Why is the cooking liquid used for packing some vegetables and boiling water for others?
A. Cooking liquid is recommended for packing most vegetables because it may contain minerals and vitamins dissolved out of the food. Boiling water is recommended when cooking liquid is dark, gritty, or strong-flavored, and it may be used if there isn’t enough cooking liquid. Processing time is the same whether hot cooking liquid or boiling water is used for the packing. Q. Why is liquid sometimes lost from glass jars during processing? A. Loss of liquid may be due to a number of things: • Cooking food too short a time to drive out the air that is in it before packing it in the jars. • Packing jars too full. • Leaving air bubbles in the jars. • Not keeping pressure steady in a pressure canner. • Lowering pressure too suddenly at the end of the processing period. • Food is packed too tightly. • Food is processed at too high a temperature. • Leakage of steam between lid and bottom of pressure cooker. Q. Should liquid lost during processing be replaced? A. No, never open a jar and refill w
