Canning Asparagus: Easy, Fully Illustrated Step-by-Step Directions and Recipe to Make Home Canned Asparagus! (2024)

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Canning Asparagus: Easy, Fully Illustrated Step-by-Step Directions and Recipe to Make Home Canned Asparagus!

Asparagus is easy to can! All you need is a Pressure Canner (it is avery low acid food, so a plain water bath canner won't work). If a waterbath canner is all you have, you can still makepickled asparagus (see thispage). Here are the directions to can your own asparagus, so you caneat better, save money and have better tasting canned asparagus!

Note: asparagus is also sold in awhite (blanchedform of asparagus) and purple asparagus. Same process forthose!

Ingredients

• Asparagus - raw, fresh. Use tender, tight-tipped spears, 4 to 6inches long.

  An average of 241/2 pounds makes a canner load of 7 quarts; an average of 16pounds is needed per canner load of 9 pint jars. A crate of fresh asparagusweighs 31 pounds and yields 7 to 12 quarts - that's an average of 31/2 poundsper quart.

Equipment

• Pressure Canner works and its components" longdesc="Diagram of how a Pressure Canner works and its components" style="float: right">PressureCanner - as mentioned in the introduction, you will need a pressurecanner. Like green beans and corn, asparagus does not have enoughacidity to prevent the growth of bacteria, and ordinary boiling water bathcanners don't reach the temperatures high enough to kill the spores.
  
• Jar grabber (to pick up the hot jars)
  
• Jar funnel ($4 at mall kitchen stores and local "big box" stores, but it's usually cheaper online from our affiliates)
  
• At least 1 large pot, 2 works better
  
• Large spoons and ladles,
  
• Ball jars (Publix, Kroger, other grocery stores and some "big box" stores carry them - now about $12 per dozen quart jars (up 50% in 2 years!) including the lids and rings)
  
• Salt (optional - I don't use any)
  

Step by Step Directions

We're using photos of green beans since asparagus was out of season when wemade this page, but the process is accurate!

Step 1 - Get your equipment ready

Thisis a good time to start a large pot of water boiling on low heat (to fill yourjars, around the asparagus; and also to start your canner heatingup (with the lid off and a few inches of water in the bottom - leave the heatvery low so you don't let it boil dry!). You can also get your canningjars cleaning in your dishwasher. The pressure canner will ensure theycontents and the jars, lids, etc. are sterile, so you don't need topre-sanitize, but you certainly want to start with a jar that is clean!Lids can start softening in a pot of hot, but not quite boiling water.

Step 2 - Wash the asparagus

Wash asparagus and trim off tough scales. Break off the bottom tough part ofthe stems (when you bend the stems in your hands, they tend to naturally breakoff when the stem starts to become tender) and wash again.

Step 3 - Cut to fit your jars

You can cut the spears to fit your jars (leaving room for 1 inch ofheadspace) or you can cut them into smaller sized pieces, as you prefer! Somepeople like whole spears, some like 1 inch pieces and some in between..

Step 4 - Pack the jars

We'reusing the raw pack method here, since the jars will spend plenty of time in thepressure canner at higher temperatures anyway! Fill jars with raw asparagus,packing as tightly as possible without crushing, being sure to leave 1-inchheadspace at the top of the jar.

Step 5 - Add salt, if desired

Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart to the jars, if desired. It is only to suityour taste; it does not add any preservative properties here.

Step 6 - Add the boiling water

Add boiling water to the jars, again, leaving 1-inch headspace.

Step 7 - Seal the jars

Put the lids and rings on and make them snug, but don't over tighten them.

Step 8 - Put the jars in the canner and the lid on the canner (butstill vented)

Using the jar tongs, put the jars on the rack in the canner. Bynow the water level has probably boiled down to 3 inches. If it islower than that, add more hot tap water to the canner. When all the jarsthat the canner will hold are in, put on the lid and twist it intoplace, but leave the weight off (or valve open, if you have that type ofpressure canner).

Step 9 - Let the canner vent steam for 10 minutes

Put the heat on high and let the steam escape throughthe vent for 10 minutes to purge the airspace inside the canner.

Step 10 - Put the weight on and let the pressure build

After 10 minutes of venting, put the weight on and close any openingsto allow the pressure to build to 11 pounds.

Step 11 - Process according to the table below

Once the gauge hits 10 pounds, start your timer going - for 30-40 minutes- see the table below.Adjust the heat, as needed, to maintain 10 pounds of pressure.

Note: the chart at right will help you determine the right processingtime and pressure, if you have a different type of canner, or are above sealevel.

It is important to learn how to operate your pressure canner by readingthe owner's manual that came with your particular canner. If you cannotfind your owner's manual, you can obtain find one online: Here is where tofind some common manufacturer's manuals:

• Presto cannermanuals

or by contacting the company that made your canner. Give the model numberto the manufacturer, and they will send you the right manual. Click here formoreinformation about pressure canners and a variety of models you can order.

Adjust lids and process as recommended below, according to the methodof canning used.

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Step 12 - Turn off the heat and let it cool down

When the processing time from the chart above is up, turn off the heat, and allow the pressure canner to cool and the pressure to drop to zero before opening the canner. Let the jars cool without being jostled. After the pressure drops to zero (usually, you can tell but the "click" sound of the safety release vents opening, as well as but the gauge. Let the pressure in the canner drop to zero by itself. This may take 45 minutes in a 16-quart canner filled with jars and almost an hour in a 22-quart canner. If the vent is opened before the pressure drops to zero OR if the cooling is rushed by running cold water over the canner, liquid will be lost from the jars. Too rapid cooling causes loss of liquid in the jars!

Step 13 - Remove the jars

Lift the jars out of the water and let them cool on a wooden cuttingboard or a towel, without touching orbumping them in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight), here theywon't be bumped. You can then remove the rings if you like, but if you leave them on, at least loosen them quite a bit, so they don't rust in place due to trapped moisture. Once the jars are cool, you can check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. Just press in the center, gently, with your finger. If it pops up and down (often making a popping sound), it is not sealed. If you put the jar in the refrigerator right away, you can still use it. Some people replace the lid and reprocess the jar, then that's a bit iffy. If you heat the contents back up, re-jar them (with a new lid) and the full time in the canner, it's usually ok. You're done!

This document was adapted from the "Complete Guide to Home Canning,"Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 539, USDA, revised 1994. Reviewed June2006.

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