Kathi Jones wrote:
"Marilyn" wrote in message
...
"zxcvbob" wrote in message
...
Kajikit wrote:
I didn't know there WAS a preserving newsgroup... I don't want to do
anything fancy. I just want to do jam/jelly and chutney and stuff like
that that's easy. I adore chutney and it costs a fortune to buy, and I
go through salsa like nobody's business, so it would be fun to make my
own. If my stockpot will work it would save a lot of money and space,
both of which are at a premium in my apartment. Okay, so assuming that
the stockpot will work, what equipment do I
need to buy? Amazon has about twenty-five different 'canning supply'
sets at prices ranging from ten bucks to a hundred. Do you get what
you pay for? Or are they pretty much of a muchness aside from how
pretty they look?

You want something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Ball-10720-4-p.../dp/B000SN0W7K

and a copy of the _Ball Blue Book_, or _Ball Home Canning Guide_, or
whatever they are calling it these days. It's an inexpensive paperback
that gets republished every couple of years. Should cost about $6 or $8.
Study the first couple of chapters.

(I don't know what that little spatula-looking thing is in the kit, but
the other 3 items are essentials)
I think the little spatula-looking thing is used for getting the bubbles
out
of the jars before you put the lids on. Personally, I use the plastic
handle from a bowl scraper/spatula. When the rubber or silicone part
wears
out, I toss that and keep the handle.


you guys are gonna freak when I say this, but I don't even do that! I pick
the jar up and knock it on the counter a few times - bubbles rise to the
top...

Kathi

I do too Kathi, smack it on a folded tea towel on the counter.