Water Bath Canning Vs Pressure Canning

Home canning is a fantastic skill to add to your cooking arsenal. However, it can feel like there’s more questions than you could ever answer...I’m here to help. Let’s start by talking about the differences between the two different methods of canning: water bath canning vs pressure canning.

Water Bath Canning Vs Pressure Canning: What Is Canning?

What is Water Bath Canning?

The water bath method is also referred to as boiling water canning or hot water canning. Usually, a reputable source will stick to water bath canning as the term.

Water bath canning involves submerging your jarred, high-acid foods like jams, jellies, and pickled products, in boiling water. You need the water to cover the jars by 2 inches over the top. Tomato products, with the addition of citric acid or lemon juice, are also acidic enough to safely water bath can.

Water bath canning recipes begin at 10 minutes of processing time, and go up from there depending on the food, the size, and the recipe you are following. The 10 minutes is the safety minimum for sterilizing the jars themselves.

The boiling water in water bath canning destroys harmful contaminants like mold, yeast and bacteria.

However water bath canning can not kill clostridium botulinum or Botulism.

This doesn’t mean that water bath canning is not safe, or that you have a high risk of canning jam contaminated with Botulism. On the contrary!

The high amounts of acid, in conjunction with the hot, boiling water, and seal, will keep your foods safe.

Water bath canning heats the jars and their contents, vents the oxygen from the jar, sealing it tightly as it cools.

Here’s the Highlights:

• Water bath canning is used only for acidic foods like jam, pickles, and tomato products containing citric acid or lemon juice).
• Water bath canning is also known as boiling water canning or hot water canning.
• Water bath canning involves submerging jars under boiling water for a minimum of 10 minutes to ensure jars are sterilized and food will safely seal.
• Water bath canning reaches a temperature of 212 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Water bath canning does not kill Botulism, but does kill yeasts, molds, and many other bacterias of concern.
• High acid food + water bath canning (boiling water canning) + minimum of 10 minute processing time = safe, shelf stable foods!

What is Pressure Canning?

The pressure canning method is the only safe method for low-acid foods. The high pressure creates a higher temperature, above what boiling, or water bath canning. These high temperatures, that only can occur under pressure, kill and prevent, botulism bacteria and spores.

Pressure canning involves closing your jarred, low acid foods into a sealed pressure canner, bringing the pressure to a specific level (often 10 psi) for a duration of time to adequately pressurize, and heat foods above 240 degrees to kill botulism.

The pressure canner I use is this one.

Note: a pressure canner is not to be confused with a pressure cooker. While a pressure canner does technically cook food, and can be used as a pressure cooker. A pressure cooker cannot be used as a canner.

You need 2 inches of water in the bottom of the pot for it to create enough steam for pressurizing.

Without the acidity of high acid foods, low-acid foods need the higher temperatures of a pressure canner to keep the risk of botulism away.

Pressure canning takes a while to build pressure (often about 20-30 minutes), 10 minutes to vent the pressure, another 10-15 minutes to build up to the pounds of pressure needed, then the processing time begins. Processing time for pressure canning is dependent on the type of food and size of the jar.

For example, a pint of chicken broth requires 20 minutes processing time at 10 psi. However, processing time for pressure canning chicken meat is 75 minutes for pints.

You can find the amount of time needed for canning your own foods this way by looking at your manufacturer’s manual or following an approved recipe.

Here’s the Highlights:

• Pressure canning is for low-acid foods like meats, broths, and vegetables.
• Pressure canning involves closing low-acid foods into a sealed pressure canner to process at 10 pounds of pressure (pounds of pressure is dependent on your elevation).
• The pressure of pressure canning can reach 240 degrees Fahrenheit; hot enough to kill botulism.

Water Bath Canning Vs Pressure Canning: Equipment You’ll Need

What You’ll Need for Water-Bath Canning

• A large pot to submerge your jars under 2 inches of water.
• Jars with gaskets (the round top with the rubber seal) and rings (the metal ring that screws onto the lid).
• A jar lifter to put the jars into the water and pull them out.
• A de-bubbling tool or a plastic knife to de-bubble your jars.
• A clean rag and white vinegar to clean your jar rims.
• Canning Funnel

What You’ll Need for Pressure Canning

• A pressure canner
• Jars with gaskets (the round top with the rubber seal) and rings (the metal ring that screws onto the lid).
• A jar lifter to put the jars into the water and pull them out.
• A de-bubbling tool or a plastic knife to de-bubble your jars.
• A clean rag and white vinegar to clean your jar rims.
• A canning funnel

How to Get Started with Water Bath or Pressure Canning

Find a Canning Expert

Canning resources are plentiful thanks to the internet these days. However, I’d caution you to be choosy in your search for recipes.

