Canning Tomatoes = Summertime all Year Long!

Step 8: Tomato Goodness

Using tongs, remove the jars from the hot water. Careful because they are very, very hot!
I place the jars on a dry kitchen towel with plenty of space around them.
Let them cool for several hours. As they cool down, the lids start to shrink and that's what creates the vacuum seal. Take a look at the lids periodically and you'll see that the bump in the middle of the lid becomes almost  a little dimple. Then you know they are safe to store. If any jar doesn't seal, store it in the refrigerator and eat soon. The rest of the jars can be stored for many months in a dark cool place.

Yum! Yum! Yum!

Comments

[paxamont]

Nice post! here in Spain, my girlfriend's grandma first hot the bottles and after a while put the lids and fills the pot of water over the bottles, like you say. This may be because first scapes the air, and then there is only hot gased water. After all the process when the bottles gets cold, the gas make the vacuum. In Spanish the cooking process of hot bottles in a pot of water without boiling is called "baño María" that means "Maria's bath", but I don't know why :)

[bahi]

I always wrap some old towels between the jars, some jars may explode when the water boils because of the vibrations, the jars could bump slightly between each other.

[kathleenhenri]

Good idea.

[bahi]

Good instructable btw. :)