Mushy pickles

With dill pickles, why are cucumbers raw packed into jars and then filled with brine solution while sweet pickles (like B&B’s) are brought to a boil first with the brine and then packed into jars? My dills are always very crisp but my B&B’s aren’t the same way. Can B&B’s be raw packed?

Jill Kelby
Eden Prairie, Minnesota

Because the experts tell us to. I’ve personally gone back to Mom and Grandma’s method of doing all cucumber pickles; I pack the raw cukes, then pour the boiling pickling solution over the pickles and, working quickly, seal the jars. No water bathing. They, too, now stay crisp. But experts want to keep us safe from ourselves and would shoot me on sight for even suggesting such a thing. — Jackie

Tomato juice

Got the latest issue of BHM and saw someone asked about making homemade tomato juice. I have been making it for about 20 years putting up 75 quarts a summer. Husband drinks a glass of it every morning.

Wash tomatoes and take stems off (no need to core or peel). Place in a glass (microwave safe) casserole with a lid and microwave for 3 minutes. Put tomatoes in a cone-shaped colander with a wooden pestle over a bowl. Press the pestle on the tomatoes to mash the juice and some pulp run through the holes. When the tomatoes are down to mostly skin and some flesh, rotate the pestle around the colander to mash out the rest of the juice and pulp. Discard the seeds and skins. Pour juice into jars or a pitcher and repeat the process. Add 1 TBSP lemon juice per quart and 1/2 tsp of salt or whatever to taste.

I can in a 4 quart pressure canner. Process the jars at 5 pounds of pressure for 10 minutes.

Very easy and pretty fast. If a person didn’t have a microwave, the tomatoes could be steamed until they were hot through and then do the colander part.

Love your canning and other recipe ideas. Hope this might add to your advice to tomato juice makers.

Dawn Martin

For 20 years I used the Foley Mill, such as you use, until Mom bought me a Victorio Tomato Strainer more than 30 years ago. Now I get through a bushel of tomatoes with no boiling or heating; just pull the stems, quarter tomatoes and feed ’em into the hopper of the Victorio and turn the crank. Tomato puree comes out the side chute and the seeds and skins out the front, into a bowl. For tomato juice, I just use my juiciest tomatoes, not paste types.

I’ve got to mention that you’re under-processing your tomato juice. The recommended pressure for tomato juice in a canner with a gauge is 6 pounds and the time should be 20 minutes for altitudes below 2,000 feet and that’s for juice that has been heated before pouring into the jars.

Thanks for sharing your method as I’m sure many readers don’t have a tomato strainer…yet. — Jackie

6 COMMENTS

  1. Adding one grape leaf to a jar of pickles will keep them crunchy. Has worked for me the last two years.

  2. PC,

    I read the article. Wow, poisoned by zucchinis! They may have been either crossed with gourds or actually gourds as many decorative gourds contain bitter cucurbitacin, a toxic substance found in some wild squash and gourds. This is VERY rare so please folks, don’t be afraid to eat those zucchinis. When in doubt or just to be safest, just nibble a little piece before cooking it. If it’s bitter, toss it where chickens and animals won’t get it. Again, extremely rare.

  3. Ellendra,

    Boy did you score on the tomatoes! And the strainer! Cool. I like the salsa screen for making “crushed” tomato sauce for pizza. I like the texture but I like my salsa chunkier than that so for salsa I don’t use the screen; I just hand-chop the veggies. It’s great what you can find sometimes!

  5. I scored a Back-2-Basics strainer from goodwill for $20, it’s been a Godsend!

    For chunkier sauce, I use the salsa screen. It also makes it easier to use my grape tomatoes for sauce, since those are the ones that are usually the most productive. It also came in handy last year when a misunderstanding resulted in a nearby relative planting 36 tomato plants, when she usually only has 6. She invited my dad over ever week to help pick, he was bringing home laundry baskets full of tomatoes! We just used the last jar of those this week.

  6. That Victorio Tomato Strainer is on santa’s list this year. After seeing it at your seminar I can see how much better they are. Can’t wait! Thanks for all you do, Miss Jackie, it really helps the rest of us!!!

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