Edit: the TERFs have found this post so let's point out that traditional cooking techniques have absolutely nothing to do with the garbage you're espousing as "traditional values". fuck off and learn some basic human decency.
Imagine the feeling of having exactly the right amount of leftovers to perfectly fill the Tupperware. And then that over and over again because the jars come in standard sizes and you can do the math beforehand. Something is satisfied in the monkey brain when you get to cram a bunch of things in containers. You get to watch the cooling jars go plop-polop as they seal themselves and you never have to worry about them going bad. Even if you forget about them for years you will never run into the adhd food tax. Its literally the single most sustainable way to store food, there's no refrigeration, no perpetual carbon foot print or fee. You can reuse the jars for decades. You can do one jar on a stove top or you can scale up and do dozens at once. Sunlight gleaming through jars of canned veggies is one of the most gorgeous things you can see in this life. You can gift them and you don't even have to wrap it because unless you're canning some really odd shit its always appreciated. There isn't much that can't be canned and you can start mixing things up until you have a simple meal that just needs to be warmed up ready to go at all times. If you're concerned about allergies you have complete control about what's going into your canned goods. You can do big jars or teeny jars or fancy jars and the jars are cheap.
Magnificent monkey brain activity. I've been possessed by spirit of a woman from 1846.
Are you so confident in your math ability and understanding of dilution ratios that you'd bet your life, your family's lives, and your friend's lives on it? Does your family and friends know that you're betting their lives on it?
Just a heads up for folks looking into getting into canning this autumn from a sad person who had way too many tomatoes last year: if you have a cheap stove (or just the common type that many landlords get) where it does not stay consistently at temp, but instead heats then pauses, and heats again… you might not be able to can safely with the usual, large canning pot.
(Image: A photo of a large black and white speckled canning pot with the metal canning rack.)
To be safe, please test to make sure you can keep a pot at the correct temperature for the period of time you need for whatever canning you’re planning. Always test this before you try canning. Botulism is no joke. Botulism can kill you.
Apple scrumping ! That big bowl is a little less than half, I didn't manage to get a pic of them all, RIP. Have cut up about half for apple butter so far, need to go to work now though so the chopping must wait.
These were kinda tricky bc the trees were all on the side of the road, overhanging embankments. So there was nowhere to stand that wasnt slippery with rain or apple mush. But for apple butter, one must prevail !
It’s been a year since I last canned anything. Today, I thought I’d practice while I wait for the rest of my tomatoes to ripen. Although canning a small batch like this is such a waste of electricity and water, I had a blast doing it