31. The COLD-PACK METHOD of canning differs from the open-kettle method
in that the food to be canned is not cooked in a kettle before placing
it in the jars and sealing them. In this method, the food to be canned
is prepared by washing, peeling, scraping, hulling, stemming, seeding,
or cutting, depending on the kind. Then it is _scalded_ or _blanched_
and plunged into cold water quickly and taken out immediately, the
latter operation being called _cold-dipping_. After this it is placed
into hot jars, covered with boiling liquid--boiling water and salt for
vegetables, meats, fish, or soups, and boiling sirup for fruits. Then
the filled jars are covered loosely and placed in a water bath and
_processed_; that is, cooked and sterilized. When food that is being
canned is subjected to processing only once, the method is referred to
as the _one-period cold-pack method_; but when the food in the jars has
not been blanched and cold-dipped and is processed, allowed to stand 24
hours and then processed again, and this operation repeated, it is
called the _fractional-sterilization method_. The equipment required for
the cold-pack canning method and the procedure in performing the work
are taken up in detail, so that every point concerning the work may be
thoroughly understood.
[Illustration: FIG. 6]
32. UTENSILS REQUIRED.--The utensils required for canning by the
cold-pack method are shown assembled in Fig. 6. Chief among them is a
_sterilizer_, or boiler, which consists of a large fiat-bottomed vessel
fitted with a rack and a tight-fitting cover. A number of such devices
are manufactured for canning by the cold-pack method, but it is possible
to improvise one in the home. A wash boiler, a large pail, a large lard
can, or, in fact, any large vessel with a flat bottom into which is
fitted a rack of some kind to keep the jars 3/4 inch above the bottom
can be used. Several layers of wire netting cut to correct size and
fastened at each end to a 3/4-inch strip of wood will do very well for a
rack. In any event, the vessel must be deep enough to allow the water to
cover the jars completely and must have a tight-fitting cover. Besides a
sterilizer, there are needed three large vessels, one for scalding the
food that is to be canned, one for cold-dipping, and one for keeping the
jars hot. To hold the food that is to be dipped, a sieve, a wire
basket, also shown in Fig. 6, or a large square of cheesecloth must also
be provided, and for placing jars in the water bath, a can lifter, a
type of which is shown on the table in Fig. 6, may be needed. The
remainder of the equipment is practically the same as that described
under the heading General Equipment for Canning.