358 GARDEN GUIDE 



method adopted for use in the home canning-club work of the U. S. 

 Department of Agriculture in the Northern and Western States it has 

 been found a relatively simple matter to can practically any food product 

 in the home with ordinary kitchen equipment and with the expenditure 

 of comparatively little labor. 



Methods of Canning 



An important factor in the development of home canning work has 

 been the great success of the Department of Agriculture in its experi- 

 ments with the one-period method, by which the uncooked or 

 partly cooked fruit or vegetable is packed in a jar or can and covered with 

 water, sirup or juice, both jar and its contents being then sterilized by 

 hot water or steam- This is now the most popular method in use by 

 housekeepers, because of its simpUcity, rapidity and certainty. The 

 product thus preserved retains much of its natural beauty and flavor. 



By the open-kettle method the food to be canned is completely cooked 

 in a kettle and then poured into the jar and sealed. The jars, rubbers and 

 all utensils must be sterlized by boiling for 20 minutes before the jars 

 are filled, otherwise there is danger that the food will be reinfected and spoil 

 after the sealing. By many this method is preferred for canning Straw- 

 berries and Tomatoes; it is also recommended for Beets, because the skins 

 can be easily removed after the cooking and less color is lost. 



Scalding, Blanching and Cold-Dipping 



Scalding means placing the product in a cheese cloth bag or dipping 

 basket and merely dipping it into boiling water, the object being chiefly to 

 remove skins of certain fruits and vegetables, as in the cases of Peaches, 

 Tomatoes or Carrots. 



Blanching carries with it the meaning of aUowing the product to 

 remain a much longer period (1 to 15 minutes, according to kind) in the 

 hot water, which serves to remove dirt and organisms, to insure a close 

 pack by reducing the bulk of greens and increasing the flexibility of such 

 vegetables as String Beans and Asparagus, to ehminate objectionable acids 

 and acrid flavors and, in conjunction with the cold-dip, to set the color. 

 Greens and green vegetables are most satisfactorily blanched in steam 



The cold-dip means the quick chilling of the outside of the blanched 

 vegetable or fruit. Take it sharply from the hot water or live steam 

 plunge it into cold, clean water, and immediately remove and drain it for a 

 few seconds. This permits the removal of the skin without injury to the 

 pulp, coagulates and preserves the coloring matter and facilitates the 

 handling of the product in packing. 



Sterilization 



Complete steriKzation of the food and can is one of the most im- 

 portant requirements in connection with the successful preservation of food 

 by canning, as it means the eliminating of all the live molds, yeasts and 

 bacteria. When blanching and cold-dipping are followed by a single 

 or continuous period of sterilization, it is claimed by experts that the 

 success of canning most vegetables is just as sure as though the inter- 

 mittent method — three periods for three successive days — were used. By 

 this one-period method the risk of overcooking the product is obviated 

 and, besides, it is more natural in color, flavor and texture. 



The cooking of canned foods for a given time on each of three succes- 

 sive days is called the intermittent process, and some canners advocate 



