Just call me Suzie

Suzie Homemaker, that is. Today, I canned homegrown tomatoes.

Given our abundance of tomatoes, I figured I'd better learn to can tomatoes fast, or else start giving them away to everyone I know. So, I borrowed my parents' pressure canner and prepared for the big event.

Luckily, I already had jars and lids on hand, thanks to my mother-in-law, who gave me several boxes of canning supplies when they moved a few years ago. My dad supplied the citric acid and the canner, and I was all set!

Look out, tomatoes. You're mine!


Now, it should be mentioned that this pressure canner is the same one my parents used when I was growing up to can produce from our garden. Check it out:


I especially love the "Modern Guide to Pressure Canning." It was published in the year of my birth! I feel so modern. I also admire the lovely yellow color. I believe it's called "goldenrod."

Whenever I partake in the traditional domestic arts, I like to look the part. Accordingly, I donned my grandma Odene's favorite apron, which, if I am not mistaken, also hails from the decade of my birth. Mason took this picture. It took about 5 tries for him to take one that included my head:


Before getting started, I earnestly studied the directions. In a way, I felt like I was back in the lab again, carrying out an experiment. My greatest fears were (1) scalding someone, and (2) blowing something up. Thankfully, I managed to avoid both.

Here are the original instructions, which came with the 1974 Presto Canner:


I got to work prepping the tomatoes and the jars. I boiled the jars to sterilize and heat them up while I worked on the tomatoes.


First, I cut the stem and tough part out of the tomatoes, then plunged them into boiling water for about 30 seconds. Then I pulled them out and ran them under cold water to easily remove the skins.
Next, I cut the tomatoes into smaller pieces and threw them in the pot. I heated everything up for 10 minutes or so, then started filling the jars.


I filled the jars, leaving about a 1/2 inch of headspace at the top. I added 1 teaspoon of Kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon of citric acid to each jar, then stirred it gently with a rubber spatula to get rid of any air bubbles. Then I put the lids and rings on and placed my precious jars into the canner. Then I said a quick prayer that I wouldn't blow anything up.


I should say at this point that my little helpers were far more interested in playing with the jar lifters. Here's Danny, lifting his teddy bear. They thought this was great fun.



I followed the Presto instructions and set up the canner, carefully exhausting all the air and then adjusting the pressure to 5 pounds. Look! It's working!

I processed my precious cargo for 8 minutes, as prescribed by the Presto, then removed from the heat and allowed the pressure to return to zero. I cautiously removed the lid and used the jar-lifters to place my beautiful jars onto the towel. One by one, I heard the much longed-for "ping!" It worked!


In the interest of full disclosure, I had to re-process one of the jars several times. Three times, to be precise. I finally figured out that I wasn't tightening the ring enough prior to processing. Once I corrected that, it worked like a charm. Presto!

Look at me! I can! I'm a canner! I can!

I am so proud of myself. I called my dad at work just to tell him I canned tomatoes and managed to do so without any major catastrophe. I updated my Facebook status to reflect the same. Exciting stuff!

It's kind of fun to learn something new and add another skill to the mix. I feel so... retro. Seriously, though, it's something I've always wanted to learn. I'm glad I gave it a shot. And come winter, it will be nice to have garden tomatoes for chili and soup and lasagna. At the rate our tomato plants are going, there'll be plenty more to can before the season is over.