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How to Make Your Own Home Canned Potatoes (complete directions with photos)

How to Make Homemade Canned Potatoes

Canning your own potatoes is easy to do at home!  The only trick is, you really do need a pressure canner. You might ask why can them, since potatoes are readily available year round, but if you grow your own organic potatoes, don't have a cold cellar to store them, or simply want potatoes that are ready to use in cooking (like mash potatoes, scalloped potatoes, etc.) then this is the way to go. So, here's how to can potatoes!  The directions are  complete with instructions in easy steps and completely illustrated. In the winter when you open a jar, the potatoes will taste MUCH better than any store-bought canned potatoes.

You DO need a pressure canner! Every university food science department and the government will tell you that it just is not safe to use the water bath bath method; it takes the higher temperatures of the pressure canner to kill the botulism bacteria. BUT, with a pressure canner it's easy.  And although a pressure canner costs $100 to $200 (see this page for pressure canners models, makes and prices), they last a lifetime, and your children and grandchildren may be using it. You can also find free information from the USDA in this PDF file (it will take a while to load!) about selecting and using canners here!

Prepared this way, the jars have a shelf life of about 12 months, and aside from storing in a cool, dark place, require no special attention. 

 

 

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Directions for Making Canned Potatoes

Ingredients and Equipment

Recipe and Directions

Step 1 - Selecting the potatoes

The most important step! Select small to medium-size mature potatoes of ideal quality for cooking. Tubers stored below 45ºF may discolor when canned. Choose potatoes 1 to 2 inches in diameter if they are to be packed whole.

You can use red, white, yellow potatoes of any variety.  Boiling potatoes tend to can better than bakers.

How many potatoes and where to get them

You can grow your own, pick your own, or buy them at the grocery store. It takes about 10 to 14 pounds of potatoes to make 7 quarts; OR 5 to 8 pounds to make 9 pints. This works out to an average of 1 to 2 pounds per quart. But it can vary a lot, depending upon the shape, depth of the eyes, bruises, how deeply you peel, etc.

Step 2 - Prepare the jars and pressure canner

Wash the jars and lids

This is a good time to get the jars ready! The dishwasher is fine for the jars; especially if it has a "sanitize" cycle. Otherwise put the jars in boiling water for 10 minutes. I just put the lids in a small pot of almost boiling water for 5 minutes, and use the magnetic "lid lifter wand" (available from target, other big box stores, and often grocery stores; and available online - see this page) to pull them out.

Get a large pot of water boiling over low heat

We will use this water to pour over the potatoes and fill each jar with liquid, after we've packed them full of potatoes. I use the large sauce pan or 10 qt pot, so that there is plenty of clean, boiling water ready when I need it.

Get the pressure canner heating up

Rinse out your pressure canner (at right in the picture), put the rack plate in the bottom, and fill it to a depth of 4 inches with hot tap water. (of course, follow the instruction that came with the canner, if they are different). Put it on the stove over low heat, with the lid OFF of it, just to get it heating up for use later on.

Get 1 more pot going on the stove over high heat

You will need one large pot (12 quarts or larger, at left in the photo above) 3/4 filled with water, in which you will  blanch the potatoes.

Step 3 -Wash the potatoes!

I'm sure you can figure out how to rinse the potatoes in plain cold or lukewarm water and a vegetable scrubber

 

 

 

 

 

Step 4 - Peel the potatoes, and remove any soft or discolored spots

Just like when you were in the army!  And if you weren't, just use a paring knife or peeler to peel them and cut out eyes and any soft or discolored areas.

 

 

Step 5 - Cut the potatoes into cubes

Small potatoes (2 inches or less) may be left whole. Larger potatoes should be cubed, cut into 1/2 inch cubes.  If you are unsure which to do, the uniform size of the cubed potatoes produces a higher quality finished product.

 

Step 6 - Soak in Lemon Juice Solution or Ascorbic Acid or Fruit Fresh solution

Place in ascorbic acid solution (1 cup lemon juice to 1 gallon of water, or 2 tablespoons of fruit Fresh to a gallon of water) to prevent darkening; until you get the jars filled. How long is pretty much immaterial; your are trying to keep the potatoes from being exposed to air until you can get them sealed in the jars. The ascobic acid / lemon juice prevents oxygen dissolved in the water from browning the cut potatoes, too!

