Wilson - Preserving: self-sufficiency

Artichokes (globe and Jerusalem)
Basil
Beans (broad, kidney, and runner)
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflowers
Celery
Cucumbers
Lettuce
Marrows
Mint
Mushrooms
Parsley
Peas
Radishes
Spinach
Tomatoes
Watercress

Fruits

Blackcurrants
Cherries
Damsons
Gooseberries
Greengages
Mulberries
Pears
Plums
Raspberries
Redcurrants
Strawberries
Zucchini

To find many useful links to canning and preserving supplies, please visit:

http://housewares.about.com/od/canningpreserving/a/canningsupplies.html

Use a large, deep, heavy-based pan with plenty of room for the mixture to boil rapidly without boiling over. Special preserving pans are available, which are wider at the top with sloping sides to aid evaporation and ensure setting point is reached more quickly. Its worth investing in a preserving pan if you intend to make a lot of preserves.

A sturdy wooden spoon with a long handle is best to ensure your hands are not too close to the boiling mixture when stirring.

A sugar/preserving thermometer is useful, but not essential, to test that the correct temperature for setting point has been reached.

For jelly-making you will need a jelly bag (from cookware stores) which should be scalded first by pouring boiling water through it, so that the fruit juices dont soak into it.

A wide funnel is helpful when filling the jars, but a jug or a small ladle can be used instead.

Mason jars are ideal for storing homemade preserves and come in a range of sizes. A Mason jar is a glass jar which has a lid in two sections to ensure an airtight seal. Both sections of the lid are usually made from metal. The original Mason jar is sometimes mistaken for the more widely available glass jar with a rubber seal and a metal hinge, which when closed forms an airtight seal. These jars can be used instead of Mason jars.

You can buy special packs containing glass jars and lids and also packs of waxed circles (these are placed waxed-side down on top of the potted preserve, while still hot, to exclude air and prevent deterioration), transparent cellophane covers (dampened and placed on top of the potted preserve when it is completely cold, then secured with a rubber band.The cellophane shrinks as it dries to form a tight seal over the jar), and rubber bands in varying sizes from cookware and kitchen stores. Dont use the same equipment for vinegar preserves when making jam as cross contamination will spoil the flavor of the jam.

Ingredients

Fruit for jams and jellies must be completely dry, firm, fresh, and ripe or slightly underripe, but dont use overripe produce, as this may cause the finished preserve to ferment during storage. Theres no need to remove pits that are difficult to dislodge from fruitwhen the jam is boiling the pits will float to the top and can be taken out then.

Fruit is prepared according to type when making jam, but theres no need to do this when making jelly as the fruit is strained in a jelly bag and the seeds, cores, skins, etc. are left in the jelly bag during the straining process.

Popular fruits for jams and jellies

Apples come in all shades of reds, greens, and yellows and may be sweet, tart, soft, and smooth or crisp and crunchy, depending on the variety. Cooking apples are larger and have a sharper flavor than eating apples.

Apricots have fragrant, juicy flesh with a large pit in the center that can be removed easily if the fruit is ripe.

Blackberries are best when plump and ripe and full of juice. Cultivated blackberries lack the deep flavor of wild berries but are still delicious and have the advantage of having fewer seeds than the wild variety.

Blackcurrants have a rich, strong, sharp flavor and the dark purple berries are very popular for making into jam.

Blueberries, also known as whortleberries or huckleberries have a slight dusty bloom and tart flavor. They should be ripe but firm.