It helps minimize temperature shock. Thank you for your tips, its given me courage to reconsider freezing more with confidence! Thank you so much for this post! Just in time for soup season and a new Christian and stay at home parent!

Beautiful layout on your blog! Very easy to read:. Going to try to freeze some of my quart jars of sauerkraut. Thanks for righting this; feeling better about trying this. Thank you so much for your tips. I have an over abundance of tomatoes this year — I got a little crazy when buying tomato plants in the spring — 24 plants and they are all producing!

I wanted to freeze the sauce, but I am not a huge fan of plastic, so I was happy to find your tips. I will be trying them out in the next couple days! Fitting, right? I thought I would give it a try but not sure if you can freeze it in jars or how long it would last?

Hi Laurrie! I have made homemade butter but have never frozen it. It should keep its quality for at least a year, from my understanding. Homemade butter… yummy!

Hi Will. After breaking. Completely did that and 2 of 4 still broke — making a total of ten. Tea and ifeel I am spending my life cleaning up glass. I am now wondering. If either chaga has a weird property or I have faulty jars. Have you found any brands better? Hi Art. What a bummer to have so many broken jars and wasted tea!

Have you tried wide mouth pint jars? Kristen, I hate plastic so always freeze in glass. Pinning to my Freezing and Preserving board. Thank you for your most informative article. I have been freezing my juices in plastic bottles and really wanted to get away from that.

I will now be using glass bottles with confidence. One that has no chunks in it at all. Thank you! Hi Kristina! Hee hee! That can cause cracking. I hope that helps!

I really needed this information— too many broken jars and too many quarts of precious broth ruined. Thank you so much for these tips. You are spot on with the tips! It is also important to realize that no all jars are freezer safe—canning jars must specifically state Freezer Safe. Freezer-safe jars make things easier, though! Thanks so much for the tips!

Have you had any esperience freezing in the small mason jars, the baby wide mouth ones with no shoulder? The shoulders are what usually cause jars to crack. I hope your broth freezes well! I used this size to store breastmilk. Great to hear, Em! I make tomatoe sauce in batches and have been freezing in gallon bags. Not very happy with the method so I decided to freeze in 2 mason jars. Did it all wrong! Filled to the top and capped. Fingers crossed. Thank you for all the advice I will be sure to follow it next time.

Hoping with you that your jars make it out whole, Michelle! I just made a large large for us batch of my own recipe Ragu. Great advice about the type of jar. I did cover the sauce with plastic wrap pressed against the sauce. Thank you for these steps. I regularly freeze applesauce and peaches in Jas, but I recently tried freezing home made broth. Hi Clara. Boo for broken mason jars! Freezing jam is easier because the sugar keeps the liquid from expanding so much.

I hope these tips help for the future! Hi Kristen , Very helpful article! Thank you for sharing it. What do you think about putting each Mason jar in a 1gallon size ziplock bag also? Any thoughts? Does it add more pressure to the jar? Contained in a ziploc bag.

Hi Sarah. Throw it all away.. If you freeze soups in the mason jars, can you then put them in instant pot to heat? Assuming you would put them on rack with water in bottom. Hi Linda. Do you mean to put the jars of frozen soup in the Instant Pot?

Anytime glass is really hot or really cold, changing temperature too fast generally causes it to break. If pressure is added, that seems like a dangerous situation. I would suggest thawing overnight and reheating after taking the soup out of the jar. For 2 years now, I freeze soups, beans, and other dishes in Glasslock containers tempered glass with plastic airlock lids with silicone seals.

I take the frozen meal in glass, remove the lid and put directly into the Instant Pot with a time of minutes, depending on the size and content of the meal. I use the same glass containers, week after week. No cracks, chipping, etc. I have also used Pyrex glass containers as well.

I have NOT used mason jars, nor am I tempted. And if glass feel too risky to try…consider stainless steel containers. They are more expensive from what I have found than glass, but they would eliminate breaking concerns while you store them in the freezer as well as putting directly into the Instant Pot. Hi Teresa. Just be sure to follow the other tips, especially the one about not overfilling the jar.