Step 7 - Drain

Just pour off the water and discard it. Obviously, KEEP the potatoes...

 

Step 8 - Cook the potatoes

Cook cubed potatoes for 2 minutes in the large pot of boiling water and drain again. For whole potatoes, boil for 10 minutes and drain. Actually, this is more of a blanching step than fully cooking.

Step 9 - Drain the potatoes, and pack the jars

Fill jars, leaving a full 1-inch of headspace. You may add 1 teaspoon of salt to each quart jar, if desired, for taste (it is not a preservative - it is only for taste. I omit it).

Fill jars loosely with potatoes. Be sure to leave 1 inch of space at the TOP of the jar.  That is called "headspace" and is needed for expansion during heating. 

Step 10 - Fill the jars with boiling water

Fill the jars up to 1 inch from the top with clean boiling water.

Use a ladle or pyrex measuring cup to carefully fill each packed jar with water from pot of boiling water. The potatoes should be covered and there should still be 1 inch of airspace left in the top of each jar. Be careful not to burn yourself, (or anyone else - children should be kept back during this step!) 

Step 11 - Put the lids and rings on

Put the lids on each jar and seal them by putting a ring on and screwing it down snugly (but not with all your might, just "snug").

Step 12 - Put the jars in the pressure canner and the lid on the canner (but still vented)

Using the jar tongs, put the jars on the rack in the canner.  By now the water level has probably boiled down to 3 inches.  If it is lower than that, add more hot tap water to the canner. When all the jars that the canner will hold are in, out on the lid and twist it into place, but leave the weight off (or valve open, if you have that type of pressure canner).

Step 13 - Let the canner vent steam for 10 minutes

Put the heat on high and let the steam escape through the vent for 10 minutes to purge the airspace inside the canner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 14 - Put the weight on and let the pressure build

After 10 minutes of venting, put the weight on and close any openings to allow the pressure to build to 11 pounds.

Step 15 - Process for 35 minutes

If you have a dial-type pressure canner like I do, once the gauge hits 11 pounds, start your timer going - for 35 minutes.  Adjust the heat, as needed, to maintain 11 pounds of pressure.

Note: the charts at right will help you determine the right processing time and pressure, if you have a different type of canner, or are above sea level.

Recommended process time for Potatoes in a dial-gauge pressure canner.
		Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of
Jar Size	Process Time	0 - 2,000 ft	2,001 - 4,000 ft	4,001 - 6,000 ft	6,001 - 8,000 ft
Pints	35 min	11 lb	12 lb	13 lb	14 lb
Quarts	40	11	12	13	14

 

Recommended process time for Potatoes in a weighted-gauge pressure canner.
		Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of
Jar Size	Process Time	0 - 1,000 ft	Above 1,000 ft
Pints	35 min	10 lb	15 lb
Quarts	40	10	15

It is important to learn how to operate your pressure canner by reading the owner's manual that came with your particular canner. If you can not find your owner's manual, you can obtain find one online: Here is where to find some common manufacturer's manuals:

• Presto canner manuals

or by contacting the company that made your canner. Give the model number to the manufacturer, and they will send you the right manual. Click here for more information about pressure canners and a variety of models you can order.

Step 16 - Turn off the heat and let it cool down

When the processing time from the chart above is up, turn off the heat, and allow the pressure canner to cool and the pressure to drop to zero before opening the canner.  Let the jars cool without being jostled. After the pressure drops to zero (usually, you can tell but the "click" sound of the safety release vents opening, as well as but the gauge.  Let the pressure in the canner drop to zero by itself. This may take 45 minutes in a 16-quart canner filled with jars and almost an hour in a 22-quart canner. If the vent is opened before the pressure drops to zero OR if the cooling is rushed by running cold water over the canner, liquid will be lost from the jars. Too rapid cooling causes loss of liquid in the jars! 

