I wasn’t sure if my family would like potatoes that had been canned but I quickly learned that they couldn’t tell a difference when I made cheesy potatoes.
Having canned potatoes has cut down meal prep tremendously! They are already peeled, cut and cooked! No need to do any of that and they aren’t frozen either!
All moms should can food! It’s so awesome to have in my pantry!
Best ways to use canned potatoes.
I’ve talked about how I can potatoes in another post, and I mentioned it is something that I will always have in my cantry.
Some of my favorite uses are:
- casseroles
- soups
- stews
- salads
- mashed
Tips for canning potatoes
Potatoes are a low acid food so you’ll want to pressure can them.
You can add salt when canning, I just choose not to.
Use wide mouth jars. They make it so much easier when you go to use the potatoes.
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Tools needed:
- Pressure canner with rack I use this one.
- Potatoes
- Jars
- Lids and rings
- Jar Lifter (this set has it!)
- Funnel
- Ladle
- De bubble tool (again, this set is awesome)
- Potato peeler
- Cutting board
- 2 Large pots
- Large bowl
- Small bowl
- Colander
- Kitchen towels
- Cream of tartar
- Slotted spoon
How to can potatoes
My first-time canning potatoes, I used regular mouth quart jars. They worked but I now use wide mouth quart jars. The wide mouth just makes it easier to get the potatoes out when I go to use them.
1. Have your jars clean and ready to go. This includes the lids and rings. The potatoes will be hot so you will want to have your jars hot as well. You can do this by adding water to your canner now (my step 12) and then put your jars in your canner to keep them warm. I just fill my sink with hot water and keep them in there.
2. Wash your potatoes to remove any dirt.
3. Peel them. Once a potato is peeled, place it in a bowl of cold water. Be sure to remove any eyes and bruises.
4. Once they are all peeled, start cutting. I cut mine into cubes. Once a potato is cut, I place it in another bowl of cold water.
5. After they are all cut, drain the water in the bowls and fill them up again with fresh cold water. Let the potatoes sit for 10-30 minutes.
6. Get 2 pots of boiling water going. The first is going to hold the water you’re going to put in your jars after you put your potatoes in them. It doesn’t have to be boiling but you do want it hot. The other one you will load your potatoes into. Boil for about 10 minutes and then put into your jars. Also, get a bowl of warm/almost hot water. Place your lids in this water.
7. Once you fill your jars, cover your potatoes with the hot water from the other pot. Leave a 1-inch headspace.
*You can add some salt if you would like. I personally don’t, I just add seasonings when I use the potatoes. But if you choose to use salt, I would do 1/2 tsp for pint and 1 tsp for quarts.
8. You are going to want to de-bubble your jars. You can do this by placing a knife (I have a handy tool I use) in the jar in multiple places to get all the air bubbles out.
9. Wipe the rims of the jars. Some people use vinegar, I just use warm water unless I’m working with something greasy.
10. Place your warm lids on the jars.
11. Put your rings on fingertip tight. I use 3 fingers to put my rings on, my pointer, thumb and middle finger. I twist the ring until the jar starts to spin as well. When it does this, I know the ring is on tight enough.
If you put your rings on too tight, the lids can buckle. If they aren’t on tight enough, your lids may not seal, and you may experience siphoning.
12. Add hot water to your canner. (doesn’t have to be boiling but hot food + hot jars need a hot canner.)
13. I like to add some cream of tartar to my canning water. This helps with hard water spots. Some people say to use vinegar, and in fact my canning booklet also says it. But I’ve found that when I do, my rings and lids tend to look more tarnished, so I made the switch to cream of tartar.
14. Place your jars in your canner. Put the lid on and turn on your burner.
15. Wait for a steady stream of steam to vent. Once there is a steady stream, vent for 10 minutes.
16. After 10 minutes, place your weight on your canner and wait for the canner to come to pressure.
I like to turn down my burner once I have reached about 10 pounds of pressure. I continue to turn the heat down every so often until I reach the point where I know my burner needs to be to keep the pressure in my canner consistent. (Usually on the 2/3 mark)
Once I reach my desired pressure, I begin my processing time.
With my elevation, I process at 15 lbs of pressure. With quarts, it would be for 40 minutes. If you choose to do pints, it would be 35 minutes.
17. After my time is up, I turn my burner off and wait for an hour. This allows my canner to de pressurize and cool down some.
18. After an hour AND the pressure has been releases, slowly unlock the lid. Remove the lid and tilt it away from you. It will still be hot.
Place a towel on your counter. I wait another 10 minutes after I have taken the lid off before I remove the jars. Use the jar grabber and remove the jars and place on the towel.
Let them sit for at least 12 hours before you touch them. You’ll be tempted to touch the lid. DON’T. You don’t want to accidentally cause a false seal. You’ll also want to pick it up and exam them. Just leave them be for at least 12 hours.
After the 12 hours is up, take the rings off and test the lids. If you can pick the jar up from the lid, they have sealed successfully!
Label and date the ones that sealed. If you have any that did not seal, place in the fridge and use within a few days.
There’s a debate about how long canned food lasts on your shelf. Some say at least a year. Others will say as long as it is sealed and smells fine when you open it, it’s fine.
Do what you’re comfortable with. If you can’t smell anything and are still nervous, just boil them for 10 minutes to kill anything and you’ll be fine.
Happy canning!
Thanks!
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