Best wishes! I just made apple butter and put the jars in the fridge to cool. I will loosely put aluminum foil on them as a lid. Will let you know if this will work for freezing. I hope you have great success! Hi, Kristen! Thanks for this very useful post. Why are larger mason jars 32 oz not recommended for freezing? It seems as the 16 oz jar that everyone recommends for freezing holds too little broth. Hi Vicky! Expansion often causes jars to break. If you follow the tips I have here, especially using a wide mouth quart jar, you should be fine.

A little math shows that the ratio of surface area to volume changes as the volume increases even though the proportions of the sides are the same. For example, think of a cube that is 1 foot in each direction. The cube has six faces and each face has an area of 1 sq. The ratio of surface area to volume for the smaller cube is For the larger, it is , which reduces to the equivalent proportion of The volume of the second cube is 8 times the volume of the first but only 4 times the surface area.

So relative to the available surface area, you would get double the expansion, which would be significantly more force pushing on the sides of the jar, unless the liquid is easily able to move upwards while the ice being formed displaces it. If the top were to freeze over before all the liquid in the middle had frozen, then you would get more outward pressure — some of which MIGHT be contained by the ice already formed, but ice, like glass, can crack.

They are hard to find but have the straight sides of the pints and have a line that says fill to freeze. With love-. Thanks, Suzi! They look perfect! Hope this helps Vicky, too! Hi Teresa! I checked with the USDA and other online sources.

Most are saying that if the sauce has meat, it will last months in the freezer. I would guess that 6 months is a good guideline, but you can check with FoodSafety.

Happy sauce making! I have a question. Does it have to be a canning jar? Also can you freeze cooked chicken like that? Hi Misty! If you can to freeze cooked chicken, you could do it in a jar, but I think it would fare better if it was packed in there well and not exposed to a lot of air. Or you could add some chicken broth to the chicken in the jar to keep it from getting dried out. Hi Jessica.

Yes, you sure can use wide mouth quart jars! My scientist husband also taught me that if you tilt the jar slightly it helps relieve the pressure of expansion. Thanks for sharing, Lisa! It will also reach the shoulder first, that is what breaks the glass. There will be less surface tension, but so what? I finally decided to research the question I posed, above, about whether the way microwaves heat might protect jars more than conventional heat. And it turns out, it looks like it may indeed confer some protection.

Cracks caused by thermal shock are cause when heat is suddenly applied to a cooler piece of glass, and the areas within expand at different rates, and when the rate of expansion exceeds the strength of the glass, it breaks. Microwaving heats in a different way, with the micro waves going into the object to be heated, so that all parts of the object are heated up. This is not a blanket protection, because a solid hunk of frozen stuff, oatmeal, for instance, will remain colder than the similarly heated glass exterior, but it may protect just slightly cooler contents.

Likely it thawed enough to not be a problem. I made a big batch of steel cut oatmeal in my slow cooker. I filled a case of regular canning pint jars halfway and froze all but one jar.

This morning I took the refrigerated pint jar and microwaved it on high for two minutes. No problem. Was I just lucky, or is their something about how microwaving and the way it heats that protected my jar? Lucille, can you clarify? Was your oatmeal frozen or refrigerated when microwaved? It probably helped that your jars were only filled halfway if frozen. It is probably a good idea to leave a smidge more.

I bought a number of the new Jarboxes, which are for storing canning jars. The upper and lower half are identical, so I put one half in the chest freezer, fill it with jars and fill below the shoulders and loosely cap , and the next day I will put the top on. These would definitely be handy for storing frozen jars in a chest freezer. So glad you shared, Lucille! Welp, I could not muster up the courage to freeze my precious heirloom tomato sauce so I wound up cooking with it and froze individual meals instead, perhaps I will attempt freezing the sauce itself with a cheaper variety of tomatos next time.

Enjoy your frozen meals. Those are super handy, too! Thanks in advance! Hi Chad! But if anyone else has experience, they can chime in to be sure. I would NOT at all put a frozen jar in the microwave on any temperature. I am another who has had glass jars of broth break….

I have found that removing the lid completely and defrosting in the refrigerator rather than on room temp counter prevents breakage. But it can take a full 24 hours or more for the frozen broth to defrost, so you have to plan ahead. First of all, if the jars do decide to have an earth shatteringly good time in your freezer, the breaks tend to be clean and kept intact by the frozen liquid.

I have had a glass jar break on me. When it broke, it cleanly split into three pieces. I let the jar defrost in the sink bye-bye homemade veggie stock picked up the big chunks of glass and threw them away. Yes, I threw them away! In my trash jar posts, I talk about my broken glass tally. Broken glass cannot be recycled.

