Introduction
It is so rewarding to can carrots when they are in season, and there is an abundance of them. Canning carrots or other vegetables such as green beans are a great way to preserve them when there are too many in your vegetable garden, or you find them in bulk at the farmers’ market.
Having jars of carrots in your refrigerator is useful for adding to soups, casseroles, or stews. Take advantage of the seasonal harvests to stock your shelves with golden goodness! It is satisfying to see the shelves filling up was nice to fill the pantry with fresh home canned carrots.
Because carrots are a low-acid food, they are traditionally always canned using a pressure cooker to heat them to 240 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature eliminates food-borne bacteria. Ordinary boiling methods will not reach this temperature.
Carrots and other low acid foods are preserved using a pressure canner, which heats the contents to 240˚F (116 degrees Celsius). Either a pressure cooker or a pressure canner works perfectly for canning carrots.
However, what if you do not have either of these appliances? It can be a challenging task to can carrots without a pressure cooker, but it is possible. We’ll tell you here about a couple of methods to can carrots without a pressure cooker.
Canning Carrots Without Pressure Cooker
A pressure cooker is preferred for canning because it helps kill all the bacteria in the sterilization process to make your food last longer.
Warning: Pressure canning is the most effective way of killing the botulism potential. The water bath canning carrot mentioned below is a traditional method that our grandmothers and great-grandmothers used. However, it is not recommended by food safety experts. Try at your own risk!
1. Hot Water Bath
A hot water bath is one of the oldest methods of canning carrots. For this, you need:
- An oven or boiling water for sterilizing the jars
- Glass jars
- A large pot
- A wire rack
- Carrots
- Salt
- First of all, wash your glass jars and lids in hot soapy water. Rinse and them well. Boil the jars and lids for 15 minutes in boiling water to sterilize.
Alternatively, put them into the oven on a baking tray and heat them to 275 degrees Fahrenheit (135 degrees Celsius). Leave them in the oven for at least 20 minutes. You can also sterilize them in the microwave. - Leave them wet after rinsing, then microwave on High for 60 seconds.
- While the jars are sterilized, peel and trim the carrots and slice them into the desired shapes.t
- Put the carrot pieces in the sterilized jars and add a pinch of sea salt to each. Do not use iodized salt as this will discolor the carrots or make the preserving liquid go cloudy.
- Fill each jar with hot water. Push the carrots down slightly with a spoon to eliminate any air bubbles. You should cover all the carrots. Cover the jars tightly with their lids.
- Put the rack into the pot and arrange the jars on it. The jars must not touch the sides of the pot. Cover the jars with water. The water must be 1-3 inches over the tops of the jars.
- Cover the pot with its lid. Bring the water to a boil and simmer for about 30 minutes.
- Remove the jars from the water bath carefully and allow them to cool. You should hear the lids popping as they create a seal.
We recommend storing water bath canned carrots in the refrigerator since a water bath does not work as perfectly as pressurized canning does, so chilling the jars is an extra precaution.
2. Pickled Carrots
Pickled carrots are a great option if you don’t have a pressure cooker because the pickling mixture’s acidity helps preserve them. The natural sweetness in carrots pairs well with sweet-sour-salty pickling brine. Sterilize your lids and jars as above and prepare your carrots. Here’s a recipe for you to try:
- 4 cups peeled fresh, small carrots
- 3 cups white vinegar
- ½ cup water
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon pickling spice
- 2X1 pint jars
- Heat the vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and spices in a small saucepan until boiling.
- Add the prepared carrots. Bring to the boil again, then simmer for about 5-8 minutes. You don’t want your carrots to become too soft.
- Fill the warm jars with the hot carrots, then cover them with the pickling liquid. Remove any bubbles by inserting a knife into the jars.
- Wipe the rims of the jars clean and screw the lids on.
- Place them in a water bath as before and process for about 20 minutes.
- Remove from the water bath and leave them to cool. You should hear them pop as they seal.
- They will be ready to use within about 3 days.
How to Use Canned Carrots
Canned carrots in brine are so useful to add to soups, stews, or casseroles. Add them to the main dish 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time. The pickled version is delicious for simply snacking on or as an addition to your cold salad and meat platters.
Conclusion
We hope you have enjoyed this article about some of the best carrot canning methods with no pressure cooker. Let us know in the comment section how yours turn out!