Canning soup
I live by myself and I have had two soup suppers lately and I have a lot of soup left over. I’m eating soup three times a day. I have baked potato with lots of cheese sauce in it, broccoli cheese, sauerkraut soup, 4B’s tomato. Can I can this, and if so, how? My oldest is telling me that I can’t can anything with milk or flour, is this true?
Jean Groen
Usually if you can food with milk in it, the milk will kind of separate and look unappetizing. A little flour is fine, but you shouldn’t can a thick soup. It would possibly be too dense for safe processing as the required temperature may not reach the centers of the jars long enough. With any mixed recipes, can using the method (water bath or pressure) required for the single ingredient with the most time requirements. Often this is meat or corn, both requiring long pressure canner times. Remember, you can always freeze your extra soup. — Jackie
Induction stovetop
I am interested in replacing my old stove with an induction stove top. It is so hot and humid in SE Virginia in the summers so it would be nice to heat just the pan and not the surrounding air. I understand it is not recommended to can on a regular flat stove top. Do you think this is also true for an induction stove top?
Sheryl
Newport News, Virgina
I’m afraid induction stove tops come with the same warning by the manufacturers about not using them for canning. I’m sure folks do use them against manufacturer’s warnings, but I’d be leery about buying a new stove and using it for canning. Any readers out there with more information for Sheryl? — Jackie
Rancid brown rice
After reorganizing my pantry and storage I found a container, about two or three pounds of brown rice that smells rancid or strong. What can I do with it now that it has gone bad? Is there a way to save it, and can it, or should I cook it up and feed it to livestock? If feeding it is my only option, can I feed it to my chickens?
Rebekah Robbins
Richmond, Indiana
Sometimes you can save rancid dry foods by placing them on a cookie sheet and gently heating in the oven for about 20 minutes at the lowest temperature your oven will maintain. Stir often to prevent scorching. When done, cool and sniff to see if it worked. You can sometimes use rancid smelling rice in a spicy recipe that has ingredients to mask the smell. I’d give it a whirl and see. If it doesn’t work, your chickens will sure love you. — Jackie
another canning heat source is to buy a 30,000 btu propane burner, like the ones people use to fry turkeys.
This has the added benefit of doing your work outdoors where things are less messy. in fact, you can keep the burner, plus a movable worktable, and a water hose in the garage; then you can wheel them out for a days work.
Rancid oils are carcinogenic. No animals or people should eat anything that has gone rancid.
To Sheryl:
I don’t think a regular pressure canner would work on an induction stove because it is made from aluminum. For induction heat to work there has to be a certain amount of ferrous metal (iron , steel, some stainless steel also works) in the pot itself. Most modern cookware has an “encapsulated bottom”, that is there’s a piece of steel sandwiched between two layers of aluminum. As far as I know pressure canners (at least the All-American one without the gasket) are not made with any steel in the bottom; maybe the others are built differently. An enameled-steel water bath canner should work just fine, though.
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