[Blindtlk] canning food

Thu Jul 31 16:10:55 UTC 2014

Danielle,

Does she water bath can?  that's the other type of canning.  You can only 
use that method for high acid foods like fruits and tomato's.  You have to 
pressure can low acid foods so the increased temperature can kill off 
anything living in there

Or she might have a different model of pressure canner that works 
differently than mine.  I think there must be hundreds of different models. 
For blind people I'd highly recommend the weighted gauge type.  There are 
lots of sources that will tell you that it isn't as safe or accurate as the 
visual dials.  However if it's a choice between extreme precision requiring 
a sighted person and being able to do it independently, I'm opting for 
independence.

Julie

-----Original Message----- 
From: Danielle Antoine via blindtlk
Sent: Thursday, July 31, 2014 9:11 AM
To: cheryl echevarria ; Blind Talk Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] canning food

My mom cans food but I've never done it. She does hers different though.

On 7/31/14, cheryl echevarria via blindtlk <blindtlk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Sounds wonderful Julie.
> I am not sure you know this a number of years ago, the NFBNET.org had put 
> up
> a blind cooks list, the website is
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blind-cooks_nfbnet.org
> Many might find this interesting. and yes they have an active list.
>
>
>
> Cheryl Echevarria, President
> National Federation of the Blind's Travel and Tourism Division
> A proud division of the NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND - "Live the life
> you want"www.nfbtravel.org
> 631-236-5138
> cherylandmaxx at hotmail.com
>
>
> The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
> characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
> expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
> between blind people and our dreams. You can have the life you want;
> blindness is not what holds you back.
>
>
> Cheryl Echevarria is also the owner of Echevarria Travel
> www.echevarriatravel.com; 631-456-5394 or 
> reservations at echevarriatravel.com
> and  has partnered with Braille Smith. www.braillesmith.com for all her
> braille needs.  Gail Smith is the Secretary of the NFB of Alabama
>
>> To: blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>> Date: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 07:02:58 -0500
>> Subject: [Blindtlk] canning food
>> From: blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>>
>> About a year ago I started thinking about pressure canning food.  You 
>> know
>> like your Grandma used to do, storing garden veggies for use in January.
>> I asked on this list if anyone knew any blind people using pressure
>> canners.  that led me to the cooking list and one person who had some
>> helpful info.
>>
>> A couple of weeks ago I finally purchased a canner.  I got a Presto 16
>> quart, which was the least expensive option at WalMart.  I left it sit in
>> the box because well...honestly it freaked me out.  I mean we are talking
>> about pressurized steam and food born illnesses, what could possibly go
>> wrong? *smile*I really did want to can food, it was a stretch for me
>> though.
>>
>> Finally yesterday I got it out and canned some corn.  It wasn't nearly as
>> scary as I thought it would be.  It is totally doable by a blind person.
>> The particular model I bought does not have a visual pressure gauge.  It
>> has a weighted valve cover.  There are rings that slide onto the weight,
>> the more rings means more weight and therefore more pressure needed to
>> make it move.
>>
>> You can hear and feel the steam and various valve mechanisms to know when
>> to put on the weight, when it has reached pressure and when it has
>> depressurized so you can open it.   I did two batches of corn last night.
>> The first one my sighted teenage son helped with.  Mostly because I 
>> wasn't
>> certain if I could manage it completely nonvisually or what alternatives 
>> I
>> could use.  Figuring out blindness alternatives on the fly is usually no
>> big deal for me, but to be honest the pressure canner had me a little
>> concerned.  I didn't want to get stuck wondering if some valve or another
>> was doing what it was supposed to while sorting out how I could assess 
>> the
>> situation nonvisually.  A mistake could have been really bad.
>>
>> We managed the first batch pretty handily.  There were only a few very
>> minor snags.  Getting the lid on turned out to be the most difficult 
>> part.
>>  It's not really a blindness issue, just a tricky lid.  I'm going to take
>> a closer look at it today when it's cool and I can take my time.   Also
>> recognizing when the various valves do something, what that means and 
>> what
>> it sounds like required that first batch to fully make sense.  I also
>> discovered that having some kitchen tools specific for canning would be
>> really helpful.  A wide mouth funnel and jar puller would have been a big
>> help.
>>
>> Then my son went over to his friends house, because he is a teenage boy
>> and because pressure canning is kind of boring compared to just about
>> anything involving his friends.   So I was left entirely on my own for 
>> the
>> second batch.  No problems at all.  I think it was easier the second time
>> around because I knew what to expect.
>>
>> I have 14 quart jars of sweet corn sitting on my kitchen counter and
>> probably another 7 will be canned today.  That is a lot of corn!  Did I
>> mention my husband is a farmer?  Yeah, so we have some corn!  *smile*
>>
>> Thanks to all of you for your help and encouragement!  Pressure canning
>> has been something I've wanted to do for a long time, but was honestly
>> very afraid.  You guys have helped me to get honest with myself and to 
>> not
>> let my blindness stop me.  Thank you!
>>
>> Julie
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>
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