Q and A: Cloudy canned fruit juice and My canned soup smells like kraut!
Cloudy canned fruit juice
A few years ago I canned several kinds of fruit juice to use to make jelly. Now the juice has become cloudy. I know I should not have waited so long to use the juice. I would like to know if it is still ok to use the juice for jelly? Is there any way I can get the juice clear again?
Judy Shadwick
Soddy Daisy, Tennessee
Sometimes minerals in the water or squeezing the jelly bag can result in juice that becomes cloudy during storage. Be sure the jars are sealed and the juice smells fine. If it does, you can sometimes clear the juice by boiling it then running it through a cloth strainer. If not, you can still make jelly from the juice, but it may also be cloudy. The taste will not be affected. — Jackie
My canned soup smells like kraut!
Today I canned some homemade veggie soup. It had the usual cast of characters including cabbage. Toward the end of the canning session, my kitchen began to smell like kraut. Is this normal? I canned quarts at 10 pound pressure for 90 minutes. Also my recipe calls for ½ cup of vegetable oil, but I left it out since I couldn’t find any canning recipes that called for oil. Could I add it or should I wait and add it when I open a jar to heat up for dinner? Also, I am so excited — I just placed an order for 18 dozen Tattler lids!
Cindy Baugh
Dandridge, Tennessee
Any time you home can with a cabbage family vegetable (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.), the kitchen will smell like cabbage! Nothing to worry about. I wouldn’t add the oil to canned soup before processing. You can certainly add it after opening a jar to use. — Jackie
January 16th, 2012 at 9:39 am
i am going to get a victoria strainer but would really like to know which one. i want it to be able to do a lot of fruits and veggies at one time. which one do you prefer?
January 16th, 2012 at 2:53 pm
Joyce,
Mine is the old model, from 30 years back. It’s like the expensive model, but has a plastic hopper and spray shield. It’s worked like a dream for all those years and hundreds of pounds of produce! My friends, Jeri and Linda, both have the cheaper version (less than $40) and both like theirs a lot. I guess if you want to spend a little more and get the more expensive one with the metal hopper, it would last longer, but the cheaper one will certainly do the job.
Jackie
January 16th, 2012 at 4:13 pm
I have a Squeezo Strainer I bought about 30 years ago. Didn’t use it much until last canning season. It has aluminum hopper and auger but the 3 screens are stainless. Am wondering if I should avoid using it for high acid things. After a while I do get some darkening of the product near areas of friction.
January 19th, 2012 at 8:07 pm
Adell,
For the short time your strainer is used on high acid foods (tomatoes), I doubt that there could be a problem.
Jackie