How to Can Apples in a Hot Water Bath

Canning apples (or putting up, as it used to be called) is easy, and a great way to make sure you can continue to use apples for pies and other desserts throughout the year.

Unlike vegetables, which must be canned through a high pressure process to avoid botulism, Apples and many other fruits can be canned in what is called a "hot water bath." And by the way, the tomato is a fruit and can also be canned without a pressure cooker.

Apples can be pealed, sliced and canned or made into applesauce, apple jam or apple butter and then canned. I used to can apples and tomatoes regularly, but have not done this in some time.

You will need canning supplies that can usually be purchased at the grocery store or at a hardware store. ACE hardware sells canning supplies. Depending upon what you are canning will determine the size of the jar you need. If you are canning apples, you will want to use quart jars. Jams, jellies and apple butters can be canned in smaller jars.

The jars will come with caps and wax sealing rings. Before you do anything, boil the jars to sterilize them. Everything should be very sterile when canning anything; you don't want to risk any bacteria getting into your canned foods.

A hot water bath requires a gigantic pot with a rack for the jars. I purchased mine at ACE hardware for about $20. For apples, I recommend blanching them first. This means that when they are pealed and sliced, put them into boiling water for about minute. Once this is done, you can carefully ladle them into the jars.

The jars should be sealed with the ring and the lid. The jars must be filled all the way to the top with the product to avoid contamination. Once you have filled and sealed all the jars, you are ready for the hot water bath.

Place the jars on the rack and submerge them into the pot filled with cold water. Make sure the top of the jars are covered with the water. Then cover the pot and begin to boil. Once the pot reaches the boiling point, you can begin timing them. Depending upon what you are canning depends upon the time the jars need to be boiled, but 20 minutes does the job for apples.