Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving

by Ball Corporation

Book.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Reference, Food Preservation, Gardening

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Maggie Dwyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the Gold Standard when it comes to safely canning or freezing fruit and vegetables. It discusses how to safely prepare and process fruits, vegetables, and prepared foods via freezing, processing in a hot water bath, or pressure canning.

There are lots of editions of the book in existence, but it's difficult to find a really new one. And several publishers seem to have a part of the rights for putting out these various Ball (the company producing the jars and accouterments for canning) books.

This one, with this cover, published in 1994, has kept me busy for a dozen years of canning and freezing. If you're in doubt about the most modern research and methods, turn to the University of Georgia's National Center for Home Food Preservation. https://nchfp.uga.edu/

*Note: I did find a newer book I'm using now, the "All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving: Over 350 of the Best Canned, Jammed, Pickled, and Preserved Recipes." Out in 2016.

[Margot · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're interested in preserving, you might as well buy a copy for yourself. This book will tell you how to do it safely...and it's inexpensive.

[Michelle Sanseverino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting canning book. Covers pressure canning, water canning, dehydrating, and freezing. So many recipes and ideas. Kinda makes me want to make canning my whole personality for the rest of the year.

[Closeacademy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The go-to book for canning. We're on our 3rd copy as we've used the others to bits and pieces over the years.

[Daelith · Rating 5 out of 5]

My go-to book for canning. Love it.

[jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The very best guide to canning vegetables and fruits.

[Rachel Meints · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book if you are familiar with the basics of canning, such as altitude adjustments.

[Bear Paw · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a solid reference book for canning. Safe and proven methods. Always one of my go-to books for canning.

[Nicole Romine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this book out from the library and will be shortly purchasing a copy for myself. This book was a very helpful introduction to preserving. It includes concise but complete explanations about both how to preserve food and the food science underlying your endeavors in the kitchen. It clearly explains the different preserving techniques and provides great yet simple recipes for the varied techniques. I used multiple recipes from the book, including pear jam and jalapeño salsa, and found them easy to follow and satisfying. Overall, this is a great resource book for those new to the world of preserving food.

[The Pike family · Rating 4 out of 5]

Years ago, I had a garden that was about 3/4 acre. I used to can practically everything that we would eat through the winter. This book gives you the principles and the basic recipes.
Lately, I have really felt impressed to grow a garden and to start sharing this talent that I had ( still do I suppose?) with others. But somewhere along the line I had given up my equipment and the book. Today I went and re bought it. I opened the pages and it was like a visit with an old friend. I can't wait to get started!
This is a great resource to have!

[A.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally bought this last year, read through the whole thing, forgot to write a review. I own another book on canning and preserving by Carol Costenbander that is nearly as exhaustive as this classic, but ultimately I found that the Ball Blue Book covers a wider range of fruits and vegetables and is a little more detailed about the preparation of some. I also like the larger pages, lighter weight, and full color illustrations. If you're looking for a good straightforward guide on canning and preserving, this is without a doubt the one to get.

[Lea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a solid reference book with lots of great information, but I find the organization of the recipes to be not entirely helpful to answering questions like "I have a bunch of XYZ, how can I preserve it?" The recipes are organized by preparation method, not by main ingredient, and the index is very incomplete. So while there may be a great recipe for an apple chutney, you won't necessarily find it by looking for an "apple" entry in the index.

[Jeni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Billed as The Gold Standard in canning, Ball doesn't disappoint. Helpful to find all sorts of recipes beyond the expected canning and preserving ones (which were indeed quite helpful) - I know this will be earmarked as I sign up for my first CSA box that maaaaaay be more than I can handle on busy weeks.

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to pressure can (which you need to do to safely can most things beyond jams see link: among others this is a good start. It's not the most exciting read (even the new edition which I picked up at Ace Hardware), but it gets the job (safely) done.

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend sent me this when I mentioned that I wanted to learn to can tomatoes and make jam. I have found this to be a wonderful book. It has such good information. I especially liked that it had the detailed sections on what consistencies should be and it also has multiple options for canning things. I never knew there were so many ways to preserve tomatoes!

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have had this book since I was a teenager and was given this copy by my mother. It is my "go to" guide for canning and freezing tips for all kinds of fruits and vegetables. It includes lots of useful information on safety, as well as recipes for using your canned and frozen fruits and vegetables.

[Ginger · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's THE reference book for canning. Invaluable. No cute stories, not a lot of unusual recipes, but you'll reach for it every time you need to can something basic - too many tomatoes? Suckered into a lug of peaches? Can't remember how much sugar to put with strawberries for jam? This book will tell you, and it's easy to use.

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a version that is at least 30 years old and I'm guessing it is still pretty similar. This book has been a fabulous companion through the canning process, especially for a newbie. :) The apple pie filling recipe is heavenly!

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my 'go to' book for making jelly, pickles and preserving. Wonderful pictures, lots of great information that help to take the mystery out of canning. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in preserving. I have my favorite recipes well-marked in this one.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

The jelly maker's bible. Don't even attempt canning for the first time without this book.

[Kimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything you ever wanted to know about canning.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great basic book for preserving.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book contains all the time honored classics. You can't go wrong when you use this book while preserving your food.

[Dunrie]

Working on this, now that Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle inspired me!

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The go-to guide for canning or freezing.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE go-to book for home canning.

[D. Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is a definite must-have for anyone who wants to do any level of canning. All of the important data along with recipes. Win/win.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book for canning just about anything! I canned the peaches and green beans according to the step-by-stop instructions and they turned out wonderful!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This really is an invaluable book for anyone interested in learning to can. I made 44 jars of jam using recipes in this book that I slightly modified. Next up is pickles and tomatoes!

[Mac Janovick Custer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the reference I always use when I do canning!