Please do not put broken glass in the recycle bin. The key is to fill to the appropriate line. By leaving ample room at the top, you allow for this expansion without breaking. If you have a straight jar, you should leave inches at the top. If your jar has shoulders, you should fill inches below the shoulder. It rises in the middle and has a hump like a camel.

When I freeze in my metal mason jar lids or store them in a humid environment like under the sink or in the bathroom, my lids tend to rust. I have finally found a great solution to this problem, and I am so excited to be working with iLids! Of course, you can always shop online. For more information about shipping and zero waste read this blog post here. The lids are made of recycled Polypropylene 5 and can be recycled when their life is complete.

However, that should take a long time. These lids are super sturdy! They have gaskets on the in the lids which keep everything leak proof, and if something happens with your gasket… you can get a replacement from the company! This is a zero wasters dream! Apply screw bands securely until fingertip tight. Then, using just your fingers, screw the band down evenly until you meet a point of resistance. Do not overtighten bands by using the full force of your hand or a utensil to tighten the band.

After processing, bands may appear to have loosened. This is natural. Do not retighten bands after processing. Let jars stand undisturbed 24 hours. Overtightening bands prevents venting of excess air from the jar during heat processing. Jars that do not vent properly do not seal securely. Screw bands that are applied too tightly can cause lids to buckle. Buckling leads to seal failure. Our Consumer Response staff will attempt to assist you.

Although it may not be appetizing, you can eat most discoloured home canned food if the liquid is clear, the odour natural, and if you know the canning was done properly with recommended heat processing methods, time and temperature. The most frequent causes of colour change in home canned foods can be traced to:. However, they must be handled correctly to avoid certain situations that may result in breakage. The three main causes of accidental jar breakage and preventative measures are outlined below.

Scratches especially those on the interior surface of mason jars, can weaken the glass and cause breakage when the jars are heated or handled. Scratches are caused by:.

To ensure long lasting durability of your mason jars, clean them with a soft cloth and warm soapy water or in a dishwasher. Only use non-metallic utensils when removing bubbles and serving. Use jar lifters that have a coated surface over the metal. Although mason jars can withstand repeated heating and cooling, they are sensitive to quick temperature changes. Sudden cooling or heating can cause thermal shock and result in breakage.

These are examples of actions that can thermal shock by:. Always put hot food into a hot jar and never place a jar directly into boiling water. Sterilize jars by covering with room temperature water and bringing to a boil.

Boil 10 minutes. Place hot jars on a dishtowel or wooden cutting board when filling and cooling. Heat causes expansion of food and gases inside the jar during processing.

Thus pressure builds inside each jar. Glass does not expand, so the pressure needs an outlet. When lids are applied fingertip tight the excess gasses or pressure can escape.

This action is called "venting". If lids are applied too tightly "venting" is prevented. A build-up of excess pressure inside the jar can cause the jar to break. Apply screw bands fingertip tight, or until they meet a point of resistance. This allows air to escape during processing, properly "venting" the jar. The use of up-to-date home canning utensils and supplies, following the manufacturer's recommended lid application techniques and heat processing steps are all essential for sealing success with home canning two-piece metal lids.

The most common causes of seal failure are: Insufficient heat processing of filled jars. Initially, some lids may appear to seal. However, these same lids may unseal during shelf storage. The seal failure at that time is caused by one of two reasons:.

To reprocess a product, remove the lid and check the sealing surface of the jar for tiny nicks or imperfections. If glass is damaged, replace the jar.

If the product was packed hot originally, empty the jar and reheat the food. Pack the food into a clean, hot jar. If processing time is less than 10 minutes, sterilize the jar before filling. Simply wash lids in hot, soapy water, dry and set aside until needed. If you still choose to pre heat your lids, do not boil. Place it on the jar and apply the screw band securely, until fingertip tight. Reprocess the product using the canning method and full processing time recommended by an up-to-date reliable home canning resource.

Freezing can cause the contents of a jar to expand which in turn can break the seal or the jar. A dark storage area is preferred.

Light hastens oxidation and destroys certain vitamins. It can also cause certain foods to fade in colour. Placing jars in cupboards or boxes protects them from light.