 

 

Step 17 - Remove the jars

Lift the jars out of the water and let them cool on a wooden cutting board or a towel,  without touching or bumping them in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight), here they won't be bumped. You can then remove the rings if you like, but if you leave them on, at least loosen them quite a bit, so they don't rust in place due to trapped moisture. Once the jars are cool, you can check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. Just press in the center, gently, with your finger. If it pops up and down (often making a popping sound), it is not sealed. If you put the jar in the refrigerator right away, you can still use it. Some people replace the lid and reprocess the jar, then that's a bit iffy. If you heat the contents back up, re-jar them (with a new lid) and the full time in the canner, it's usually ok. You're done!

 

 

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Comments and Tips

Q. I am wondering if the potatoes have to be peeled? I have always just left the skins on when cooking and would rather can them that way if possible?

A. I can’t think of a reason why they must be peeled.  I suspect it is just done for aesthetic purposes, as the skins will likely fall off anyway during cooking or while in the jars.

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Other Equipment:

See the canning supplies page if you need any of these.

From left to right:

1. Jar lifting tongs 
           helpful to pick up hot jars
2. Lid lifter 
           - to remove lids from the pot 
           of hot water 
3. Lid 
          - disposable - you may only 
          use them once
4. Ring 
         - holds the lids on the jar until after
         the jars cool - then you don't need them
5. Canning jar funnel
         - to fill the jars

 

Pressure canners! If you want to can low-acid foods such as red meats, sea food, poultry, milk, and all fresh vegetables with the exception of most tomatoes,  you will need a pressure canner.  These foods  fit into the low acid group since they have an acidity, or pH level, of 4.6 or greater. The temperature which must be reached and maintained (for a specified amount of time) to kill the bacteria is 240 F. Pressure canning is the only canning method recommended safe by the U.S.D.A. for low-acid foods such as vegetables, meats, and fish. Ordinary water bath canners can only reach 212 F and can not to kill the types of bacteria that will grow in low acid foods. This temperature can be reached only by creating steam under pressure as achieved in quality pressure canners. There are several manufacturers of pressure canners.  The two leading ones are Presto and All American (Wisconsin Aluminum). They are more expensive than water bath canners, but extremely well built - I bought mine in 1988 and it still looks and works like new! Click here for my page about pressure canners, models and prices. With a pressure canner it's easy.  And although a pressure canner costs $100 to $200 (see this page for pressure canners models, makes and prices), they last a lifetime, and your children and grandchildren may be using it. Mine is 20 years old and will last my lifetime! You can also find free information from the USDA in this PDF file (it will take a while to load!) about selecting and using canners here!
	Presto 01781 23-Quart Pressure Cooker/Canner Amazon usually has this (through the links at left) for about $79.  (which is a GREAT price for a pressure canner).  Click on the links at left for more info and current pricing. Features: 17 by 15-1/2 inches; 12-year warranty Heavy-duty 23-quart aluminum pressure canner and cooker Comfortably ergonomic, stay-cool black plastic handles Strong-lock lid with pressure regulator, dial gauge, and overpressure plug Comes with canning rack to protect jars during canning
	Shown at left is the Presto 23 quart pressure canner. Features below and click here for more information or to purchase from Target. Features: The easy-to-read dial gauge automatically registers a complete range of processing pressures Includes cooking/canning rack and complete instruction/recipe book and has a 22-quart liquid capacity Aluminum construction Holds seven 1-quart Mason jars
	All American Pressure Canner and Cooker #921 Features: Exclusive "metal-to-metal" sealing system Automatic overpressure release and easy-to-read geared steam guage Professional quality, extra heavy duty cast aluminum The smallest size holds 19 pint jars and 7 quart jars; the largest holds 32 pint jars or 19 quart jars One-year warranty
	5-Piece Canning Accessories Kit Five-piece set: funnel, jar lifter, lid lifter, jar wrench, and tongs Vinyl coating improves grip and prevents heat transfer Extra-wide funnel mouth Ideal for home canning Hand washable only Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours

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Illustrated Canning, Freezing, Jam Instructions and Recipes

[ All About Home Canning, Freezing and Making Jams, Pickles, Sauces, etc. ] [FAQs - Answers to common questions and problems] [Recommended books about home canning, jam making, drying and preserving!] [Free canning publications to download and print]