BALL Complete Book of Home Preserving

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description

From the experts, the definitive book on home preserving.

Ball Home Canning Products are the gold standard in home preserving supplies, the trademark jars on display in stores every summer from coast to coast. Now the experts at Ball have written a book destined to become the "bible" of home preserving.

As nutrition and food quality has become more important, home canning and preserving has increased in popularity for the benefits it offers:

Cooks gain control of the ingredients, including organic fruits and vegetables
Preserving foods at their freshest point locks in nutrition
The final product is free of chemical additives and preservatives
Store-bought brands cannot match the wonderful flavor of homemade
Only a few hours are needed to put up a batch of jam or relish
Home preserves make a great personal gift any time of year

These 400 innovative and enticing recipes include everything from salsas and savory sauces to pickling, chutneys, relishes and of course, jams, jellies, and fruit spreads, such as:

Mango-Raspberry Jam, Damson Plum Jam
Crab Apple Jelly, Green Pepper Jelly
Spiced Red Cabbage, Pickled Asparagus
Roasted Red Pepper Spread, Tomatillo Salsa
Brandied Apple Rings, Apricot-Date Chutney

The book includes comprehensive directions on safe canning and preserving methods plus lists of required equipment and utensils. Specific instructions for first-timers and handy tips for the experienced make the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving a valuable addition to any kitchen library.

Customer Reviews: Read 50 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

Saints Preserve Us! June 2, 2006
79 out of 80 found this review helpful

It was my lucky day when happenstance led me to this exciting new book.

There are more than 400 recipes within, basic ones for new home canners and sophisticated recipes for more experienced canners and those newbies with sophisticated palates. New preservers and experienced canners alike will appreciate the section (with lots of illustrations) titled "The Art and Science of Home Food Preservation."

The authors and their supporting cast know their stuff and impart that knowledge with clear language and instructions as well as helpful tips in sidebars for nearly every recipe, whether a special use for the preserved product or tips for selecting the best produce and ingredients for the recipe. They've answered the call for "ethnic" recipes and provide recipes the likes of harissa, 14 salsas, and five different chili sauce recipes as well as regional specialties like okra pickles. Among the eighteen chutney recipes, there's sure to be at least one blue ribbon winner for ambitious State and County Fair competitors around the country.

While the first 378 pages are dedicated to recipes processed in a boiling water bath, there is also a small section about pressure processing for vegetables and combination foods like beef stew and chili.

There are not many photos; I don't mind that. Those photos that are included are taste-tempting and colorful - I'm pretty sure I can taste that Thai Hot and Sweet Dipping Sauce just looking at the picture of it.

As a prize-winning Fair competitor for more than 25 years, I am really excited about this book and look forward to trying some of its innovative recipes for my family and my friends. I salute the authors and thank them for the newest addition to my preserving library. Saints preserve us!

Barb Schaller
Burnsville, Minnesota
2004 Minnesota State Fair "Prestigious Processor of the Pantry"

5 out of 5 stars

Great book, no matter your skill level May 13, 2007
56 out of 57 found this review helpful

I got this book about three weeks ago, having never canned or preserved, and I was completely impressed. Using the recipes inside, I've made pickled ocra, green beans, brandied cherries, sweet asparagus, and the hands down best pickle relish I've ever had in my life. It has hundreds of recipes, and they are all wonderful. If you're into fruit preserves or jams, sweet or dill pickles, slasas, relishes, chutneys, condiments, you name it, there are dozens of recipes of each type of food. I'll be tackling some home made wine and cranberry mustard next week. The first batches of pickles I made were with utensils I already had on hand. All you need is the mason jars if you have a well stocked kitchen. I've sense bought some bottle clamps to get the jars out of the hot water, but that's about it.

Here are the pros:
*) Thorough discussion of the steps of preserving.
*) Discussion on foodborne illness and how to kill it through preserving.
*) A look at high acid versus low acid canning.
*) A handy guide of produce weight and volume (for example, one pound of cherries equals 2 1/2 cups of cherries, so you know exactly what to get at the store).
*) Amazing, easy recipes for all levels of skill and tastes.
*) Dozens of variations on recipes (not just one type of cucumber pickle, but several!)

Buy this book if you're thinking of starting or even an old time pro. It's great fun, and it can produce pickles, ketchups, and preserves where you controll all the ingredients (and can even go organic!).

5 out of 5 stars

Great canning and preserving resource August 23, 2006
28 out of 29 found this review helpful

I have the Ball Blue book, but this book is a must-have as well. It has great details about the basics, plus several very unique recipes for different preserves. Highly recommended! Would be a great gift for the home-preserver.

