Bottling/Canning

Bottling excess produce is great- the final result lasts for ages, it doesn’t take up freezer space, and it is relatively easy (though depending on recipes can take some time) provided good hygiene and food practices are followed. Some things are fine just to bottle into sterilised bottles or jars, some need to be processed in a hot water bath, and others need to be pressure canned.

Spaghetti Sauce, Ginger beer and oranges in juice..

Spaghetti Sauce, Ginger beer and oranges in juice.

There are some great resources available on the internet for any of these methods, depending on what the main ingredients are. One we use often is foodpreserving.org, who also do workshops for those in the Perth area. There are two main books we use too ‘A Year in a Bottle’ and ‘The Blue Book’ that is put out by Ball (we also use the Ball mason jars).

We have successfully bottled a lot of our own produce, including oranges (including orange brandy liqueur- a favourite!), mulberries, preserved lemons, limes, a variety of chutneys and jams, mead, ginger cordial, cucumbers, beetroot, chicken stock, vegetable stock, pasta sauces, pickled nasturtium pods, limoncello, nasturtium cordial, elderflower cordial, zucchini, tomatoes (semi-dried, pickled, stewed, in sauces), plums, nectarines, carrots, radish, pumpkin, eggs (duck, quail and hen)…..