Canning Mixed Tropical Fruit

I walked into the grocery store the other day and saw a large display of mangoes at seasonal prices. Personally, I did not waste much time snatching some up. After I had my fill of fresh mangoes. I decided to can a mixture of Mangoes, pineapple and papaya.


The PH of papaya is actually above 4.6 (the cut off point for safely canning in a water bath canner). Some sort of acid (such as lemon juice) has to be added. I handled this by making the syrup out of pineapple juice, rather than water.

The ratio of the different types of fruit isn't that important, but I chose to make them about equal. I used 8 mangoes, 2 pineapples, and 2 papayas. This made 10 pints.

For the syrup I used a quart of unsweetened pineapple Juice and 1 1/2 cups sugar. This is a light syrup. For a heavier syrup, the quantity of sugar could be increased. Simply mix the juice and sugar together, and bring it to a boil.

When canning fruit, if you simply mixed all of the fruit and syrup and started ladling it into the jars all together, you would probably end up with too much syrup in some jars, and not enough in others.

To solve this problem, add part of the fruit to the syrup. Leave enough room in the pan that you can still get a ladle full of syrup without the fruit getting in your way. Cook until the fruit is heated through (about 3 minutes). Use a slotted spoon to fill the jars with fruit leaving 1/2 inch headspace, and cover this with syrup.

Figuring out the processing time for my mixture was easy because when I looked up the processing times for the individual fruits, they were all the same. Pints are processed in a water bath for 15 minutes, and quarts are processed for 20 minutes.

High altitude instructions
1,001 - 3,000 feet : increase processing time by 5 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet : increase processing time by 10 minutes
6,001 - 8,000 feet : increase processing time by 15 minutes
8,001 - 10,000 feet : increase processing time by 20 minutes

Read more...

Two Pineapple Canning Recipes

Pineapple is in season. Obviously I don't have a local source, for pineapple, but I have to pick some up at the grocery store while it is in season. I was looking through the index of one of my canning recipe books trying to decide which pineapple jam recipe I wanted to use this year. For some reason, the word "raspberries" jumped out at me. Suddenly those two sounded like a great combination to me. Since I couldn't find a recipe that had them both, before you knew it I was experimenting again.


It set well, so my experiment was a success in that area. As for taste, it was ok, but it really didn't turn out quite the way I expected. I think I might try it again with more pineapple, and less raspberry.

Pineapple-Raspberry Jam
Yield is about 6 half pint jars.

2 cups finely chopped pineapple
2 cups crushed raspberries
1 package powdered Pectin
5 cups sugar

Combine pineapple, berries and pectin. Bring to boil over high heat. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Bring to a rolling boil. Boil for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam, if necessary. Fill hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Add lids and process 10 minutes in a water bath.

High altitude instructions
1,001 - 3,000 feet : increase processing time by 5 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet : increase processing time by 10 minutes
6,001 - 8,000 feet : increase processing time by 15 minutes
8,001 - 10,000 feet : increase processing time by 20 minutes



I also decided to make some pineapple pickles this year. The recipe is based on a recipe from the Ball Blue Book. Their recipe infuses the brine with flavor by boiling the seasonings in the brine for a while, then discarding the seasonings before canning. I happen to like the method of putting the seasonings in the jar and letting the flavor gradually infuse while the pickles sit on the shelf. I also had some ginger root on hand and decided to throw that in too.

Pickled Pineapple
Yield is 4 Pint Jars

2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup vinegar
1 cup water
4 cinnamon sticks (about 2 inches long)
12 allspice berries
12 cloves
4 slices ginger root
2 pineapples (cut into spears)

Combine brown sugar, vinegar, and water. Heat to simmering. Place one stick cinnamon, 3 allspice berries, 3 cloves, one slice ginger root in each jar. Pack pineapple into jars, and add brine leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Add lids and process 10 minutes in a water bath.

High altitude instructions
1,001 - 3,000 feet : increase processing time by 5 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet : increase processing time by 10 minutes
6,001 - 8,000 feet : increase processing time by 15 minutes
8,001 - 10,000 feet : increase processing time by 20 minutes
Read more...