jar size

[longshot38]

jar size, so for those of you who can, and thats probably most, what size jars do you prefer pint or quart. i have a family of 3 so based on that what size would you think?

thanks
dean

[NewGround]

Well quarts is what I have the most of but depends on what you are putting up. Main dish meals for three, use a quart jar. Aunt Sally's tomato jelly you may want to use those little jars...

[Pelenaka]

I think that if you can purchase your jars second hand or greatly discounted then take what you can get. After a while you can be picky.

I'm down to just 3 of us, 2 adults & a teenager.
I can in the jar sizes I can is not so much for the serving size but based on if we really enjoy the item & if it's on our diet. Corn is an example - hubby loves it but him & I are diabetic so I can it in jelly jars. Enough for us to have a few spoon fulls on our plate or in a stew.

My parents drove out your way from Rochester, NY. They loved it still talk about it 10 years later.


~~ pelenaka ~~

[cnichols]

Yep, depends on what your cannin and how much your gonna eat of it.

We use quarts for alot of stuff but also a few pint jars thrown in there. I canned my jams last year in pints and now think I shoulda used 1/2 pint jars. I just couldn't see spending the same for 1/2 pint jars as for pint jars, lol.

[farmerpat]

ETA: Most nights it's just the two of us. Occasionally on weekends, it's d/s and his g/f.

Stews, soups, Spaghetti sauces, halved fruits,I'd say quarts.
BBQ sauce, sliced or diced fruits, canned vegetables, meats as main dishes, I'd say pints.
Jams, jellies, fruit butters, catsup, fruit syrups, meats to go into casseroles, I'd say half pints.

Keep in mind that some times I also put meats as main dishes into quarts, for those occasions when I know the whole extended family (7-9 people) will be here and I'll need extra.

[mpillow]

I use quarts for most everything as we are family of 5 (two teenagers, plus DH lunch the next day) I often make big batches of two or three dishes.
Today we made a pot of pintos (4 c dry) and mac and cheese (1# pasta) served with fresh veg from garden --grean bean, cukes....cherry tomato...apple slices

things I do in pints....jam, relish, carrots

A quick moose/venison stew from the pantry...a quart of canned meat chunks, a quart of potato chunks, a quart of tomatoes, a pint of carrots....spice as you like

[thequeensblessing]

It's just the two of us currently, so I put most things up in pints. I do put up a few quarts of veggies, such as beans and corn, for when we've got dinner guests. We put chicken up in pints, but we put pot roasts up in quarts. It really depends on what it is, and how many you're feeding.

[siletz]

Meats are in pints as are jams, flavorings, etc. Everything else is in quarts. Both sized jars require the same lid, so you get more for your money in quarts. Opened jars will last in your fridge for a bit, so you need to decide if you think you will use up the whole quart before it goes bad.

[SquashNut]

only 2 here and every thing except meat is in quarts. I used to do alot of pints, but since the lids got so expensive we use quarts.
But I can alot of mixed veggies for soup.
We feed our dogs alot of veggies, so most of the time they get the left overs any way.
If they didn't I think we could have the same veggie 2 nights in a row and not be too upset about eating left overs.
Started using our pint jars for dry goods with recycled lids.
I have some cup jars that I didn't use at all, but found some extra rings at a yard sale so those will be used for dry goods too.
Sugar is so expensive we don't make jelly much.

[longshot38]

should have mentioned, there is 2 adults and one early teen. i am planing on putting up moose i keep rice, pasta, and potatoes as my starch and these are kept dry or in a cool area of the house. i keep canned goods like vegs and pasta sauce as well. this is my first move into canning for myself except a few beets and pickles a couple of years ago. so keep the input coming i really appreciate it.

dean

[longshot38]

My parents drove out your way from Rochester, NY. They loved it still talk about it 10 years later.

and to tell the truth they and y'all would be welcome back at any time.


dean

[mpillow]

If you have access to garlic, a clove of garlic in with deer/moose is good especially if its a rutting male you get...it helps the gamey flavor

[Txsteader]

Only 2 of us here and I can in pints, use quarts for dry goods storage.

[Trisha in WA]

I do meat and stews etc in quarts, fruit and veggies go in pints. Jams and jellies go in half pints.
Family of 2 here as well.

[unregistered29228]

There are six of us, and I use quart jars almost exclusively. I only use pints for pickled onions, jams and fruit butters, and sometimes pickles I plan to give away. Everything else goes in quart jars, and we hardly ever have leftovers. And even if you don't use the whole jar right away, it will store in the fridge for a long time if you heat the contents to boiling, pour it back in the jar and let the lid reseal. Just don't put it back on the shelf that way - it's not safe to store at room temperature. I just find that resealing the jar keeps it fresh longer IN THE FRIDGE.

[Callieslamb]

Right now, I am mostly using pints. However, I keep a hefty amount of quart jars on hand because it is cheaper to put lids on them than on the pints, since I'd need 1/2 as many. If we ever had to live exclusively on what we can, we will just learn to eat a quart of green beans before we move on to the next jar of veggies.

[7thswan]

Probably 50/50 here, there is 2 of us.
Quarts: potatoes,sliced and cubed,tomato sauce,juice, dill pickles,apples for pie,wine,honey,chili,veggie soup,grape juice,mincemeat,carrots for stew,pickled veggies,beef cubes,chicken thighs,pumpkin,chicken soup,V8 Juice.
Pints:sliced carrots,green beans,burger,chicken breast,applesauce,apple butter,pear butter,green beans,beets,corn, corn relish,bread and butter pickles,mixed cubed veggies,Maple syrup Dilly beans,pickled asparagus squash,BBQ sauce, Plums, Mustard relish,spicy apples, Jalapenos,pears ,peaches,jams,preserves.
half pints: sliced jalapenos,some jams.
We don't eat many sweets, some one that does probably would use all pints for their jams and such.

[Ohio dreamer]

4 in our family - 2 adults, 1 girl under 10 and 1 pre-teen eating machine boy, lol.

Meat I usually put up in pints (gr beef, chicken, turkey, beef chunk, etc) 1 pt is often all we need for a meal, but on the occasion we need a quart I open 2. I do put up some turkey and chicken breasts in qts as we often will use them in a casserole. Veggies and fruits are usually in quarts as are soups and chili type things. I do can some veg in pt, but mostly because we homeschool so we use those at lunch (3 of us - eating a lighter/faster meal). Dry beans we do in pts also as that is comparable with a can of beans in recipes.

[Trisha in WA]

Originally Posted by Mom_of_Four

There are six of us, and I use quart jars almost exclusively. I only use pints for pickled onions, jams and fruit butters, and sometimes pickles I plan to give away. Everything else goes in quart jars, and we hardly ever have leftovers. And even if you don't use the whole jar right away, it will store in the fridge for a long time if you heat the contents to boiling, pour it back in the jar and let the lid reseal. Just don't put it back on the shelf that way - it's not safe to store at room temperature. I just find that resealing the jar keeps it fresh longer IN THE FRIDGE.

I like this idea. Thanks for sharing it. I often put leftovers in a jar and to put in the fridge, but I like this little extra step better.

[Jennifer L.]

My mother used quart jars almost exclusively. Why? Because the lids are the most costly part of the process, and you can can twice as much food in the quart as you can in the pint and cut the cost of putting the food up that way. She did some pints of specialty foods, but by and large everything was done in quarts.

Jennifer