with the handle of a wooden spoon and the syrup or water poured down the sides of the bottle gradually until it covers the fruit.
• Twist the bottle from side to side and gently agitate as you add the syrup or water to remove any air bubbles.