Supplies and Equipment You Need to Get Started Canning
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Click HERE to read my policies & disclaimers if you're interested. I will only link products I use and personally recommend. Thank you for your support, friends!
So you want to get started with home canning. If you’re new to it and you’ve watched my reels and content, chances are you’re OVERWHELMED with all the things I have and possibly thinking “how on Earth am I going to get and/or afford all those things.” To which I’ll say, you’re not because you don’t NEED most of the things I use. I absolutely love canning and have collected many helpful tools over the years that make my life easier when canning, as it’s my primary source of food preservation.
But that does not mean you need any of it. I’m going to make a post and split it up into 3 sections:
- Bare Minimum Needs – things you need to can
- Helpful Additions – things you don’t absolutely need, but will make canning easier
- Definitely Not Needed but Might Want – I use them quite a bit and they’ve helped me tons
- You Don’t Need It
I’m going to explain to you in the coming post HOW to get started with little to nothing and how to build upon what you’re doing so this isn’t a stressful start, but rather an enjoyable experience for you. First thing we need to do, though, is drop the victim mentality if you have it. If you’re looking at me or someone else and thinking “wow they’re privileged enough to be able to afford to do all of this” or something along those lines, drop it. We all do it and I’ll tell you right dang now, comparison is the killer of joy. You will never find self worth or be pleased with your life is you’re constantly comparing it to someone else. Just because it looks like they have everything on social media, doesn’t mean they’re living the dream behind closed doors. Work with what you have and mind your own bidnazzz and in the end, you’re going to find more happiness and satisfaction than anyone can ever give you.
Don’t get caught up and thinking you need to grow and raise everything you can. The beauty of canning in your own home, is you can can whatever the heck you want. Is chicken on sale at Sam’s Club? Grab an extra and can it. Canning allows you to take advantage of major sales because you can preserve that food and save it for later. I will frequently watch the store ads and if they have something I don’t grow (or don’t want to grow), I will occasionally take advantage of those sales and stock up. When produce markets around me ship in the Florida strawberries, sign me up. Yeah, I have strawberry beds, but do you think I get nearly enough to do anything with feral kids?! They eat them faster than they can ripen! Which I’m happy for because they’re snacking on wholesome foods and also learning where it comes from and how to work with God’s creation. You can even purchase frozen foods in bulk and can those. I use the frozen mixed veggies when they go on the 10 for 10 sale at my local grocery stores in quite a few canning recipes. No shame in the game! It doesn’t always have to be fresh foods!
In this blog post, anything underlined and a brownish mauve color is a clickable link (like this one that goes directly to my Amazon canning supplies storefront) that will show you a product I personally own, have owned, and use, to can my food on my homestead. These are all affiliate links, meaning I do get a few pennies for showing you them, and they directly go back into supporting my website, me sharing and teaching, and our homestead. Do not feel obligated to buy anything, nor go in debt to purchase something from one of my links, but rather if the funds are there and you do find you need it, I do appreciate your support doing so :)
Pressure Canning vs Water Bath Canning
This is a burning question I get asked a lot, is how do I choose between water bath canning and pressure canning. As a beginner, I will tell you to stick with the “rules of canning” and pressure can all low acid foods and water bath can all high acid foods. A pressure canner helps you hit a higher temperature than you’ll get with boiling water and the processing times are much shorter than if you’d water bath everything. From there you can make your mind up about how comfortable you are with rebel canning and possibly water bath canning everything or using a pressure canner.
​Foods for Pressure Canning:
- Root vegetables
- Green Beans
- Dry Beans
- Meat
- Meals-in-jars
- Corn
Foods for Water Bath Canning:
- Tomato sauces
- Fruits & Fruit Spreads / Butter
- Fruit Juice
- Jams & Jellies
- Salsas
Now. If money is tight and you have a large pot and some jars, I’m not going to be the one to tell you you can’t can meat by water bathing, because you absolutely can. But, I will tell you to do your own research and find the times yourself, whether it be from Amish canning books, rebel canning Facebook groups, or older Kerr and Ball canning books, because there’s two different sets of times available, US times and European (German) canning times. You should NEVER blindly trust someone on the internet telling you something is safe, even me, without doing your own personal research. I will tell you that a simple Google search of “can I water bath meat” is going to get you BOTULISM in bolds, italics, and ALL CAPS over and over again. So, sometimes you have to scroll, search other country’s information, and maybe even books to find the actual science that’s buried in there.
