Got a question

[mightyhunter1962]

Last summer I went to a garage/yard sale a purchased a new in the box-never opened "The Original" outdoor cooker (what the box says) otherwords a turkey deep fryer.Complete with a 30 qt pot and metel stand and all the junk that comes with it. Could this be used for hot bathing jars outside my home so I don't have to heat up the kitchen so much this summer. Would the aluminun pot react to the rings and lids of the jar's? Don't see why it would, just boiling in water. Just curious if anyone else has tried this before. Oh btw, I scored the cooker for $5 bucks. Bargin huh!

[NCLee]

Yep that was a steal! Many of those units go for $75 to $100 bucks.

Yep, you can use it for water bath canning. Many folks use them for the same reason that you mentioned. In fact any container that has room for 1-2" of boiling water over quart jars will work for waterbath.

You'll need some type of trivet or rack to keep the jars off the bottom of the pot. A round cake cooking rack will work. As will canning jar rings, right side up, nestled in the pot. Set the jars on top of the rings. Even a folded towel will work. Just make sure you never let the water boil out of the pot when using a towel.

Before you start canning, be sure to buy a current copy of the Ball Blue Book. It's only $6. Gives instructions for safely canning high acid foods in a water bath. Gives timing instructions for various products. Includes recipes, too. The book also covers pressure canning, dehydrating, and freezing. So, when the time comes for those, you'll already have the info, if you haven't done them before.

Again, great find! Congrats.
Lee

[mightyhunter1962]

Thank's Lee, just finished up my salsa and gave the jars a hot bath in the cooker and it worked great!