5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Recipe Selection. Weak editing and sidelights. June 30, 2006
27 out of 47 found this review helpful

`Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving', edited by Judi Kingry and Lauren Devine, employees of companies associated with the `Ball' brand is published by `Robert Rose Inc.', the publisher of many similar `complete' volumes. Like many other Robert Rose volumes, especially the `Food Substitution Bible' by David Joachim, this book accomplishes its objective by sheer volume. If you have any interest at all in finding something that is NOT in this `complete' compendium, one look at the 400 recipes will quickly discourage you.

Needless to say, this great volume of material is a very good thing overall, however, around the edges of this book are the typical Robert Rose weaknesses of poor editing and pages of relatively useless information. One total waste of effort and space is the table of elevations of various cities throughout the United States. On the face of it, this would seem to be very worthwhile, as elevation determines how long one must boil jars of prepared preserves to safely kill all the microbeasties which may do you harm down the road. The total uselessness of this list is demonstrated by the fact that for the state of Colorado, there are nine elevations, while for California, there is but one, a totally useless one for Mojave, and there is no entry at all for the state of New York! What were these people thinking! Needless to say, this is a minor point; however, it does show a certain lack of editing acumen. The editors would have done a much better service to provide Internet sources which would tell one what the elevation is for each individual's home town.

The glossary is not as bad, but it also shows some significant editorial lapses. The very first entries cover the terms `acetic acid' and `acid' and to either a cook or a chemist, the terms are almost totally useless, as they largely tell one what they already know about acids. What is surprising is that in other parts of the book, acids are explained in much better terms, by describing the pH scale of acids and bases, and using that scale to indicate which ingredients need simple boiling and which require pressurized heat treatment to reach temperatures above 212 Fahrenheit. One big omission is that with all the talk about the importance of relative acidity in canning safety, the book says nothing about ways in which pH can be easily measured to within 2 points with simple indicator papers. If one does any striking out on their own in making combinations of ingredients, knowing the actual pH of the preparation before the preserving step is critical.

The possibly most notable weakness in the book is that all the really good stuff on technique, equipment, and safety is put at the back of the book, rather than at the front. It is obvious that the editors wanted to cater to people's inclination to jump right in. This is why they start out with five (5) classic `getting started' recipes with all the details built into the recipes, so you don't have to wade through all the technical stuff. One of their primary selling points is that preserving is no more difficult than many common cooking techniques such as making a soup or a braised pot roast. I think this point of view is just a bit dangerous. The importance of careful measurements of temperature and pH remind us more of baking than cooking.

Another annoying aspect of the book is the fact that certain points are repeated over and over and over, in almost exactly the same words. And yet, certain important techniques are stated in ways that don't make a lot of sense. One example is where we are instructed to measure the temperature of a boiling pot that should register several degrees above 212 Fahrenheit. The problem is, one cannot achieve temperatures above 212 Fahrenheit except inside a pressurized, sealed container. So how in the world are you to take the temperature in the sealed pot!

Now that I've had all this fun finding weaknesses in this book, I will say that it is still the best source I have seen on preserving techniques. By chance, I saw Alton Brown's `Good Eats' episode on preserving as I was reading this book, and the book covers everything in Brown's episode, and a lot more. The only point on which AB was stronger than this book was in his emphasis on the overriding importance of sanitation.

The best thing about this book is the very large number of recipes. If you happen, for example, to be fond of marmalade, you will find not one, but almost a dozen different recipes here for marmalade, just in case you get bored with plain old orange marmalade. The second best thing about the book is the troubleshooting charts to help you figure out what may have gone wrong with your too stiff or too watery jam. This tells me that the authors realize that preserving is not really that easy after all, and most people will encounter a few failures before they get it right.

So, for the price, this ends up being a very useful resource for preserving fans, even if it does not do the best job in explaining some of the background. I would have liked to see a bit more said about pectin, but then, all the practical stuff is here.

For those who have a yen for a more upscale treatment of preserving, see `Mes Confitures' by Christine Ferber, translated from the French and published by Michigan State University Press.

5 out of 5 stars

I love this book. Although I am a new canner. August 11, 2006
21 out of 21 found this review helpful

I am a new canner and I love this book. I did know a little about canning but this is my first year doing it by myself. I like the produce purchase guide in the back of the book and also the trouble shooting guide. The produce purchase guide shows you approx how many fruits and/or veggies to a pound so that if a recipe calls for something by pounds in lieu of cups it's there for you if you don't own a scale.

I have a basic garden, nothing fancy. I have done the tomato juice, Simple "House" Salsa and Peach Salsa from this book and they are all wonderful. I do like the step by step instructions since I am new at this. It maybe a little repetitive for the experienced canner but I liked it.

Hope you enjoy.

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