# First Canning project soon...potatoes!



## WWhermit (Mar 1, 2012)

Okay folks. I thought I'd start with something cheap and simple, just to get the basics down. I've got 20 lbs of russet potatoes that will be processed in a few days. I figure the first batch here I'll do as 1 inch or 3/4 inch cubes. Here is my question.

1. Do I need to boil these slightly to get a bit of the starch out, or are they good to go completely raw? The russet is a fragile potato, and I don't want them to turn to mush by possibly unnecessarily blanching first.

2. A teaspoon of salt is good or bad for potatoes, or completely unnecessary?

3. I have both quart and pint mason jars available. I figure for potatoes, quarts should be fine. It's just 2 of us, but we'd probably go through the quart jar in a couple days, if and when we finally needed to break it open. So, how many quart jars for say, 10 lbs of russets?

I'm excited to finally get this phase of food storage going! A little nervous about the first time, but have been doing a bit of reading, and am anxious to finally get this under way!

Thanks for the help folks. Without you, I wouldn't even be this far! You guys are the best.


----------



## DJgang (Apr 10, 2011)

Boil them, yes cook for about ten minutes and make sure you drain and ladle fresh clean boiling water over them in your jars.


----------



## lazydaisy67 (Nov 24, 2011)

Oh, see I think I'd disagree with DJgang. I'd cook tem for only about 2-3 minutes, not 10. Those things would turn to complete mush after you finished processing them in the pressure canner. I always add salt, but you don't have to. And the CLEAN boiling water over the top will keep the taters from looking cloudy in your jars.
It's easy. You'll be fine.


----------



## DJgang (Apr 10, 2011)

Or ... Cook until you smell them or they just start to get done...I've done different batches that were weird, some I needed to cook longer some I didn't...

Some produced more starch, some didn't. Potatoes are weird, I think.


----------



## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

One of my first canning experiences was potatoes. I used purple, Yukon Gold and red boiling potatoes and mixed them. I peeled and de-eyed them. Then I boiled for about 10 minutes. As DJ stated I poured clean boiling water over them in the jars BUT they still looked cloudy after canning. I think I need to try rinsing them before putting them in the jars. Oh, the purple potatoes turned white after canning.

I am going to try canning whole fingerling potatoes after the next harvest.


----------



## WWhermit (Mar 1, 2012)

*Canning Potatoes....Success!!!!*

Yay! I tried canning for the first time last night, and while a bit tense, lol, I think it was a complete success!

I got seven quarts out of the experiment, all of them sealed perfectly. I was a bit concerned with one of the jars, because the top did not depress after about 1 hour, but a little while later, the button was down, and stayed down. This morning, I took the rings off, lifted each one by the lid, which all stayed on, turned them upside-down to test, all was good. So, I wiped them down with a damp cloth, washed the rings and put them back on, and into the pantry they went!!

I guess the most worrisome factor about the process was, I didn't realize how long it took to build the pressure inside the canner up to 13 lbs. (I live at 5950 elevation.) I guess I expected a quick, 5 minute process, not 1/2 hour.

Of course, my wife wanted to open up a jar this morning for breakfast potatoes, but I want to at least look at them for a week, or so, just so I can smile a bit at the accomplishment.

This part of my preperations will primarily be for meat, but I'm very excited to get over this first hump. Thanks so much for all the information you folks put on this forum. You have no idea how much easier you all made this process for me! :2thumb::2thumb::2thumb:


----------



## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

WWhermit said:


> Yay! I tried canning for the first time last night, and while a bit tense, lol, I think it was a complete success!
> 
> I got seven quarts out of the experiment, all of them sealed perfectly. I was a bit concerned with one of the jars, because the top did not depress after about 1 hour, but a little while later, the button was down, and stayed down. This morning, I took the rings off, lifted each one by the lid, which all stayed on, turned them upside-down to test, all was good. So, I wiped them down with a damp cloth, washed the rings and put them back on, and into the pantry they went!!
> 
> ...


LOL! My husband wanted to open jars as soon as they hit the shelf! So we slowly started opning them as we started canning more. We would eat a jar of meatballs and can 4 more.


----------



## PackerBacker (Dec 13, 2012)

I realize that I am a little late but oh well.



WWhermit said:


> Okay folks. I thought I'd start with something cheap and simple, just to get the basics down. I've got 20 lbs of russet potatoes that will be processed in a few days. I figure the first batch here I'll do as 1 inch or 3/4 inch cubes. Here is my question.


IMO 3/4" is to big. 1/2" works very well for cooking/frying later. I use a french fry cutter to cut them fast.



> 1. Do I need to boil these slightly to get a bit of the starch out, or are they good to go completely raw? The russet is a fragile potato, and I don't want them to turn to mush by possibly unnecessarily blanching first.


I can them raw.



> 2. A teaspoon of salt is good or bad for potatoes, or completely unnecessary?


Unnecessary.



> 3. I have both quart and pint mason jars available. I figure for potatoes, quarts should be fine. It's just 2 of us, but we'd probably go through the quart jar in a couple days, if and when we finally needed to break it open. So, how many quart jars for say, 10 lbs of russets?


I figure 3lbs/quart.


----------

