canning with 2 small burners

[Sparticle]

I started out to can some corn this morning and am having difficulty figuring out the coordination. I have 2 small burners that work and they are next to each other front and back. So I can't put 2 big pots on at the same time, they won't fit.

I was going to fill the pressure cooker (without the lid) with water and keep the jars hot. Then, heat a small pot to simmer with the lids, take off the back burner and keep the lid on the pot keep them hot. Then put on another small pot of boiling water to pour over the corn after I put them in the cans. pack and seal each one, pour out most of the water from the pressure cooker just leaving what I need to can in the bottom, re-load with the packed jars and get it going.

I just don't know if it'll be OK to leave the lids in just hot water and not have them simmering before use AND if it's OK to leave the freshly packed jars out on the counter after they are all filled till the pressure cooker is empty of jars and ready to be re-filled.

I feel like a doofus even asking, but I'm not used to only having 2 small burners.

[Pelenaka]

Is there a working oven?
If so I would pack the jars using simmered lids. Place the filled hot jars in a already heated shallow baking pan with an inch or two of hot water in a hot oven.
Then load the pressure canner with filled & capped jars from the hot oven.
So you could fill as many jars as the size of your holding area(oven) can allow.
For this must use the hot pack method.

There is always grabbing a few cinder blocks, an old fridge wire shelf, & can out in the open. Wouldn't matter how big your pots were 'cause you'd just rake the fire over to were is is needed.

~~ pelenaka ~~

[suitcase_sally]

You can use the hot water that the jars are being kept in to pour over the corn. No sense in letting it go to waste. You can also put your lids in that same pot of water. The lids don't have to actually simmer. I just bring the water up to simmer and once the lids are in the water I turn the burner to very low. Also, the jars don't have to be completely filled with hot water. Actually, I put my jars in the sink, turn on the hot water and each jar gets about half filled. Then I continue filling the sink til it's about half way up the jars. This stays plenty hot, and I have hot water for clean up when I'm done.

[Ruby]

I believe, (correct me if I'm wrong) you only have to keep the jars warm so as not to crack them when you put in hot food.

[LittleRedHen]

Thank yo ufor this thread.

I lost out on a whole canning season because I didn't think I could can with one burner. This thread gives me ideas and I feel stupid for missing out on canning. ( i wanted to do tomatos and make strawberry jelly)

I will be ready to go next year now!

[tamsam]

Can you switch the back burners? most stoves you can switch them around if it is electric. Sam

[Sparticle]

wow, what great info. No I don't have a working oven yet. I do have a nice cooktop that we found for dirt cheap, but it's not hooked up and it may be a while due to other important "get ready for winter" projects. I have a nice big toaster oven, but a jar won't fit in there. I hadn't thought about canning outside, but I don't have a work space or anything that would even double for an outside workspace. Well maybe the table saw if I took the blade out, hmmmm. I'd have to rig something to cook outside though. I do have a lot of bricks laying around form the prior owner.

I didn't know that the lids didn't have to simmer the entire time. I thought (just because that's all i've ever known) that the lids had to literally come out of simmering water right before you used them.

suitcase_sally, I like the idea of using one pot for everything. I also thought that the water i poured over the corn had to be boiling. I don't see why it would matter if it was boiling hot because it's going to go into the pressure cooker. I wonder if I should slightly reduce the fill level if the water's not boiling?

tamsam, switching the burners wouldn't matter because it's only front and back on the left side that work. No matter the burner size, there's only so much room between the front of the stove to the back "rise" or whatever you call it and 2 big pots won't fit. Although I still might try switching out the one big burner on the right side and plugging it into one of the left ports to see if it'll work. It would be better to have that big pressure cooker on a big burner.

Oooo I can't wait to get my cooktop hooked up!

thank everyone SO MUCH for this very valuable information. I KNEW someone here would know what to do.

I am convinced now I can do it with just 2 burners and a sink of hot water.

[suitcase_sally]

I didn't know that the lids didn't have to simmer the entire time. I thought (just because that's all i've ever known) that the lids had to literally come out of simmering water right before you used them.

Actually, the simmering water is to get the sealing compound soft enough to form a good seal on the jar - that's why you don't want the water to actually "boil", the compound will be so soft as to cause the jar rim to cut through and the seal will fail. Just keep the lids hot. Many lid manufactueres say you can use hot tap water so read your box and see if it says so. I have my water heater turned rather low so I have to heat the water to around 180º.

suitcase_sally, I like the idea of using one pot for everything. I also thought that the water i poured over the corn had to be boiling. I don't see why it would matter if it was boiling hot because it's going to go into the pressure cooker. I wonder if I should slightly reduce the fill level if the water's not boiling?

No, the water level is not determined by the temp of the water. The fill level is "headspace" and is determined by your canning recipe. Some foods will swell slightly when canned. Corn is one of them, so don't overfill the jars.

I've never had a problem with water that is not actually boiling. My water is very hard and when I get it up to boiling it percipitates that white hard water gunk so I just use real hot water. Good luck with your canning.

[Sparticle]

Originally Posted by suitcase_sally

Actually, the simmering water is to get the sealing compound soft enough to form a good seal on the jar - that's why you don't want the water to actually "boil", the compound will be so soft as to cause the jar rim to cut through and the seal will fail. Just keep the lids hot. Many lid manufactueres say you can use hot tap water so read your box and see if it says so. I have my water heater turned rather low so I have to heat the water to around 180º.



No, the water level is not determined by the temp of the water. The fill level is "headspace" and is determined by your canning recipe. Some foods will swell slightly when canned. Corn is one of them, so don't overfill the jars.

I've never had a problem with water that is not actually boiling. My water is very hard and when I get it up to boiling it percipitates that white hard water gunk so I just use real hot water. Good luck with your canning.

Thank you again!