Question
Someone told me not to use cherry tomatoes in my spaghetti sauce due to inadequate acidity. If I pressure can the sauce and it also includes zucchini, onion, eggplant and fresh herbs, could it not also include some quantity of cherry tomatoes as part of the mix? I like to use up excess veggies in my sauce.
Answer(s)
According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, cherry tomatoes can be used for sauces, juicing, etc. as long as the guidelines are followed for acidification (adding lemon juice).
The recommendations for zucchini and other summer squash have changed. It is as follows:
Recommendations for canning summer squashes, including zucchini, that appeared in former editions of So Easy to Preserve have been withdrawn due to uncertainty about the determination of processing times. Squashes are low-acid vegetables and require pressure canning for a known period of time that will destroy the bacteria that cause botulism. Documentation for the previous processing times cannot be found, and reports that are available do not support the old process. Slices or cubes of cooked summer squash will get quite soft and pack tightly into the jars. The amount of squash filled into a jar will affect the heating pattern in that jar. It is best to freeze or pickle summer squashes, but they may also be dried.
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