Once you’ve gotten time and practice under your belt with canning, you can experiment and substitute a bit, as you can with many cooking methods.

When you are first starting out, finding a tested, safe, recipe will help you to streamline the process, and know where you went wrong if you make a mistake.

My favorite canning resources for beginners come from Ball Mason Jars. They make the Ball mason jars, as well as canning cook books, and their website has canning recipes!

Another great resource, if you have access to it, is a canning mentor! If you have a friend or family member with canning experience, ask them to show you the ropes with their favorite canning process!

Start with What you Love to Eat!

Canning is not difficult, but it can feel difficult to find the time to learn a new skill when our lives are already jam packed with responsibilities! However, canning is one of my favorite food preservation methods because of the convenience when I want a fast, easy meal!

One way to help you to be motivated to learn to can, is to pick a food you already love eating that comes in a jar!

If your family eats store-bought jam every day, find a jam recipe to make at home!

Or, if you make chicken broth every week, but hate freezing and thawing, or buy it often, consider making that your first canning project!

Water Bath Canning Vs Pressure Canning: What’s Easier?

I want to start out by saying that this section is 100% opinion based. After tons of canning batches under my belt, as well as being a part of a long line of canners, I have reasons to back up my opinions. Nonetheless, it is my opinion, and you might not agree! That’s totally fine!

The general consensus online seems to be that water bath canning is the easiest and most beginner friendly.

I disagree.

Better Success with Pressure Canning

I have broken more jars, gotten more burns, and made more messes water bath canning than pressure canning! Now, this says more about me, than a fault with the canning method, I’m sure. I just have a harder time dealing with an entire open pot of boiling water, than a sealed pressure canner with a few inches of water in the bottom.

Because pressure canning requires, well… pressure, you need to put on the lid. This means that I literally close off the water before it’s ever hot enough to burn me or be a concern if it does happen to splash out.

Another reason I find pressure canning easier, is that I can put in cold jars, with cold water, and heat them together evenly. This means I’m not working with boiling hot jam with boiling hot jars, going into boiling hot water. I’m able to move more slowly and methodically because of this!

Simpler Recipes with Pressure Canning

One last reason I find pressure canning easier, is the nature of the recipes. Most water bath canning recipes require you to do a bit of cooking to get the product for canning. For example, jam, apple pie filling, and pickles all require you to actually make the foods before you preserve them.

Many of my favorite pressure canning recipes are the opposite! To make chicken soup, I just throw meat, vegetables, and water/broth into a jar and away I go! If you want a closer look at the recipe I use to make chicken soup for canning, you can check that out here!

Water Bath Canning Vs Pressure Canning: FAQ

How do I Choose Between Water Bath or Pressure Canning?

Any recipe worth following will tell you if you are pressure canning or water bath canning. Any time you are reading a recipe that mentions pressure or psi, you are reading a pressure canning recipe.

Because they have different uses, the recipe and food you are making decides for you.

High-acid foods = Water Bath Canning

Low acid foods = Pressure Canning

Do I Need Special Tools to Start Canning?

The entire list of tools you need are listed above, but the only difference between water bath canning vs pressure canning when it comes to tools is the canner itself.

Water Bath canning simply needs large pot to hold your jars and cover them with water.

While the only special equipment needed for Pressure Canning needs an actual pressure canner with a pressure gauge.

Does it Matter what Jars I Use?

According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, the jars you need are defined as “Regular and wide-mouth Mason-type, threaded, home-canning jars with self-sealing lids are the best choice. They are available in ½ pint jars, pint jars, 1½ pint jars, quart jars, and ½ gallon size jars.”

Popular Jar Brands

• Ball
• Kerr
• Weck
• Anchor Hocking

How Do I Know it’s Safe?

As stated above, the largest safety issue to keep in mind when canning is presence of botulism spores. Thankfully, when you follow a USDA approved recipe from Ball or the National Center for Home Preservation, it has been tested for safety in their food labs. As long as you follow the recipe and the jar seals, your jars of food should be safe.

If at any point during storage the vacuum seal on your jar is compromised, throw the contents of the jar away.

As with any food, use your common sense! If the food smells bad, or tastes bad, don’t eat it! Bad food will almost always BE BAD!

Follow the recipes, check your seals, and your food will be as safe as it can be.

How Long Does Canned Food Last?

According to the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), High-acid foods will keep their best quality for up to 18 months. Low-acid foods can maintain quality for 2 to 5 years.

If jars and lids remain dent free with no swelling or rust, and are stored in a cool, dark place, they are safe indefinitely.