For the sake of this blog post, I am going to get you started canning assuming you are going to pressure can low acid foods and water bath can high acid foods. And you might be surprised, it doesn’t require any extra equipment, but a pressure canner can be slightly more expensive than a water bath canning pot. That being said, if you’re new to canning I will always tell you to can “by the rules” so if, and when, you decide to break them, you can do so safely. Learn the rules, so when you do question them, you understand why they made them, but also understand they’re incredibly stupid because people are…. incredibly stupid.
Kitchen Tools
This blog post is also written assuming you have basic kitchen tools used for cooking. These include things like a stock pot, spoons, ladle, knives, food processor, food mill, and cutting boards. I never add these things to the “equipment” section of my recipe because I think it’s silly. If you don’t have these things, you can literally claw your food into pieces and beat it with rocks for all I care to save money. Go to the thrift store. Hit up garage sales. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. You tools don’t have to be fancy Williams Sonoma wooden kitchen aid bowl tools, they just have to serve their purpose. So forget aesthetic and go for useful. We are specifically hitting the actual canning tools needed to process the food in this blog post, not the kitchen tools needed for preparing the food for canning. I hope that makes sense. But if it doesn’t, I guess you’ll see….
Bare Minimum Needs
This list will include what I think is the bare minimum you need to start canning. If your budget is tight, this will help you get started with the bare bones minimum I think you need so you will be able to fill your pantry!
Canning Jars
You obviously need jars for canning. You can watch for estate sales, garage sales, on Facebook marketplace, or even sales in big box stores like Walmart, Menards, and Target. Meijer will occasionally have a BOGO Free or 50% off with mPerks. You really just have to watch. Put alarms on the words “jars” and “canning” on Facebook marketplace. When buying old or used jars, don’t pay more than $0.50-0.75 per jar. The new ones come with lids and rings, which is why they’re pricier and buying used, you’re just getting the jars. So don’t be afraid to pass up a posting just because someone thinks they own a gold mine. Don’t be afraid to dig in someone’s creepy basement. A couple years ago I snagged some extremely gross barn jars from an elderly woman that had dead mice and more spiders than I ever want to come across in my life in them. A vinegar soak and some scrubbing and they were like new! If I could have worn a full body rubber suit while scrubbing, I’d have saved my energy on the hives and screaming I did. But, she gave them to me for free in exchange for a homemade pie. Get the word out that you’re nuts and people will be more than happy to support you and offload their clutter! If worse comes to worse… use your friends’ recycling. Contrary to proper belief, those glass jars with the lug lids you get store bought food in like queso, salsa, spaghetti sauce, and alfredo ARE REUSABLE. Rebelliously, of course. But you can reuse them. Have your friends save them for you and encourage them to buy food in the jars and even offer to pay (or barter) per jar if they save them! Something! Aldi occasionally has mixed fruit, peaches, and tomato sauce in these jars and they’re amazing to reuse. WHERE THERE’S A WILL, THERE’S A WAY to get jars of food on your shelves. (Even if the world is going to tell you it’s illegal; it’s not).
For me, when I was picking up jars, I didn’t worry about the size of jar I got. I got what I could get so I could build the number of jars I have. Most of them were quart jars, and since I had a growing family, that’s what I’ll need for a while anyway. I have found that a quart jar can feed 2-4 people depending on the size and what it is, 1 pint feed 1 adult or 2 small kids pretty easily, and half pints are great for jams and jellies and chocolate sauce. You just have to start canning, really, to find out what size of what works with what things. Everyone is going to be different, so don’t be afraid to mix and match sizes for a while until you know what you’re reaching for the most.
Canning Lids
I will never ever ever ever ever become an affiliate with a lid brand. Never. Because every lid brand has their faults and I tell folks to just get whatever lids they can afford and get their hands on. One brand isn’t better than another and if you see someone telling you online that they’ve canned with such and such brand and never had a failure, they haven’t canned enough. That’s my word and I stand by it. No single lid brand will ever be without the occasional failure. If Ball lids are what you can easily get, use them! All lids work just fine, don’t get caught up on the brand just because some influencer said they’re the best. They’re getting commission to say that. Remember that.