Avoid damp storage areas as they can cause lids to corrode. Garlic may also turn green when exposed to sunlight or temperature changes. This colouring becomes more evident after pickling. Blue garlic colour changes can also be caused by a reaction between garlic's natural sulfur content and copper in water or in iron, tin or aluminum cooking utensils. Blue garlic can also result when sufficient heat is not applied to inactivate garlic's natural enzymes.

In most cases, greenish blue garlic colour changes are not harmful; the product remains safe to eat unless other spoilage signs are present. A boiling water canner is a large deep pot with a tight fitting lid and a rack to lift jars off direct heat. The pot must be deep enough to cover jars with 1 to 2 inches cm water. Only high acid foods -- jams, fruits, tomatoes with added acid, pickles including relish, chutney -- can be processed safely in a boiling water canner.

Tip: Turn any large, deep pot into a boiling water canner and tie screw bands together to make a rack. As the filled jar is heated, headspace pressure increases until air is vented from the jar. After processing, the atmospheric pressure outside the jar is greater than inside due to this "venting". This pressure difference causes the lid to be pushed down onto the jar, resulting in a true vacuum seal. This seal prevents microorganisms and air from entering and contaminating the food.

The acidity of the food you are home canning dictates the processing method. Heat processing methods are not interchangeable. High Acid Foods include jams, jellies and other soft spreads, fruits and fruit juices, pickled fruits and vegetables, relishes, chutney, salsa, tomatoes with added acid and high acid fruit-tomato sauces and condiments. The type of food and jar size determines this time. Low Acid Foods include all vegetables, meat and game, poultry, fish, seafood, soups, stews, tomato-vegetable sauces and tomato-meat sauces.

These times and temperatures have been established to destroy all bacteria, their spores and the toxins they can produce. In low acid foods, failure to destroy the bacterium, Clostridium botulinum can cause botulism, a deadly form of food poisoning.

Boiling water canners are not appropriate for safe processing of low acid foods. Botulism is a deadly disease caused by ingesting the toxic substance produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum C. This is a concern with improperly canned food. Spores of the bacterium C. In normal cases, the spores are of no harm to us. However, in certain environments, the spores produce vegetative cells.

It is these cells that produce the deadly toxin. The following circumstances are favourable for C. The environment described above is identical to a jar of canned low acid food.

Low acid food includes: all vegetables not pickles , meat, fish, seafood, game and tomatoes without added acid. Low acid foods may still be safely home canned. This high temperature can only be achieved by the use of pressure in a pressure canner. These provide instructions and the proper processing times for that food. Note: Botulism is a frightening disease, not only because it may cause death, but because it is very difficult to detect in home canned food.

It is crucial that all low acid food be canned in a pressure canner for the appropriate time and pressure recommended. High acid food includes jams, jellies, fruits, pickles, relishes, salsas and tomatoes with added acid. These foods have no risk of botulism, if properly prepared, due to their natural acidity. Unfortunately, lobster is not one of the foods for which home canning in mason jars is recommended.

The recommended home preservation method for lobster is freezing. We have searched the U. First, lobster is a very delicate meat of relatively high fat content. But, more importantly, it is also a low acid food that requires processing heating filled jars in a pressure canner. When not inactivated, these spores can grow and lead to a deadly form of food poisoning called botulism.

The heat and time required to destroy the spores and safely heat process lobster in a pressure canner would undoubtedly turn the lobster meat to mush making it most unappetizing. Now, we are aware that some people in coastal areas "put up" lobster in jars utilizing a variety of handed-down methods, most of which appear to involve a boiling water canner.

Quite frankly, these people are playing a very dangerous game of chance with their family's health. Unlike many microorganisms, spores of clostridium botulinum can lurk undetected in inadequately or poorly preserved foods. These spores are not detectable to the eye, touch or nose. Thank you Reply. Teena March 30, at am. LorBen August 25, at am.

RJ March 3, at am. Pamela Moore December 12, at am. Michael March 4, at pm. Shelly April 8, at am. Target or Walmart Reply. StormyLuv August 23, at am. Will this process work for Apple Butter?

Linda from Garden Betty September 5, at am. Maura November 20, at pm. Linda from Garden Betty November 22, at am. Oh yikes, I hope your friend realizes how sketchy that is! I also agree that those pint-and-a-half jars are great for freezing! Dom October 12, at pm. Thanks, that was great.