Non-metallic lids for gerkins

[Kea]

Every recipe for pickled gerkins says use a non-metallic lid. Now I remember my mother-in-law using plastic lids but where do you get them? and how do you sterilise them? Obviously they won't vaccum seal but perhaps it doesn't matter if they're under vinegar?

Sorry so many questions there!

[Kea]

[Tulipa]

This is probably not much help to you, but if you need ordinary jam jar type jars, peanut butter usually has plastic lids, I find them really good for chutney.

T.

[Kea]

Yes i just thought of peanut butter lids but although my boys are keen on peanut butter I'm not quite sure if i can get them through enough jars before the gerkins rot!

Is the plastic covering on some metal lids enough?

[Tulipa]

I have got by with adding a jam jar cover inside the metal lid as protection.  The big cellophane circle then screw on the lid.  This works fine on my chutney.  I have never pickled anything to know if it would work but don't see why not.

Good luck.

T.

[Baccy Man]

Freeman & Harding sell plastic lids which fit their honey jars 144 lids for £8.50. Plastic coated metal lids should be fine though.

http://www.freemanharding.co.uk/cgi-bin/display-products.cgi?section=1

[Kea]

Thanks Baccy Man and Tulipa that helps. The ones in the supermarket have plastic coated metal lids.

I see freemanharding sell metal jars for pickle and say their lids are suitable......but the postage cost!!!!!

Which means that the plastic lined metal lids must be ok.

[Jeannine]

I use coated metal lids for chutney and pickles, same as the regular canning lids but have a white coating on them, and are made for this purpode and of course these can be sterilised or water bathed. XX Jeannine

[Kea]

Thanks Jeannine, you should just publish a book with all your useful info in it.....though I guess without people asking you wouldn't know what questions to cover!

[realfood]

Just checked my web page on pickles, and I am pleased to say that I did cover this point. See http://www.growyourown.info/page51.html

[Sally A]

Douwe Egberts coffee jars, but there is a special twist you need when placing the lids on to get them airtight. 

[Kea]

Realfood, does that mean you re-use old lids as well?

[realfood]

Yes, provided that they are undamaged. ie the plastic coating is still complete and the lid has not been mechanically damaged by being unscrewed with a metal gripper.

[jennym]

If it's for home use, you can double protect the inside of normal plastic coated jar lids by coating them in olive oil. This is a bit like Tulippa's method of using cellophane jam jar covers inside.

[Jeannine]

I never re use lids, and only use proper canning jars, never  old jam jars etc. All my jams, jellies and pickles are water bathed after sealing, even with self seal lids. Veggies other than pickled plus meat , soups and fish are pressure canned after sealing. Fruit is waterbathed.

I only follow US dept of AG procedures for preserving food and would never do it any other way.

I always advise newbies to preserving to read about it on their site before they start.

Err on the safe side.

XX Jeannine

[Kea]

Yes I quite agree with you Jeannine. The risk is Botulism and it's not to be toyed with.

My Mother used to use preserves.....bottled fruit etc even if the seal had obviously been compromised e.g. Mould on the top!!!!!. She must have fed it to me like that when I was a child but I didn't know. We fell out big time when she tried to feed my children the same and as you can imagine didn't like my accusation that she was trying to kill my children and informed me I had grown up eating similar and I was still here!

[Jeannine]

Thank you Kea, I always get worried when I stick my neck out on this one, but having lived in North America for many years where canning is everyday to so many and they are so far ahead  with food preservation I get so concerned I feel I have to butt in. The jam one isn't as bad as the veggie one, but very scary to me, especially when I have known a family that succumbed.

I expect to be shot down as being too fussy but my point is to encourage folks to look into the pitfalls before they start.

Took a brave person to challenge Mum..well done.

I can everything including veggies , meat and fish which is not a problem if the equipment is right and procedures followed.

The family that I knew(one of which died) got sick eating home canned veggies.

XX Jeannine

XX Jeannine

[Kea]

Unfortunately Mum went on about that incident for the rest of her life but I knew she would!
I wonder now if some of the allergies I have were caused by something I ate/was fed as a child. My mother thought I was over protective but my two boys are the most precious things in the world to me.

[Canucksintheuk]

Have to agree with Jeannine on this!  I used to can everything in Canada - but had all the right equipment to do so.  It's usually towered in a big pyramid during 'canning season' in all the grocery stores - can get ALL the proper tools and utensils at the grocery store and at very reasonable prices.  The cost of buying all the proper jars, utensils and equipment here has put me off....as the initial outlay would cost me hundreds just in the mason jars alone.
At home almost everybody makes jams or pickles or does canning of some sort, and we used to do a big exchange of products.....it was great!

[Jeannine]

Hi Canuck.. nice to see another poster who calls Canada home!!

I kick myself for not bringing all my Mason jars back. I di bring about £6 dozen small jelly jars..full I might add.

Since I found the spaghetti sauce here that is sold in a Mason jar I have been fine, we waited for it to come on sale and bought about 12 cases. The caps and rings I just have sent over. I had to have a 23 qt pressure canner sent over to for my veggies as I left that behind.

Funny to picture the huge mountains of them in the shops over there.

On sale at K Mart $4.50 a dozen last year..oh my goodness that is cheaper than 1 jar here.

mm nice to meet you and welcome.

XX Jeannine