# Help!!



## jratliff (May 18, 2012)

Last week my wife canned some pumpkin. It was great and we were both excited about our first canning experience. Last night we noticed something on the counter top. It is coming from one of the jars of pumpkin she canned.

Why is this happening?

What did she do wrong?

How can she prevent this from happening again?

Thanks,

John


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

Was the pumpkin processed in a boiling water bath or a pressure canner?

It is possible that she filled that jar a bit too full and bits of pumpkin boiled up and lodged under the seal. Also it is possible that one of the jars didn't seal properly due to a slight nick in the rim of the glass and the pumpkin in that jar has had enough time to start rotting. Double check all of the lids and insure that they are concave, rather than convex.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

How did you fix the pumpkin before canning ... (cube or puree) ?


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## OldCootHillbilly (Jul 9, 2010)

If ya got leakeage, either that jar didn't seal, er its got a crack in it. Jars should "ping" after cannin, be the lids pullin down an sealing. 

When ya push down on a sealed lid there shouldn't be no give. Ifin it do, it ain't sealed an ya need ta use it right quick. Keep it in the fridge (that be right after cannin though).

As it stands right now, I'd say that can a pumpkin be shot. Open it, smell it. You'll know ifin it ain't good! 

In the future, leave about 3/4 inch a space in yer jar, make sure the jar rim be clean. Sometimes no matter what ya do one just won't seal.


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## Meerkat (May 31, 2011)

I'm a novice canner,but I agree with the above.


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## jratliff (May 18, 2012)

AuroraHawk said:


> Was the pumpkin processed in a boiling water bath or a pressure canner?
> 
> It is possible that she filled that jar a bit too full and bits of pumpkin boiled up and lodged under the seal. Also it is possible that one of the jars didn't seal properly due to a slight nick in the rim of the glass and the pumpkin in that jar has had enough time to start rotting. Double check all of the lids and insure that they are concave, rather than convex.


It was a water bath


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## jratliff (May 18, 2012)

*Andi said:


> How did you fix the pumpkin before canning ... (cube or puree) ?


It was puréed


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

jratliff said:


> It was puréed


And that was your problem ... IMO go cubes.


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## jratliff (May 18, 2012)

OldCootHillbilly said:


> If ya got leakeage, either that jar didn't seal, er its got a crack in it. Jars should "ping" after cannin, be the lids pullin down an sealing.
> 
> When ya push down on a sealed lid there shouldn't be no give. Ifin it do, it ain't sealed an ya need ta use it right quick. Keep it in the fridge (that be right after cannin though).
> 
> ...


Thank you for the help


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

This may well be the best money you will spend while prepping food for when TSHTF:

http://www.amazon.com/Ball-Blue-Book-Guide-Preserving/dp/0972753702

I think I paid $7.99 for mine and bought it from Lowe's.


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## thenance007 (Oct 8, 2012)

*Your pumpkin is NOT safe to eat!*

Unfortunately your wife did two things seriously wrong--and eating any of that pumpkin could kill you!

1. It is not safe to water bath pumpkin because it is a low acid food--like most vegetables and all meats, it *must* be pressure canned.

2. It is not safe to can pureed pumpkin even in a pressure canner, only cubed pumpkin. Pureed pumpkin is apparently too dense and there is actually a warning in the canning manuals against it.

So unfortunately, I really don't think any of your canned pumpkin is safe to eat, and I would throw it *all* away, especially since you already have some spoilage evident.

It would be very worthwhile for you to invest in the Ball Canning Blue Book to learn the basics or at least go to the National Center for Home Food Preservation website and get instructions before you try canning anything else. You really need to understand what can be water bath canned and what must be pressure canned--water bath canning something that has to be pressure canned can kill you!

http://nchfp.uga.edu/tips/fall/pumpkins.html


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