Reusing lids is another controversial topic, and you guys know that I do. I’ve shared in my stories on social media how I choose to reuse and such and may just make content about that again. But that’s also an option if money is tight. Reuse the single use lids. Learn how to reuse and when to reuse and when to retire the lid. It’s not illegal. OR, invest in actual reusable lids. You definitely don’t HAVE to use new lids every single time.
Lids are sometimes called flats by some people. So, if you hear the term flats, or flat lid, they’re referring to the lid you place on the jar that is then secured with the screw band because they are, indeed, flat.
Screw Bands
These you can pick up for free or for very little, especially at Amish bulk food stores. Many people will give some away because they have so many from buying jars, and you don’t need a ton to get started. A dozen of each size will work perfectly! I will say I did try the plastic canning screw bands and do not recommend them for canning… they don’t work, but they do work for storage like in the refrigerator in such.
Canning Book
I am a big printed information person. I want my information in a book or printed and placed in a binder. If the power’s out or I don’t have internet access, I want to still be able to find and do what I need to do. That’s why I always tell folks to grab a canning book and run with it. A Ball Canning Book is a wonderful tool with great information, not only just recipes, but also how to adjust pressure and times for elevation and also step-by-step guides on how to pressure can and water bath can WITH PICTURES. I may make fun of the Ball canning group on Facebook, but the books are helpful and pretty easy to find and snag. Especially if you hunt estate or garage sales, you can pick up an older version for a quarter. I know folks will tell you you have to use the most recent version… but if an older secondhand version is what you can afford, that’s better than nothing. Click here to see all the books I have that I reference!
Pressure Canner
For the sake of this, we’re going to talk pressure canner (jump back up to the spot on pressure canning vs water bath canning if you missed it).
Don’t think straight out of the gate you need the biggest and fanciest All-American brand canner. You don’t. If you can afford that, then go for it. Because it is a lifetime canner that you can pass down, and being an owner of one, has the least amount of parts to replace or that can break.
BUT.
If you’re on a budget, both Presto and Mirro have affordable versions of stovetop pressure canners that are lightweight and get the job done just as fast and easy as a fancy All-American brand can. Presto has one that is induction approved for those of you with induction ovens. You can also purchase a pressure canner second hand, just make sure you can find replacement parts and gaskets for it and also, if it is a dial gauge (meaning gauge only, which I don’t recommend like at alllllll), to get that gauge tested at your local extension office prior to use to verify it’s correct.
Investing in a pressure canner doesn’t just mean you have to pressure can everything. You can actually use a pressure canner as a:
- Pressure Canner
- Water Bath Canner
- Steam Canner
- Pressure Cooker
Let’s talk about each use a little bit more in depth, as some of these aren’t considered “approved” uses of a pressure canner. But in times like this when you’re working with tight budgets, we need to make our investments work for us, and I want you to do it correctly AND safely. Pressure canners today have many safety mechanisms in place to alert you the canner is under pressure and to also release pressure in the even of over-pressure to prevent explosions. It would take a real act of jackassery to blow a modern canner up. Promise. Familiarize yourself with your canner, the pressure indicators (gauge or buttons), and how to tell if it has depressurized. Know how to place the lid on correctly, when to remove it, and how to keep yourself safe the entire time. It isn’t hard, but I do want to emphasize you NEED to understand how the equipment works so you can make it work well for you.
Using A Pressure Canner
This one is easy. Read the book that comes with your pressure canner. Know how much water to add, how many jars you can fill it with, and don’t lose your weight. Look up your elevation and find the weight you need to use for low acid foods. It will ALWAYS be the same weight for ALL low acids foods; that will never change. Now, if you’re going to process something HIGH ACID in your pressure canner and put it under pressure, there will be a change in weight for that, as the times given are normally with 5 less pounds of pressure for high acid foods, like peaches. So, if you can meat at 10lbs of pressure, you would can peaches at 5lbs. Just look at the charts provided from the National Center for Home Food Preservation, because for some high acid foods they give instructions for both pressure caning and water bath canning high acid foods like peaches and applesauce to name two.
Be sure you understand how to properly depressurize your pressure canner (you literally just shut the heat off and let it cool) and how to test that the pressure has fully dropped to 0 in case you don’t have a gauge (Mirro brands) and how to care for the gaskets and pressure valves and such. Your book will tell you all this in depth, so don’t lose it!
