kitchen Angst!

Over the last three days, I have given you a brief view of my history and knowledge on the subject of pickles and preserves. Today I want to talk about the tools and equipment you will need to make your life easier and the experience more fun. If you know each step that you need to go through, before you get to it, your journey will be less stressful as well as more successful. You must be prepared, because once you start, you can’t stop until you have reached the end. Timing is key!
First I want to introduce you to the “5 Ps” of the kitchen:
Proper, Planing, Prevents, Poor, Performance.
Read through your recipe completely before you begin. Have all the equipment out and ready before you start. Measure out all the ingredients ahead of time. Like a movie, try to go through the entire process in you mind before you begin. This will help you stay on cue, even when time is of the essence.
The Equipment you will need for making jam:
A Preserving pan: A dutch oven, or cast-iron kettle work the best. If you don’t have one don’t run out and buy one just for this(they are quite expensive). A very large, thick bottomed sauce pan will do just fine. When dealing with harder fruit. It’s best if your pan has a tight fitting lid. This stops to much evaporation from occurring during the cooking process.
A long handled wooden spoon: A heat resistant rubber spatula will do, although when it comes time to check your “jell”, the spoon will give you a more accurate read.
Jars: You need to wash them thoroughly with detergent, and rinse them several times with hot water. Do not dry with a cloth! This could leave lint or bacteria in the jar, which will spoil all your hard work. Instead, shake out all excess water and dry in the oven(set on low). This may sound excessive, but they need to be hot when you fill them any way, so this is just getting them to that point. I always use Mason jars, not only are they designed for just this task, but the look is so comforting. You know it is homemade!
The best thing about Mason Jars are the lids. the two part lids are Ideal for canning. the actual lid sits on top of the jar with a seal ring along the edge where it lays on the lip of the jar, While the screw top just tightens down around the edge leaving the top exposed, A good place for your date label.
A wide mouthed funnel: This will not only prevent a messy jar filling session, It will also keep any jam from getting on the rim of the jar. This is key, because if the rim isn’t totally clean when you put the lid on you won’t get a good seal . Therefor not properly preserving the product, lessening its life span and requiring refrigeration.
A Candy Thermometer: Now a lot of books will tell you this isn’t really a necessity. I think I want to disagree, Even though I don’t always use one myself, I have been doing this for some time now so I know “the feel” of the jam and when it is ready. As a beginner, I feel it is important to give yourself every advantage to succeed. I still use mine when I am trying a new recipe, or with certain fruit that tend to over cook quickly! They really don’t cost that much, and the hassle and stress they eliminate is well worth it.
Jar grips(or tongs): These will make it easier to handle the hot jars. Towels tend to get wet which allows heat through, and also increases your chance of outside contamination(lint or bacteria).
A good scale: In my personal opinion, this should be able to read up to 10 pounds. A five pound scale will do ,but for some recipes this will mean “multiple measuring”.
A large ladle or A (non-glass)measuring cup with a pour spout: This is to transfer the hot liquid into the jars in an effective and safe way. If you go with a Ladle it should hold as much as you want to put in each jar, this will make your job much easier, cleaner, and more accurate.
Last and least!
Labels: Yes you need to label your jars with the date they were canned, as well as the type of jam. You only need A “paper label” if you intend to give it to someone. A “Sharpie” or any permanent marker will do just fine otherwise.
Heat resistant gloves aren’t required, but strongly suggested. the heavy duty kind you use to clean your oven work really well. Remember you are cooking your jam to 220 degrees F, and it’s sugar. If some splashes, or bubbles on you, It will stick and burn your skin “off” before you can wipe it away! This is NOT FUN! You can also just cover your hands and forearms with dry kitchen towels while you are pulling the pot off the stove.

That covers your “needs list” for the process. Tomorrow I will give you some recipes to try. Don’t worry, I am planning on giving you some easy ones first.
Enjoy,
James