Open Jar of Spaghetti Sauce - How Long in Refrigerator?
suzieque
15 years ago
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suzieque
15 years agominnie_tx
15 years agoRelated Discussions
Getting Conflicting Advice Re Spaghetti Sauce
Comments (18)Lisa, Boy, do I hear you! I started canning when I lived in the city and begain growing tomatoes in the backyard. Had a big harvest and wanted to not waste it. What I didn't realize was how good it would feel to have that sense of self-reliance. I first thought of my home-canned goods a special treats, to take out on special occasions or show off for guests. But I found it easy and fun to can and before long I was canning all the tomato products we ate in a year right from my backyard garden on the streetcar line in Toronto! Most of my friends thought it was weird --- at first I had a hard time even finding the equipment (I remember a young stock boy in the grocery store looking at me with a completely blank look on his face when I asked if they sold jars; he gestured at an aisle of commercial jarred tomato sauce (DUH, lady, there are jars everywhere), and when I said, "No, I mean, EMPTY jars," he clearly thought I was insane. ;-0 ). (In the end I discovered they could order it for me easily at the local chain hardware.) Anyway, I'm warning you that you never know where it will end! Somehow I'm now living in a tiny town of 4,000, buying most of my produce in the warm months at farm stands, and filling up my pantry every fall with home canning (I got a freezer, too). This winter I started making my own sandwich bread and adding a few meals a week based around beans, which I now cook from dried rather than canned. Just like you, I find it incredibly satisfying. Some folks on this forum put up almost all their own food, raise their own meat, etc.; I'm not nearly in that category. But I feel really good looking at shelves full of food I preserved, tasting summer in the frozen goodies, and knowing that if we don't have time or energy to shop or cook one evening, there's plenty of good, homemade stuff to eat in a jar or a freezer bag. My urban friends still think I'm odd but they love getting homemade goodies as gifts. Good luck! Z P.S. jude, great illustration of the "successful sauce" theory of "failed jam" ! ;-)...See Moreadding green peppers and onions to spaghetti sauce
Comments (38)That's the problem we often encounter - like the one from food.com it is just someone's personal recipe and from someone who has no food safety training at all. There are hundreds of such recipes published out there that have never been tested and yet someone claims they are fine to can just because they made it and it didn't kill anyone. Actual approved and tested canning recipes come from only a few legit sources. So when you choose to use such recipes you have to be willing to take the risks OR you first evaluate it against the current safety guidelines and adjust it accordingly. Salsa is a good example of a very borderline food and is subject to many restrictions. It sounds as if it should only be pressure canned but the 1 cup + of vinegar (or bottled lemon juice) in most recipes gives us a bit of wiggle room and still be safe doing BWB canning. But when in doubt or with any insufficiently acidified borderline recipes you either pressure can or freeze them only. So make your sauce and freeze it. Dave...See MoreSalsa/spaghetti sauce - which tomatoes?
Comments (23)Assuming that there are no spores in the acidified food, why is underprocessing an issue? Because there is no way to make that assumption safely. You have no way of knowing if they are there or not. And given that spores are in the air and in foods and on surfaces all around us, the functioning assumption for safety is that they ARE there. Plus you are putting the cart before the horse. Under-processing is a safety issue period. It isn't acceptable. It can't be justified after the fact. It can only be dealt with either by reprocessing within 24 hours or refrigeration or freezing, or by pitching the food. This, regardless of what may or may not be in the food. 'm just trying to figure out why you recommended refrigerating the underprocessed (but sealed) jars. As I said above, In this particular case of under processing it is the air that remained in the food and in the jar because the water wasn't hot enough to bring the food inside the jar to a boil and force the air out. So while you have a seal, it is a compromised seal and there is still air and an incomplete vacuum inside the jar. Can't say it any plainer. Under-processed jars still have air in the jar. If there is bacteria in the jar that air allows it to grow. And the jars have compromised seals, that are easily broken. Refrigerating the jars retards the growth of any contaminants inside the jar and allows you a brief time to to consume them safely just like anything else you buy at the store and bring home to stick in the fridge. We are beating a dead horse here. It all comes down to do it right so it is safe or pitch it. Don't try to reason around mistakes or come up with compromises unless you are willing to accept the associated risks. I offered you what is considered by most to be an acceptable compromise - a short but safe life in the refrigerator for under-processed foods. If you aren't comfortable with it then just pitch the food. Also why rolling boil is required instead of gentle boil, etc. The simple answer would be because that is what the research shows is needed for the processing time allowed. But yes, NCHFP does explain it - so did basic high school chemistry class on the molecular action of boiling water. ;) A full rolling boil at 220 degrees is approximately 10 degrees higher than a gentle boil and all the extra molecular action, the increased friction between the molecules, within the water allows for faster heat transfer to the food inside the jar so that food is brought to 212 degrees in less time and for a longer amount of time than would happen with less activity in the water. In other words, when a gentle boil is used, food in the jar doesn't get as hot as quickly or remain hot for as long a period of time as it would at a full rolling boil. Since it is the heating of the food that forces the air out of the jar to create a vacuum you need it to get as hot as possible in as short a time as possible. Don't sell NCHFP short. There is months and months of reading and learning there both on the site itself and in it's many publications linked from the site. Dave...See MoreRoasted Tomato Spaghetti Sauce
Comments (2)Whew, that's a lot of hard work, but I bet it was worth every ounce! I LOVE roasted or grilled tomatoes. I bet if you opened one of those jars, heated it up with a little cream and a touch of olive oil.....YUM roasted/smoked tomato soup! Homemade croutons....heaven! Great job!...See Moresusanjf_gw
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