Using A Pressure Canner as a Water Bath Canner
This one isn’t rebellious as you’re not doing anything crazy. To use your pressure canner as a water bath canner (aka boiling water bath), simply add your jars of high acid foods onto the rack in the bottom of the pot and cover them with hot water by 1-2 inches. You can place the lid on top of the pressure canner, but DO NOT ENGAGE IT, meaning don’t lock it into place by twisting. This will cause the canner to build pressure which you absolutely do not want with it that full of water. Just place the lid over top but again, DO NOT LOCK IT INTO PLACE. It also helps to get a random generic stainless lid that will cover your water bath canner so you’re not tempted to mindlessly do that. I have one that I use for my cast iron pans. You could also just use a big piece of aluminum foil or a baking sheet placed over the top. It helps to keep it covered to hold some of the steam in and the heat as opposed to bringing it to a boil uncovered. But for the love of all things, please do not engage your lid, boil water in there, and then immediately try to pry the lid off. Your pressure canner builds pressure even if you don’t place the weight on and prying the lid off can cause PAST BOILING POINT TEMPERATURE WATER to geyser onto your face and body. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read this again.
Using A Pressure Canner as a Steam Canner
This is considered rebel canning because it’s not a recommended process. Steam canning is typically recommended for all high acid foods with processing times of 45 minutes or less or you run the risk of running them dry (which can and will warp the bottom of your canner). Fill your pressure canner with the same amount of water it calls for for pressure canning and then place the lid on and lock it into place as if you were pressure canning. Heat the canner and once there is a steady stream of steam coming from the stem, start your processing time. You want there to be a steady stream of steam the entire time. Once processing time is complete, remove heat and again, allow the pressure canner to depressurize and don’t just immediately take the lid off. You didn’t add the weight, but your canner will have still built pressure with just the lid locked into place. All canners will have a pressure indicator button or gauge. Before removing the lid, verify that button has dropped and/or your gauge is at zero. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT try to remove the lid immediately at the end of the canning time because you risk causing severe burns to yourself due to water under pressure. It sounds scary, but all you have to do is realize a pressure canner will build pressure even without a weight and respect that. If the lid is stuck and does not want to come off, let it cool 15 more minutes before trying again and verify the pressure has dropped to zero. Your Presto brand will have a gauge to verify this and your Mirro brand has a pressure indicator button on the handle.
Using A Pressure Canner as a Pressure Cooker
This information should be in your canner’s book, as using it as a cooker isn’t rebellious. It will tell you how much water to add and sometimes even give you recipes. Using your canner as a pressure cooker is amazing for making bone broths and vegetable broths, cooking large amounts of meats, and also cooking beets so the skins slip right off. It works great and gives you another avenue to use your investment to its fullest. Yeah, I know they’re made with aluminum, but sometimes you just gotta do your best and forget the rest because anything homemade, even made in an aluminum pot, is going to be leaps and bounds better for you than something from the store.
Helpful Additions
Jar Funnel
You can survive without one of these. Promise. But they’re relatively inexpensive and make filling tons of jars so much easier. Get one that fits regular mouth jars and it will work just fine for wide mouth, too. There’s no sense in storing two funnels! Now, if you only have wide mouth jars, it would make perfect sense to have a wide mouth funnel. But if you have both, a regular mouth will work for both, too. That’s what I do.
Large Stock Pot
Again, you can get away with smaller pots and doing smaller batches or using your slow cooker, but sometimes a large stock pot is really nice to have, especially during tomato season when the garden is pumping them out by the bushel or the local farmer or farmer’s market is plentiful with fresh produce. Being able to cook and heat large batches comes in handy. And the best part? You can put a rack in that stock pot and use it as a water bath canner, too. I actually have an induction bottom pot that has three uses: stock pot, water bath canner, AND steam canner and the lid has a gauge to let me know when it’s up to temp to start the steam canning time. I love it. It was an investment, but I was saving for a big stock pot for my new induction oven and couldn’t turn this down. I live in a farmhouse with very little closet storage, so having a tool that is 3-in-1 was a no brainer. And the price was right!
