There is a difference in waterbath canning and pressure canning.
Waterbath canning involves a process where you place your hot jars in a big pot of boiling water. The water has to cover the jars completely and boil during the process time. A Pressure canner is a large pot with only a couple inches of water in the bottom. The lid screws or bolts on, there is a pressure gauge, a steam valve, and other safety mechanisms to avoid excess pressure. The pressure from the heat on the stove will cook the food. Waterbath canners have the ability to heat jars to 212 degrees, that of boiling water. Pressure canners get much hotter, and can kill harmful spores. Before canning, read my blog post on acid and pH levels and how it determines which process to use.
Everything can be safely processed in a pressure canner, but not everything can be safely processed in a waterbath. When in doubt, pressure can.
I always get asked, "Then why would everyone pressure can all the time?" There are several reasons:
1. Purchasing a waterbath is fairly inexpensive, whereas pressure canners are spendy. I have a Graniteware Waterbath from bi mart that I have used for several years that was about $11. My Presto Pressure Canner was about $100.
2. Waterbaths are low maintenance. They last forever. With pressure canners, it is important to check the gauges and seal often, and sometimes those components need replaced. It's not expensive, but waterbaths are good to go for about 150 years.
3. Pressure canning can be scary for people who have never done it. Everyone has seen those disaster photos and read the stories on the internet about explosions and people getting burned, etc. Waterbath canning is the same as boiling water, and poses much less risk. People tend to be less intimidated by waterbath canners.
4. When people start out canning, typically they are canning easy foods, like whole fruit, jam, or salsa. All of these things can be done in a waterbath, so that's where most people start. It's hard to switch to something more difficult for some.
However, there are pros to pressure canning:
1. Everything is done much quicker. Something a waterbath would take 45 minutes to do, a pressure canner can finish in 10.
2. You can double stack easier in a pressure canner. Although you can do it with a waterbath too, it gets difficult to measure the water to the right height, etc. While pressure canning I can get two batches done at once.
3. Using my pressure canner doesn't require boiling a huge pot of water, so my house is not hot and sauna like (canning season is smack dab in the middle of summer).
I prefer pressure canning usually, but sometimes I break out my waterbath to do some items, like pickles (pressure canning is too hot and causes them to be mushy).
Always follow the instructions on the recipe you are using. If it says use a pressure canner, use one. If it says waterbath, you can usually substitute pressure processing without problems. Make sure each recipe is from a credible source and is tested.
Waterbath canning involves a process where you place your hot jars in a big pot of boiling water. The water has to cover the jars completely and boil during the process time. A Pressure canner is a large pot with only a couple inches of water in the bottom. The lid screws or bolts on, there is a pressure gauge, a steam valve, and other safety mechanisms to avoid excess pressure. The pressure from the heat on the stove will cook the food. Waterbath canners have the ability to heat jars to 212 degrees, that of boiling water. Pressure canners get much hotter, and can kill harmful spores. Before canning, read my blog post on acid and pH levels and how it determines which process to use.
Everything can be safely processed in a pressure canner, but not everything can be safely processed in a waterbath. When in doubt, pressure can.
I always get asked, "Then why would everyone pressure can all the time?" There are several reasons:
1. Purchasing a waterbath is fairly inexpensive, whereas pressure canners are spendy. I have a Graniteware Waterbath from bi mart that I have used for several years that was about $11. My Presto Pressure Canner was about $100.
2. Waterbaths are low maintenance. They last forever. With pressure canners, it is important to check the gauges and seal often, and sometimes those components need replaced. It's not expensive, but waterbaths are good to go for about 150 years.
3. Pressure canning can be scary for people who have never done it. Everyone has seen those disaster photos and read the stories on the internet about explosions and people getting burned, etc. Waterbath canning is the same as boiling water, and poses much less risk. People tend to be less intimidated by waterbath canners.
4. When people start out canning, typically they are canning easy foods, like whole fruit, jam, or salsa. All of these things can be done in a waterbath, so that's where most people start. It's hard to switch to something more difficult for some.
However, there are pros to pressure canning:
1. Everything is done much quicker. Something a waterbath would take 45 minutes to do, a pressure canner can finish in 10.
2. You can double stack easier in a pressure canner. Although you can do it with a waterbath too, it gets difficult to measure the water to the right height, etc. While pressure canning I can get two batches done at once.
3. Using my pressure canner doesn't require boiling a huge pot of water, so my house is not hot and sauna like (canning season is smack dab in the middle of summer).
I prefer pressure canning usually, but sometimes I break out my waterbath to do some items, like pickles (pressure canning is too hot and causes them to be mushy).
Always follow the instructions on the recipe you are using. If it says use a pressure canner, use one. If it says waterbath, you can usually substitute pressure processing without problems. Make sure each recipe is from a credible source and is tested.
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