Question
I canned chunky applesauce last night using a water bath (this is my first time doing this) and noticed large air bubbles after I removed the jars and realized I had forgotten to use a spatula to remove the air bubbles. So, I immediately opened them, removed the bubbles and re-processed them. But there were still small bubbles, so this morning (about 12 hours later) I opened them again and mashed the apple chunks smaller, added some apple juice, boiled the sauce and again re-processed them (with new lids this time). I still see some tiny air bubbles but this time some of the liquid also seeped out during processing. Is this batch of applesauce any good? Thanks for your advice and help.
Answer(s)
The air bubbles in the first batches were most likely the result of using a raw pack. We see this often. Raw fruit tissue has air entrapped inside. When it is canned, it can cause bubbles, make the fruit float, or cause brine to boil out. You mentioned boiling the sauce in the lst go-round. Did that minimize the bubbles? The applesauce is safe, since you boiling water processed it - even three times.
There is a second reason we see boil outs. That is the difference in the fruit sugar versus the brine sugar. Again the fruit wants to float to the top, increasing the chances of boil out. When foods boil out, check that the lids have sealed well. Sometimes a food piece gets under the rubber seal and can cause it to release.
In the future you can make the sauce ahead of time and refrigerate it for a few days. That will help the fruit to absorb some sugar. Secondly, boil the mix and hot pack jars. These two tips should help minimize the problems.
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