|
| The directions on the back of my canning/pickling salt says to use 1:2 ratio of vinegar to water and it specifies 5%.. However I repeatedly see people here saying the minimum is a 1:1 ratio of 5%. The recipe is It says to boil the vinegar/water and salt and pour over the packed cucumbers then process in a hot water bath for 15 minutes, which I did. It says they're ready in 4 weeks, and if a jar doesn't seal to refrigerate and consume within 2 weeks. But reading through threads here, now I'm concerned. Is there a product being sold (it was just bought a couple months ago) with potentially dangerous/deadly instructions, are people here overly paranoid or is there just something I'm missing? |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
| However I repeatedly see people here saying the minimum is a 1:1 ratio of 5%. What we say is 1:1 is the lowest approved ratio IF you are not using a tested, approved recipe. There are approved and tested recipes with a lower ratio both in the Ball books and at NCHFP. The recipe on a bag of canning salt may have been tested and approved. I can't say. But if it was it should stipulate that in the instructions. Otherwise it is just some recipe that the salt manufacturer put on the bag and it could be decades outdated. When it comes to evaluating safety in canning one has to consider the source. ie: which is more reliable? Ball Blue Book or some homemaker's personal blog? A recipe published in a 1954 cookbook or one in a recent edition of Ziedrich's Joy of Pickling? Normally I wouldn't consider a recipe on a bag of anything, even canning salt, to be a reputable source for canning info, especially when so many approved safe recipes are readily available from reliable sources. JMO Dave |
|
- Posted by IAmSupernova SE Texas 9A (My Page) on Sat, May 18, 13 at 16:15
| Only refrence I can find to 'testing' is that unless otherwise noted user submitted recipes haven't been tested by their (salt company) kitchens. This particular recipe however, is submitted by them (not a user). Reading between the lines I could assume that their recipes are tested, and they only bother to test certain user submitted ones. How safe an assumption that would be, I have no idea. http://recipes.mrswages.com/recipedetail.aspx?id=1454 In the future I'll use a different recipe, just trying to decide whether these will be safe to eat or not. I read I could reprocess them but I don't want to do that because they will get mushy. This was my first time canning anything I grew, and I expect there will be at least a few more 'screw ups' before the whole process just comes naturally. |
This post was edited by IAmSupernova on Sat, May 18, 13 at 16:17
|
- Posted by readinglady z8 OR (My Page) on Sat, May 18, 13 at 17:30
| If you are using a Mrs. Wages flavor mix with the pickles, those mixes often have additional citric acid, making a lower ratio of vinegar to water possible. I would trust a Mrs. Wages recipe if it called for one of their packaged mixes with additional citric acid. For other recipes I would go to their website and post a question with their canning expert. I see she is a retired University of Illinois Extension employee, so I expect she has the background to provide the information you need. Carol |
|
- Posted by IAmSupernova SE Texas 9A (My Page) on Sat, May 18, 13 at 17:56
| No it wasn't that kinda seasoning mix, it comes in it's own jar and is just mixed whole spices like cloves, peppercorns, mustard seed, dill seed etc. |
|
| What is the brand of canning salt? Did you check their website? Dave |
|
- Posted by IAmSupernova SE Texas 9A (My Page) on Sat, May 18, 13 at 19:38
| It's Mrs. Wages. The pickling spices were from Ball. |
|
- Posted by myfamilysfarm 5b (My Page) on Mon, Sep 2, 13 at 19:38
| Mrs. Wages carries the spice mixes and pickling spices/salt. Just like Ball, just a different company. |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Harvest Forum
Information about Posting
- You must be logged in to post a message. Once you are logged in, a posting window will appear at the bottom of the messages. If you are not a member, please register for an account.
- Please review our Rules of Play before posting.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review your post, make changes and upload photos.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- Before posting copyrighted material, please read about Copyright and Fair Use.
- We have a strict no-advertising policy!
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.
Learn more about in-text links on this page here