Jar Lifter
​This is another thing you don’t absolutely need, but comes in handy, as getting jars out of the canner can be a bit tricky and this helps with that. You can absolutely use mittens and lift your jars out of the canner if you have to, but you’re gonna get wet if you’re water bath canning. So, a jar lifter is a handy and relatively inexpensive tool to up your canning game and make it just a little safer to get those jars out of the boiling hot water.
Definitely Not Needed But Might Want
Now I’m going to take you through things you’ll see me use frequently, but you definitely don’t need them. But if the budget allows, or you’re looking for some birthday or Christmas gift ideas, these things will make your life quite a bit easier when canning. I’m also a sucker for a fun canning gadget. It’s my thing, ok?! Some women collect Stanley cups or Starbucks cups… I collect home canning tools. Gimmmeaaaabreakkkkk.
Steam Canner
I have a legit steam canner that has the domed lid and the shallow pan. It’s super light weight and pretty easy to store and has a gauge on the lid that let’s me know it’s up to temperature to start the time, which takes all the guesswork out. I have also pushed mine and found it will run 1 hour and not go dry either, which is cool. But, also, not recommended as steam canners are recommended for high-acid foods for times of 45 minutes or less. And some of you have to adjust your times for elevation with steam canning (which is the same times as water bath canning), so do with that information what you may. You don’t need this, but it is really handy!
Electric Pressure Canner
I have shared countless times using my Nesco electric pressure canner and even some how-to’s to use it. I am not affiliated with Nesco, I just really love their canner for the price and how much I use it. Having this little canner has completely changed my canning game because it’s a plug in, fill, beep when you need me machine. It’s amazing for mom life when kids can be distracting. It’s much more hands free than a manual. That being said, it is an electronic so it’s grid dependent to use and electronics can (and will) fail. Keep this in mind when considering one of these, but you won’t find me telling you no if you want one. The Nesco can hold 4 quarts, 5 pints, and can double stack half pints. You can can high acid and low-acid foods in at as it has a pressure canning function (and a 10 or 15 lb weight you place on it) along with a water bath function and you can also, rebelliously, use it for steam canning. It can also be used to pressure cook and slow cook. Simply place your filled jars inside, add 2 quarts of warm water, hit the HIGH pressure button to pressure can, enter the time, and hit start. It beeps when it needs you.
You Don’t Need It
Debubbling Tool
This one is dumb. Just use something you have on hand that you can poke your jars to remove bubbles. Spending money on a useless piece of plastic labeled as a “debubbling tool” is the biggest scam, even if it’s cheap. Use a spatula, butter knife, or even just tap the jar bottom on a pot holder. The bubbles will leave and you don’t need a special tool to do it.
Headspace Measuring Tool
Just eyeball it. It’s not that serious. Tap this link for a landmark headspace measuring image! As long as you leave enough headspace, you’ll be fine, as not leaving enough could cause siphoning and failed seals. As long as you’re near the headspace requirement, you’ll be fine. Check out my post on headspace and canning for more information!
Clostridium Botulinum
As a new canner, I know one of your primary concerns is botulism. I talk and I talk and I talk about this because the science shared on botulism is lazy science and only half-truth, or rather complete misinformation if I want to be aggressive about it. As long as you follow good canning procedure (cleaning your food properly, washing jars, not being a dirty kitchen rat), you will be fine. There’s a certain amount of trust in the process you have to have that your food will be safe. And after all that, if you’re concerned, simply boil your food thoroughly for at least 5 minutes prior to consumption. The boutlinum toxin is the only thing that can harm you and can be found in an anaerobic environment (your jars) if the botulinum spore was introduced (doubtful) and is inactivated at relatively low temperatures which means boiling for 5-10 minutes will guarantee to inactivate it and make your food safe to consume.
I wrote more on commercial canning and how it shaped home canning along with information about botulism in this blog post that may be interesting to you, especially if you’re new, to understand just how much fear mongering that have done to home canners. It’s not that scary, I promise! Read about botulism, be informed, be clean, and stop operating from an angle of fear.
I hope this post helps empower you to get started today! You don’t need all the things to get started, but can get the bare minimum and build upon your tools once you get started and learn how you like to do things. As always, toss your questions in the comments or shoot me a message on Facebook or Instagram or even email using the contact form on my website. I’m here to help :)
