How to Can Carrots

Everyone thinks you only can carrots in the summertime when they grow fresh in your garden. But home canning is an excellent way to preserve fresh carrots anytime you can get them. Here's how to enjoy your carrots throughout the year.

Things You'll Need

• Carrots
• Water
• Large pot
• Canning jars with lids and rings
• Vegetable peeler
• Sharp knife
• Magnetic lid lifter or tongs
• Pressure cooker
• Pot holders
• Jar grabber or tongs
• Ladle or glass heat proof cup
• Towel or wooden cutting board

Instructions

Preparing for canning

1. Select fresh crisp carrots that are 1 to 11/2 inches in diameter and rinse them in lukewarm or cold water. Peel the carrots and cut into whatever size and shape you like.

2. Wash the canning jars in a dishwasher to sterilize them.

3. Immerse the jar lids in a pot of boiling water and let them boil for five minutes. Remove the lids with tongs or a magnetic wand that lifts lids.

4. Put a large pot of water on the stove to boil. You'll pour it over the jars full of carrots after you put them in the pressure cooker.

5. Rinse out your pressure cooker, place the rack plate inside and fill with 4 inches of hot tap water.

6. Place the pressure cooker on the stove on a low heat and add the carrots.

7. Cover the carrots with boiling water, bring them back to a boil and then simmer for five minutes. This is called "hot packing" the carrots.

8. Save the hot water from your cooked carrots, you'll use the carrot broth to fill the jars, so don't pour it out.

Canning the carrots

1. Fill the canning jars with the carrots. Pack them tightly and leave a one inch space at the top.

2. Ladle the hot carrot broth into each jar and fill each carrot packed jar to an inch from the top. Handle the hot water with care.

3. Place a lid on top of each jar and screw on the ring. Tighten to a snug fit, but don't over tighten the ring.

4. Lift each jar with jar tongs and place them on the rack in your pressure cooker. Make sure there is at least 3 inches of water in the pressure cooker since some could have boiled away. Add hot tap water, if needed, to bring the level back up to 3 inches.

5. Cover the pressure cooker. Depending on the type of cooker you have, either leave the valve open or the weight off.

6. Heat on high for ten minutes allowing the steam to vent, in order to purge the airspace; then put on the weight, or close the valve openings, to build up pressure to 10 pounds. Start your timer and set it for 25 minutes. Lower the temperature of the stove, as needed, to keep the pressure at 10 pounds.

7. Remove the jars when the canning process is completed. Place them on a wooden cutting board to cool overnight in a draft free location.

Tips & Warnings

• Jarred carrots will keep for 12 months following this method.

• It's important that the jars cool in a draft free place and aren't touched or bumped while they're cooling.

• Leave a one inch space at the top of the jars. It's called "head space" and is needed in the expansion process.

• Always use a pressure cooker to can your carrots. This process removes the bacterium, clostridium botulinum, which can cause botulism food poisoning.

• Follow the instruction booklet that comes with your pressure cooker. If you do not have it most instruction booklets are available online.