Pressure Canning

Over the space of December and January I have been attempting pressure canning.

To be quite honest it does get quite addictive!

It took me a long time to start the initial canning process as by living in Europe, things are done a little differently here and most things are stored through a water bath canning process.

As I was very interested in adding some chicken and meats to my list of things to store, we decided that there was no time like the present to get on with it :)

At first I just did a single layer of jars (max 5 Jars), I am using the Weck glass jars as they are readily available to me, but I have since purchased another rack and can quite easily can 10 x 500ml Jars at a time, which is a wonderful thing in itself :D

I have decided to mainly use the 500ml jars as this seems to be a perfect amount for our family of 4.

For soups I tend to use a 750ml or 1 litre Jar.

So far I have canned:

Ratatouille (twice - it tastes amazing out of the jar - who would have thought!!)

Peeled, cooked potatoes (not so great, read below)

Raw, baby potatoes (Amazing)

Chicken and Maize soup (Fabulous)

Raw pack Chicken (so convenient)

Ratatouille

Raw baby potatoes (double layered in canner)

Chicken and Maize Soup

Canned Chicken

My only "Problem" that I have encountered so far was with my potato canning.

I had some potatoes at home that I thought I would can, and so after peeling and parboiling them I canned them as stated.

At first everything seemed fine, but after one week the water became milky.

Now into their second month of storage, the potatoes have all but disintegrated.

They still taste fine, and I have been adding them to soups and stews, but now I really only have a jar full of potato starch :O

Anyway, I have had much more luck with the baby potatoes and so I plan to continue canning those in the future :)

What are your experiences with pressure canning?